Comparison

Orthodox Study Bible vs Patristic Library

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

Head to head
About

Orthodox Study Bible

Explore the Bible from an ancient Christian perspective with commentary from early Church fathers. Features daily readings, full lectionary, and search functionality. Access all content with a one-time purchase.

Highlights
  • Commentary from early Church Christians
  • Old Testament from Septuagint
  • New Testament from NKJV
  • Daily readings
  • Full year's Lectionary
  • Bookmarking and highlighting
  • Text search
Features
Read full description

The Orthodox Study Bible presents the Bible of the early church and the church of the early Bible. This one-of-a-kind study Bible is presented with commentary from the ancient Christian perspective that speaks to those Christians who seek a deeper experience of the roots of their faith. - Old Testament translated from the Greek text of the Septuagint, including the Deuterocanon ("St. Athanasius Academy Septuagint") - New Testament from the New King James Version - Commentary drawn from the early Church Christians - Book Introductions and Outlines - Topical articles - Glossary This app licenses and uses the text and notes of the Bible published by Thomas Nelson. SPECIAL TO THE OSB APP: - Daily readings per Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church in Baltimore (Old Calendar), the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (New Calendar) and the Orthodox Church in America (New Calendar) - Full year's Lectionary, Kathisma, 1- and 2-year reading plans, and more - Bookmarking and highlighting - Text search One can access all of the Orthodox Study Bible content with a single in-app purchase. No subscription is necessary. The "Today" screen is available for free: - Daily readings with accompanying footnotes and occasional topical articles - Morning & Evening prayers with appropriate day's Psalm inserted

About

Patristic Library

Access a collection of early Christian texts in a focused, offline reader. Browse authors, navigate works, and search the corpus with a clean, parchment-styled interface designed for in-depth study.

Highlights
  • Offline access to texts
  • Author browsing
  • Work-level navigation
  • Full corpus search
  • Parchment-styled reader
  • Serif typography
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Read the early Christian Fathers in a calm, parchment-styled library built for focused study. Patristic Library brings public-domain ancient Christian texts into a native reader with author browsing, work-level navigation, readable serif typography, search across the corpus, and a quiet Byzantine-inspired design. Browse major figures from the apostolic and patristic eras, open individual works, search terms across the library, and read without web clutter or account setup. The corpus is bundled for offline use, so study can continue anywhere. Built for students, clergy, teachers, and curious readers who want primary sources close at hand.

Screenshots

Orthodox Study Bible4 screens
Patristic Library4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Orthodox Study Bible at Free against Patristic Library's $14.99. Orthodox Study Bible also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.0) and ratings volume (53 vs 4). Patristic Library's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8) and chart position (#200 vs unranked). On update cadence, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

Orthodox Study Bible is free to download; Patristic Library costs $14.99 up front. Orthodox Study Bible sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Patristic Library asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Orthodox Study Bible holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Orthodox Study Bible has 53 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 89% of Orthodox Study Bible's written reviews are positive against 100% of Patristic Library's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Orthodox Study Bible ships an update every 10 days, Patristic Library every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Orthodox Study Bible versus Patristic Library: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOrthodox Study BiblePatristic Library
PriceFree — better$14.99
Rating4.8 (53 ratings) — better4.0 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews89.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings53 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#200 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size47 MB318 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperVDUB Software, LLCJoseph See

Customer experience

Orthodox Study Bible

All ratings51 ratings
Positive92.2%
Neutral7.8%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews28 reviews
Positive89.3%
Neutral10.7%
Negative0.0%

Patristic Library

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Orthodox Study Bible

One-time8
  • OSB contentFree
  • Contribute$5.00
  • OSB content + contribution$5.00
Show 5 more
  • Contribute$10.00
  • OSB content$10.00
  • OSB content + contribution$10.00
  • Contribute$20.00
  • OSB content + contribution$20.00
None

Patristic Library

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Orthodox Study Bible free?
Orthodox Study Bible is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Patristic Library free?
Patristic Library costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Orthodox Study Bible or Patristic Library?
Orthodox Study Bible is rated higher. Orthodox Study Bible averages 4.8 out of 5 from 53 ratings, while Patristic Library averages 4.0 from 4 ratings.
Do Orthodox Study Bible or Patristic Library have ads?
Neither Orthodox Study Bible nor Patristic Library shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Orthodox Study Bible or Patristic Library?
Orthodox Study Bible ships an update every 10 days, and Patristic Library every 6 days. Most recently, Orthodox Study Bible was updated on November 4, 2026 and Patristic Library on October 31, 2026.

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