Thistlebend Discipleship vs Study Gateway
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Thistlebend Discipleship
Access media and written resources designed to call, equip, and encourage women in their faith journey. This app provides biblical study materials and training for personal growth and ministry leadership.
- Media and written resources
- Faith calling and equipping
- Encouragement for women
- Biblical study and shepherding
- S.A.L.T. accountability model
- Resources for individuals and groups
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Welcome to the official Thistlebend App, featuring media and written resources for calling, equipping, and encouraging women to know Jesus and follow Him in love and obedience. Thistlebend Ministries provides resources, training, and support for women—those who want to know how to live what they believe. We offer local, satellite, and online resources for churches, ministry leaders, small groups, and individuals. Our resources are grounded in the Word of God and focused on intensive, intentional, biblical study and shepherding and use our S.A.L.T. accountability model. This model is built upon four pillars: Submission, Accountability, Laboring, and Transparency. The model is designed to promote genuine life change through confession, repentance, and radical obedience to God and His Word. The Thistlebend Discipleship app was developed with the Subsplash App Platform. Mobile app version: 6.22.0
Study Gateway
Access a vast library of on-demand video Bible studies from renowned Christian teachers and authors. Explore topics like discipleship, healing, and Christian living through engaging video content. This service is available as part of a subscription.
- On-demand video Bible studies
- World-renowned Bible teachers
- Thousands of study videos
- Discipleship and Christian living topics
- Overcoming and healing content
- Bible discussion resources
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Study Gateway is the streaming video Bible study service from Zondervan and Thomas Nelson, featuring the world’s most-trusted Bible teachers, authors and pastors, including Max Lucado, Anne Graham Lotz, Louie Giglio, Rick Warren, Derwin Gray, Lysa TerKeurst, Jennie Allen, Andy Stanley, Chrystal Evans Hurst, John Ortberg, Ann Voskamp, Christine Caine, Jada Edwards, Bob Goff, and Jim Cymbala. Watch thousands of Bible study videos on subjects like discipleship, overcoming and healing, Christian living, and Bible discussion. Get the app as a part of your Study Gateway subscription. Terms of Service: https://watch.studygateway.com/tos Privacy Policy: https://watch.studygateway.com/privacy
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Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Thistlebend Discipleship at 5.0 against Study Gateway's 4.2. Thistlebend Discipleship also leads on monetization model (free vs subscription) and review sentiment (100% vs 75%). Study Gateway's advantage is ratings volume (900 vs 3). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Thistlebend Discipleship holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Study Gateway has 900 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Thistlebend Discipleship's written reviews are positive against 75% of Study Gateway's.
Thistlebend Discipleship ships an update every 4 months, Study Gateway every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on July 6, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Thistlebend Discipleship | Study Gateway |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better | 4.2 (900 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 75.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 900 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months — better | Every 5 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Subscription |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 54 MB | 68 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Thistlebend Ministries Inc. | HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc. |
Customer experience
Thistlebend Discipleship
Study Gateway
Bugs and requests
Thistlebend Discipleship
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Study Gateway
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes frequently
- Unable to access purchased content
- Login and password issues
- Compatibility problems on various devices
Requested features
3 requests- Improve app stability and user experience
- Provide better customer service and account management
- Simplify subscription and cancellation process
In-app purchases
Thistlebend Discipleship
No in-app purchases
Study Gateway
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Thistlebend Discipleship free?
Is Study Gateway free?
Which has better reviews, Thistlebend Discipleship or Study Gateway?
Do Thistlebend Discipleship or Study Gateway have ads?
Which is updated more often, Thistlebend Discipleship or Study Gateway?
Other comparisons
