Comparison

Navidrome Player vs Darktone

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Navidrome Player

Access your self-hosted music library offline on iOS devices, including Apple Watch and CarPlay. Enjoy instant browsing, downloads, and Siri integration. A free tier offers limited daily playback, with a Pro version removing the cap.

Highlights
  • Offline library access
  • Background syncing
  • Download albums and playlists
  • CarPlay integration
  • Standalone Apple Watch playback
  • Siri voice commands
  • Adjustable crossfade and quality settings
Features
Read full description

SubSonify is a native iOS client for self-hosted music servers: Navidrome, Airsonic, Ampache, gonic, LMS and anything else that speaks the Subsonic API. Your library, offline, in CarPlay, on Apple Watch, and one "Hey Siri" away. There is no tracking in it, and the only server the app talks to is yours. Free to stream, with CarPlay. Pro for offline, discovery and your Watch. WHAT IT DOES • Full offline library. The app keeps a local copy of your library, so browsing and search are instant and work with no signal. It syncs in the background; there is no offline mode to switch on. • Home. Continue Listening, suggestions, For You mixes and Start a Radio from any song, built from your listening, on every server. The server's play history is imported too. • Downloads (Pro). Keep albums, playlists, songs or the whole library on the device; they keep playing when your server is down. • Auto-download (Pro). Starred songs, any playlist or smart playlist: new additions download on their own. • Synced lyrics. On the player, from your server or LRCLIB. • Smart playlists (Pro). Rules over your library, kept fresh and downloaded on their own. • Equalizer (Pro). Ten bands, presets and AutoEq headphone profiles. • Mix transitions (Pro). Beat-aligned blends from one song into the next. • Chromecast (Pro). Play on your TV or speaker. • CarPlay. Browse, search and play from the car screen, with artwork, queue, Up Next, shuffle and repeat. • Apple Watch. A free remote for the phone; Pro makes it standalone, streaming or synced, with the phone at home. • Siri. "Hey Siri, play [artist] on SubSonify" plays from your server. Artists, albums, songs, playlists, or "play something" to shuffle the library. Shortcuts too. • Internet radio. Add your own stations in the app; where the server allows it they are saved there, otherwise they stay on the device. Your server's stations appear too. • Crossfade and quality. Adjustable crossfade, plus separate stream quality for Wi-Fi and cellular: FLAC at home, transcoded on mobile data. • Five languages: English, German, Spanish, French, Ukrainian. SERVERS AND LOGIN Tested against Navidrome, LMS, Ampache and gonic. On servers with OpenSubsonic API keys, SubSonify logs in with a key, so your password is never stored on the device. Everywhere else it uses the salted-token authentication every Subsonic server has supported for years. Credentials live in the iOS Keychain and go to your server and nowhere else. WHAT IT COLLECTS Nothing. There is no account to create, and the app ships without an analytics SDK or a crash reporter. Listening history, playlists, downloads and settings stay on your device and your server. The app makes two kinds of connections: to your server, and to Apple for purchases. The one exception is internet radio: stations stream straight from the broadcaster, who can see your IP address. FREE AND PRO Free means streaming with no daily limit: your whole library, search, playlists, lyrics, Siri, internet radio and CarPlay. Pro adds downloads and offline playback, discovery (For You, Song Radio, Play something), the standalone Apple Watch app, the equalizer, mix transitions, smart playlists and Chromecast. Pro is available monthly, yearly, or as a one-time lifetime purchase. The yearly plan starts with a free week. Prices are shown in the app in your local currency. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of that period. Manage your subscription and turn off auto-renew in your Apple Account settings after purchase. Privacy policy: https://subsonify.app/privacy Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Screenshot music: Creative Commons tracks by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) and Broke For Free, CC BY. More at https://subsonify.app

About

Darktone

Features
Read full description

Darktone ist ein moderner, nativer iOS-Musikplayer für Navidrome-Server. Streame deine persönliche Musiksammlung in Lossless-Qualität, genieße animiertes Album-Artwork auf dem Sperrbildschirm, durchstöbere deine Bibliothek nach Genre und Jahrzehnt, lade Songs für die Offline-Wiedergabe herunter und passe deinen Sound mit einem 10-Band-Equalizer an. Entwickelt mit iOS 26 Liquid Glass und einem eleganten dunklen Interface.

Screenshots

Navidrome Player4 screens
Darktone4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Darktone at 4.0 against Navidrome Player's 3.0. Darktone also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3). Navidrome Player's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Navidrome Player sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Darktone asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Darktone holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 2 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Navidrome Player ships an update every 6 days, Darktone every 5 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Navidrome Player versus Darktone: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNavidrome PlayerDarktone
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (2 ratings)4.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings22
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone
Requires iOS26.126.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size64 MB28 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDoubleFau UG haftungsbeschranktSebastian Grunewald

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Navidrome Player

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$44.99
None

Darktone

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Navidrome Player free?
Navidrome Player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Darktone free?
Darktone is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Navidrome Player or Darktone?
Darktone is rated higher. Navidrome Player averages 3.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Darktone averages 4.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Navidrome Player or Darktone have ads?
Neither Navidrome Player nor Darktone shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Navidrome Player or Darktone?
Navidrome Player ships an update every 6 days, and Darktone every 5 days. Most recently, Navidrome Player was updated on October 24, 2026 and Darktone on October 24, 2026.

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