# Mad Monkey vs Aether Player

The clearest difference is rating: Mad Monkey at 5.0 against Aether Player's 2.0. Mad Monkey also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 6) and update cadence (every 3 days vs weekly). Aether Player's advantage is device support (5 vs 2). On price, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Aether Player sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Mad Monkey asks for nothing beyond the download.

Mad Monkey holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 3 respectively.

Mad Monkey ships an update every 3 days, Aether Player weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mad Monkey | Aether Player |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mad-monkey-spark-and-build/id6737187047/reviews)** | [2.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aether-player/id6775229911/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 2 | **3** |
| Positive reviews | — | 50.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 days** | Weekly |
| Monetization | **Free** | Freemium |
| Size | 217 MB | 160 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 26.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Vision Pro** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Mad Monkey AI LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1775137136) | [Vaclav Zmrhal](https://appshunter.io/developer/6774553226) |

## What reviewers say

### Mad Monkey

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mad-monkey-spark-and-build/id6737187047)

Connect with peers for collaborative projects or social activities. Share your ideas and find students or creators to bring them to life. Organize plans and track your time spent in the app.

**Highlights:** Post project ideas or activity plans, Find collaborators based on skills and interests, Organized group chats for planning, Build Mode for projects and startups, Fun Mode for social and offline activities, Profile showcasing skills and interests, Time tracking with daily limits for younger users

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Aether Player

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aether-player/id6775229911)

A personal media player for Plex, Jellyfin, and Emby servers, as well as local files. It offers a unified library view, supports a wide range of formats, and provides features like offline downloads and user profiles. Enjoy your media across all Apple devices with a focus on privacy.

**Highlights:** Connects to Plex, Jellyfin, Emby servers, Unified library view with deduplication, Supports MKV, HEVC, HDR, lossless audio, Offline downloads and Smart Downloads, User profiles with age rating controls, Customizable subtitles and OpenSubtitles search, Music player and Live TV support

**Features:** Family Sharing, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Supporter (Monthly) | $0.99 | per month |
| Supporter (Yearly) | $9.99 | per year |
| Small Tip | $0.99 | one-time |
| Medium Tip | $4.99 | one-time |
| Large Tip | $9.99 | one-time |
| Aether Lifetime | $39.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mad Monkey free?

Mad Monkey is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Aether Player free?

Aether Player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Mad Monkey or Aether Player?

Mad Monkey is rated higher. Mad Monkey averages 5.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Aether Player averages 2.0 from 3 ratings.

### Do Mad Monkey or Aether Player have ads?

Neither Mad Monkey nor Aether Player shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mad Monkey or Aether Player?

Mad Monkey ships an update every 3 days, and Aether Player weekly. Most recently, Mad Monkey was updated on November 4, 2026 and Aether Player on November 5, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*