Comparison

Dead Format vs CrateSwap

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

Head to head
About

Dead Format

Connect with a community of vinyl enthusiasts to share your collection, discover new music, and engage in discussions. Organize your records, find local record stores, and buy or sell vinyl with other collectors.

Highlights
  • Share listening activity and collection updates
  • Organize personal vinyl collection
  • Participate in monthly Vinyl Challenges
  • Engage in community forums
  • Buy and sell vinyl records
  • Discover local record stores
Features
Read full description

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.

About

CrateSwap

Features
Read full description

CrateSwap is a community built for vinyl collectors. Whether you're searching for a rare pressing, organizing your personal collection, or connecting with other collectors, CrateSwap helps you keep your records in one place while discovering new music. Features include: • Build and organize your vinyl collection • Search Discogs-powered release information • Create and manage your wishlist • Discover records from other collectors • Trade records with confidence • Browse curated recommendations • Listen live to Southern Official Radio while you crate dig CrateSwap is designed for collectors who value music, community, and the stories behind every record. More features and marketplace improvements are added regularly as we continue building the ultimate platform for vinyl collectors.

Screenshots

Dead Format4 screens
CrateSwap4 screens

Verdict

The call

Dead Format and CrateSwap are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dead Format ships an update every 6 days, CrateSwap every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Dead Format versus CrateSwap: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDead FormatCrateSwap
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (134 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings134 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size93 MB38 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperDead Format LLCSouthern Official LLC

In-app purchases

None

Dead Format

No in-app purchases

None

CrateSwap

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Dead Format free?
Dead Format is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is CrateSwap free?
CrateSwap is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Dead Format or CrateSwap have ads?
Neither Dead Format nor CrateSwap shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dead Format or CrateSwap?
Dead Format ships an update every 6 days, and CrateSwap every 5 days. Most recently, Dead Format was updated on November 12, 2026 and CrateSwap on November 10, 2026.

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