Comparison

Tonspur vs Absorb

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

Head to head
About

Tonspur

Listen to your personal audiobook collection with this companion app. Enjoy features like adjustable playback speed, a sleep timer, and easy chapter navigation. Download books for offline listening and sync your progress across devices.

Highlights
  • Variable playback speed
  • Sleep timer
  • Offline listening
  • Chapter navigation
  • Progress syncing
  • CarPlay support
  • Multi-library support
Features
Read full description

Listen to your personal audiobook collection with Tonspur, the companion app for Audiobookshelf. Tonspur makes it easy to enjoy the audiobooks you own. Adjust playback speed to match your preference, set a sleep timer for bedtime listening, and jump between chapters with a simple tap. Download books to listen offline, and sync your progress across all your devices including iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and CarPlay. Connect to multiple libraries and switch between them effortlessly. Whether you're at home, in the car with CarPlay, or on the go, your audiobooks are always ready when you are. FEATURES: * Support for podcasts and eBooks * Variable playback speed and automatic sleep timer * Download books for offline listening * Easy chapter navigation * Multi-User Support * Easily switch between libraries * CarPlay support * Automatic progress syncing * Statistics * Widgets * Pinned Genres and Playlists * Integrated Equalizer

About

Absorb

This app provides a streamlined mobile experience for listening to audiobooks and podcasts from your self-hosted media server. Enjoy features like offline playback, chapter navigation, and listening statistics. It's a free, open-source solution with no ads or data collection.

Highlights
  • Offline listening
  • Chapter navigation
  • Sleep timer
  • Playback speed control
  • Home screen widgets
  • Listening statistics
  • CarPlay support
Features
Read full description

Absorb is a free, open source audiobook and podcast player built for Audiobookshelf, a self-hosted media server for your personal book library. Connect to your own Audiobookshelf server and enjoy your audiobook collection with a clean, polished mobile experience built specifically for iOS. Features: Stream or download books for offline listening Full playback controls with chapter navigation, sleep timer, and playback speed Home screen widgets for quick playback controls Listening stats and streaks to track your progress Bookmarks with notes Series tracking and discovery Light and dark mode CarPlay support And much more!!! Absorb is built by a solo developer and is completely free with no ads, no subscriptions, and no data collection. Your library stays between you and your server. Requires a self-hosted Audiobookshelf server. Visit audiobookshelf.org to learn more.

Screenshots

Tonspur4 screens
Absorb4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Absorb at none against Tonspur's 1. Absorb also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.7) and ratings volume (111 vs 6). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. Tonspur sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Absorb asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Absorb holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Absorb has 111 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of Tonspur's written reviews are positive against 97% of Absorb's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tonspur ships an update every 3 weeks, Absorb monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Tonspur versus Absorb: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTonspurAbsorb
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (6 ratings)4.9 (111 ratings) — better
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews97.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings6111 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS26.115.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size32 MB72 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTim OlbrichNathan Poulson

Customer experience

Tonspur

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative16.7%

Absorb

All ratings111 ratings
Positive98.2%
Neutral1.8%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews34 reviews
Positive97.1%
Neutral2.9%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Tonspur

One-time1
  • Downloads$8.99
None

Absorb

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Tonspur free?
Tonspur is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Absorb free?
Absorb is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Tonspur or Absorb?
Absorb is rated higher. Tonspur averages 4.7 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Absorb averages 4.9 from 111 ratings.
Do Tonspur or Absorb have ads?
Neither Tonspur nor Absorb shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Tonspur or Absorb?
Tonspur ships an update every 3 weeks, and Absorb monthly. Most recently, Tonspur was updated on September 25, 2026 and Absorb on September 29, 2026.

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