Ari Helper vs Eris.
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Ari Helper
This AI assistant operates entirely offline, prioritizing user privacy by not collecting personal data. It integrates with Siri for hands-free activation and offers text-to-speech capabilities. Users can manage conversations, download custom models, and even interact with self-hosted or cloud-based AI services.
- Offline AI operation
- Siri and App Intents integration
- Privacy-focused, no data collection
- Text-to-Speech with voice options
- Conversation history sync via iCloud
- Downloadable custom AI models
- Code syntax highlighting
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Introducing Ari - Your Easy-to-Use AI Assistant! Meet Ari, your personal AI assistant, right on your device! Similar to ChatGPT-5 and other popular AI assistants, Ari operates entirely offline, meaning no need for an internet connection. Your privacy is our priority – Ari doesn't collect any of your personal data. Start Ari anywhere with Siri and App Intents — just say "Ask Ari," speak your question, and hear the answer back. Power users get a full Shortcuts catalog: Ask Ari with any model (Apple Intelligence, local, or cloud), start chats, generate and edit images, analyze PDFs, speak replies, change settings, queue Code Session tasks on Mac, and dispatch prompts to other devices — all chainable in Shortcuts. Ari is on your wrist too: the Apple Watch app remote-controls Ari on iPhone. Dictate from the "Ask Ari" complication or Smart Stack, watch answers stream in, hear them spoken, and hand long replies to iPhone. Questions queue when the phone is away; private chats stay off the watch. Conversations show up in Spotlight — including by what's in their images. Ari reads text and objects in chat pictures on-device so you can search for "that screenshot with the receipt". Private media is never indexed. With Sensitive Content Warning on, flagged images blur behind "Show Anyway" (verified adults can opt out). More to love: Text-to-Speech (device voice or Ava); long-press to copy or retry across models; syntax highlighting with one-tap code copy; Previous Chats synced via iCloud. On Apple Intelligence (iOS 26 / macOS 26), Ari uses the on-device foundation model by default — private, no API key, no network. Attach images: the model can't see pixels directly, so Ari describes them on-device with the Vision framework (text, tables, barcodes, subjects). Prefer full vision models? Pick one from the menu. Download on-device models with a tap. First launch can install Google's Gemma 4 vision model sized to your device. Or paste a model URL. Self-host with Ollama or any OpenAI-compatible server — LM Studio, vLLM, llama.cpp, LiteLLM — by entering its address, or generate images with DrawThings over gRPC. Cloud providers with your own keys: OpenAI (GPT-5 family and GPT Image), xAI Grok (4.5 plus Grok Imagine), Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini (plus Imagen and Veo), and AWS Bedrock. Image-capable models accept photos; import text and source files. Cloud use reminds you each provider's privacy policy applies. On Mac, open a Code Session on a project folder with Grok for agentic tools — read, edit, search, git, shell, browser, web, and MCP — so Ari's GUI agent matches a terminal coding agent. Note: For strongest privacy with iCloud sync, enable Advanced Data Protection. Without it, conversations stay limited to your iCloud account but are not fully end-to-end encrypted. Optionally powered by Gemma 4 (HuggingFace) for offline chat and image understanding. Download Ari and keep your AI assistant at your fingertips!
Eris.
Experience private AI conversations entirely on your device. This app offers offline access to multiple AI models, ensuring your data never leaves your iPhone or iPad. Enjoy fast, secure AI assistance without internet connectivity or subscriptions.
- 100% Private conversations
- No internet required
- Multiple AI models supported
- Optimized for Apple Silicon
- One-time download, use forever
- Dark Mode support
- Haptic feedback
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Eris brings the power of AI conversation to your iPhone and iPad while keeping your privacy intact. Unlike cloud-based AI assistants, Eris runs entirely on your device using Apple's cutting-edge MLX framework. KEY FEATURES: • 100% Private - All conversations stay on your device • No Internet Required - Chat with AI completely offline • Multiple AI Models - Choose from Llama, Qwen, DeepSeek, and more • Lightning Fast - Optimized for Apple Silicon performance • No Subscriptions - One-time download, use forever • Dark Mode Support - Easy on your eyes • Haptic Feedback - Tactile responses for better interaction SUPPORTED MODELS: • Llama 3.2 (1B, 3B) - Meta's efficient language models • Qwen 2.5 Series - Multilingual capabilities • DeepSeek R1 - Advanced reasoning • Gemma 2, Phi 3.5, Mistral - Various specialized models • Code Models - For programming assistance PRIVACY FIRST: Your conversations never leave your device. No cloud servers, no data collection, no tracking. What you say to Eris stays with Eris. REQUIREMENTS: • iPhone XS/XR or newer (A12 chip required) • iOS 17.6 or later • 2-8GB storage per model Perfect for users who want AI assistance without compromising privacy. Whether you're brainstorming ideas, getting help with code, or just having a conversation, Eris is your private AI companion. Note: First launch includes a one-time model download. Models are stored locally for offline use.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Eris. at Free against Ari Helper's $14.99. Eris. also leads on ratings volume (6 vs 1) and iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.0). Ari Helper's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.3) and review sentiment (100% vs 80%). On ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Eris. is free to download; Ari Helper costs $14.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Ari Helper holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Eris. has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Ari Helper's written reviews are positive against 80% of Eris.'s.
Ari Helper ships an update every 5 days, Eris. every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 10, 2026 and July 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Ari Helper | Eris. |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $14.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | 4.3 (6 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 80.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 6 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 17.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 75 MB | 34 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Blaine Miller | Ignacio Palacio |
Customer experience
Ari Helper
Eris.
In-app purchases
Ari Helper
No in-app purchases
Eris.
No in-app purchases









