Comparison

Mollama vs TextMates

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

Head to head
About

Mollama

This AI companion runs entirely on your device, ensuring complete privacy and security. It offers intelligent conversations, creative support, and problem-solving without sending your data to external servers. Enjoy offline functionality and real-time interaction with various AI models.

Highlights
  • Fully on-device processing
  • Zero data transmission
  • Offline functionality
  • Real-time interaction
  • Multi-model support
  • Contextual understanding
Features
Read full description

Mollama: Your Intelligent AI Companion, Running Entirely On-Device Mollama is a privacy-first, secure AI assistant that processes everything locally on your device. It offers intelligent conversations, creative support, and problem-solving capabilities without sending your data to external servers. ## Privacy and Security - Fully on-device processing: Complete control over your data, no cloud dependency - Zero data transmission: No collection, storage, or sharing of personal information ## Core Technologies: MLX and Ollama - Powered by Apple Neural Engine: Efficient on-device AI for optimized performance - Open-source language models: Flexibility to choose models suited to different tasks ## Key Features - Offline functionality: Operates seamlessly without internet after initial setup - Real-time interaction: Natural conversation experience with quick responses - Multi-model support: Adapts to various tasks with different AI models - Contextual understanding: Remembers conversation history for consistent replies - User-friendly interface: Intuitive design for easy and straightforward use ## Ideal for - Developers: Code generation, debugging, technical assistance - Writers: Creative writing, text editing, brainstorming - Students: Homework help, research support, exam preparation - Professionals: Email drafting, report generation, data analysis - Creatives: Idea generation, storytelling, problem-solving - Lifelong learners: Exploring knowledge across multiple fields ## Technical Highlights - MLX integration: Unlocks the full potential of Apple's machine learning accelerator - Ollama support: Effortless management of large open-source language models - Resource-efficient: Optimizes performance while minimizing battery usage ## Privacy Commitment All data is processed locally on your device; we do not collect or transmit any personal information, ensuring your privacy is always protected. ## Get Started Download Mollama now to explore the next generation of AI technology, combining intelligence with top-notch privacy protection. ## Important Notes - Storage requirements: Sufficient device space is needed for AI model operation - Device performance: Experience may vary based on hardware specifications Download Mollama now and step into a new era of secure, private AI experiences.

About

TextMates

This app transforms your iPhone into a private AI assistant for your documents. Engage in natural conversations with PDFs and text files, receiving intelligent answers with verifiable citations, all processed locally on your device without an internet connection.

Highlights
  • Chat with documents
  • 100% private, on-device processing
  • Import PDFs, text files, and scanned documents
  • Natural language questions and answers
  • Multi-document querying
  • Source citations
  • Offline capable
Features
Read full description

Turn your iPhone into a powerful AI document assistant with TextMates. TextMates brings desktop-class AI capabilities to your iOS device, allowing you to have natural conversations with your documents while keeping everything completely private and on-device. Chat with Your Documents Simply upload PDFs, text files, or documents, and start asking questions. TextMates uses advanced AI to understand your documents and provide intelligent, conversational responses - just like chatting with an expert who has read everything. 100% Private, 100% Local Unlike other AI apps, TextMates runs entirely on your device. Your documents never leave your iPhone, and no internet connection is required after initial setup. Your data stays yours. Key Features: - Smart Document Processing - Import PDFs, text files, and more with advanced OCR for scanned documents - Natural Conversations - Ask questions in plain language and get detailed answers with numbered citations - Multi-Document Intelligence - Query across multiple documents simultaneously - Powerful Search - Combines AI understanding with traditional search for best results - Source Citations - Every answer includes verifiable citations linking back to your documents - Offline Capable - Works without internet after downloading AI models - Background Processing - Documents continue processing even when you switch apps Perfect For: - Students - Quickly find information across textbooks and research papers - Professionals - Analyze reports, contracts, and documentation efficiently - Researchers - Cross-reference sources and extract insights - Anyone who values privacy and wants AI assistance without cloud dependency Advanced Technology: TextMates leverages Apple's latest frameworks including MLX for on-device AI, Vision for OCR, and Metal for GPU acceleration. The app is optimized for Apple Silicon and the Neural Engine, delivering desktop-class performance on your iPhone. Why TextMates? - No subscriptions or hidden fees - No account required - No data collection - No cloud processing - Just powerful, private AI on your device

Screenshots

Mollama4 screens
TextMates4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: TextMates at 5.0 against Mollama's 3.4. Mollama's advantage is ratings volume (36 vs 1) and device support (3 vs 1). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

TextMates holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mollama has 36 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mollama ships an update every 2 weeks, TextMates weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Mollama versus TextMates: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMollamaTextMates
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.4 (36 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews41.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings36 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.2
Further details — not scored
Size296 MB29 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developer飞 杨Anchen Li

Customer experience

Mollama

All ratings36 ratings
Positive55.6%
Neutral16.7%
Negative27.8%
Written reviews53 reviews
Positive41.5%
Neutral18.9%
Negative39.6%

TextMates

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Mollama

Reported bugs

18 issues
  • App crashes on sending messages with certain models
  • Tokenizer metadata errors in offline mode
  • Unsupported model type errors (e.g., Gemma, Qwen3)
  • Models not loading when selected
  • App freezes phone during model download
Show 13 more
  • Download bar lags app significantly
  • Downloads stop when app is inactive
  • Downloaded models stop working offline
  • App crashes when trying to run chain-of-thought models
  • App crashes with Qwen2.3 35b
  • Keyboard overlaps chat box and send button
  • Cannot load external servers
  • App crashes when trying to chat
  • App crashes on newer generation iPad with Qwen2.3 35b
  • App crashes on older iPhone 11 Plus
  • Ollama access not working
  • App crashes when trying to send prompts in long chats
  • Camera button in chat window doesn't work

Requested features

10 requests
  • Add notification permission for background downloads
  • Show LLM name for each answer
  • Support for Qwen3 family of models
  • Ability to use any HuggingFace MLX models
  • Allow user-defined model folders
Show 5 more
  • Adjustable model parameters (temperature, etc.)
  • Shortcut support
  • Support for interacting with shortcuts
  • Ability to modify system prompt
  • Add a donate button

TextMates

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Mollama

No in-app purchases

None

TextMates

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Mollama free?
Mollama is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is TextMates free?
TextMates is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Mollama or TextMates?
TextMates is rated higher. Mollama averages 3.4 out of 5 from 36 ratings, while TextMates averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Mollama or TextMates have ads?
Neither Mollama nor TextMates shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mollama or TextMates?
Mollama ships an update every 2 weeks, and TextMates weekly. Most recently, Mollama was updated on November 4, 2026 and TextMates on October 30, 2026.

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