Dead Format vs Gatefold.fm
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Dead Format
Organize your vinyl records, buy and sell them in a dedicated marketplace, and explore a comprehensive archive of pressing details. Connect with a community of fellow vinyl lovers.
- Vinyl collection cataloging
- Vinyl marketplace for buying/selling
- Pressing information archive
- Connect with vinyl enthusiasts
- Browse community profiles
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Dead Format is a community for vinyl collectors to share what they're listening to, talk about records, connect with fellow collectors, and more! Post what you're spinning, show off your latest pickups or listening setup, take part in monthly Vinyl Challenges, join conversations in the forums, organize your collection, find record stores, and buy and sell vinyl. One of the main features of Dead Format is the Home feed, and it works more like old-school social media. There's no weird algorithm deciding what you should see. The Following feed shows you every post from everyone you follow, in order, so you can actually keep up with what they're sharing. You can also browse the Discover tab whenever you want to see more popular posts and highlights from what's being shared by the rest of the community. Every month, there's a new Vinyl Challenge with a different prompt each day. Join in whenever you want, share a record that fits the day's prompt, browse everyone else's choices, and discover some new records and collectors along the way. The forums are a place for longer conversations, questions, recommendations, polls, and anything else that doesn't really fit into a regular post. Keep track of your collection and Want List, filter your records by artist, format, and more, upload your own photos, and track how often you're playing each record. You can even scrobble your spins to Last.fm. You can also find record stores near you or browse stores in other cities, save your favorites, tag them when you post about a recent visit or pickup, and help contribute any stores that might be missing. There's a Marketplace too, built around listings with real photos of the records being sold. Buyers can make offers, see shipping costs before checkout, and pay directly through the app. Sellers can list individual records or bundles, manage offers, and purchase discounted USPS shipping labels.
Gatefold.fm
Organize your entire music collection, from vinyl to digital, with detailed liner notes and a knowledgeable AI assistant. Discover new music, track your collection's value, and get personalized recommendations. Features hands-free voice control and CarPlay integration.
- Organize all music formats on one shelf
- AI-powered music assistant for insights
- Hands-free voice control and CarPlay
- Track stylus hours and prevent record wear
- Discover new releases and tour dates
- Offline record store mode
- Collection stats and insurance valuation
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The record store in your pocket. Gatefold is the OS for your music collection: vinyl, CDs, cassettes, and digital on one shelf, with deep liner notes and a record-store clerk who's read every title you own. No ads. No data mining. THE CLERK: KNOWS YOUR WHOLE SHELF Snarky, opinionated, deeply nerdy, and a blast to argue with. Ask for a pressing, build a playlist from your shelf, get the lore on a producer, or get your gaps roasted. He knows the pressing plants, reads the deadwax, and connects producers and samples a crate-digger would miss. "Three Ween albums but no Chocolate and Cheese? Get on that." TALK TO THE CLERK: HANDS-FREE Ask out loud and he answers in his own voice: who played bass, what to spin next, the story behind the session. CARPLAY: THE CLERK RIDES SHOTGUN Talk to the Clerk, play today's Spin, browse your shelves, or pick a mood and let him DJ a set, all from the CarPlay dashboard. DJ MODE Give the Clerk a vibe and he builds a set from your shelf, with spoken patter between tracks like late-night radio. DRIVING MODE Your music, your calm. Gatefold reads the road and cues something from your own collection to take the edge off. MARQUEE: YOUR TURNTABLE'S SECOND SCREEN Prop a spare phone or tablet by the hi-fi and Marquee becomes a "now spinning" display: cover art, credits, and pressing details, updating the moment you drop the needle. ONE SHELF: EVERY FORMAT One-click Discogs import built for huge collections, file upload, or connect Apple Music and Tidal. Add records by cover scan, barcode, or Shazam. Your Discogs stays untouched. Gatefold reads, never writes. Play through Apple Music or Tidal with your own subscription, or hear previews. TODAY'S SPIN Every morning the Clerk pulls one record from your collection: off the weather, an anniversary, a music holiday, or something you haven't played in months. A pick with a reason. THE HUNT: NEVER BUY A DUPE New vinyl from artists you own, plus tour dates near you. Scan any record in the store and Gatefold tells you if it's already on your shelf, or saves it to your wantlist. FOR THE DEEP COLLECTOR Offline record-store mode for the crate dig with no signal. Collection stats, genre treemaps, and cover mosaics. A live value estimate and an insurance valuation PDF at VG+. Stylus-hour tracking so you swap the needle before it wears your records. Repress and Record Store Day alerts for artists you own. A public profile you fully control, or switch off. Turn any album into art for Instagram, X, and Bluesky. FREE FOREVER: 10 records or 10,000. No ads, no tracking. The lights stay on two ways: Mosh Pit subscriptions and records you discover and buy. THE MOSH PIT unlocks everything: unlimited Clerk chat, premium AI, unlimited DJ sets and Flex art, the insurance report, scrobble to Last.fm, sync your shelf to Apple Music or Tidal, concert alerts for two ZIP codes, custom notes, and unlimited shelves. All photos in app come from photos taken by users. Terms of Use: https://app.gatefold.fm/terms
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Dead Format at 5.0 against Gatefold.fm's 4.3. Dead Format also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and review sentiment (100% vs 75%). 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
Both are free to download. Gatefold.fm sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Dead Format asks for nothing beyond the download.
Dead Format holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Dead Format has 112 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Dead Format's written reviews are positive against 75% of Gatefold.fm's.
Dead Format ships an update every 6 days, Gatefold.fm every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Dead Format | Gatefold.fm |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (112 ratings) — better | 4.3 (6 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 75.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 112 — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 days — better | Every 8 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Ad-supported — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 93 MB | 39 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Dead Format LLC | Matthew Goff |
Customer experience
Dead Format
Gatefold.fm
In-app purchases
Dead Format
No in-app purchases
Gatefold.fm
- gatefold.fm - Mosh Pit Monthly7 Days trial$5.991 Month
- gatefold.fm Mosh Pit Yearly7 Days trial$59.991 Year
Questions
Is Dead Format free?
Is Gatefold.fm free?
Which has better reviews, Dead Format or Gatefold.fm?
Do Dead Format or Gatefold.fm have ads?
Which is updated more often, Dead Format or Gatefold.fm?
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