Comparison

Icarus vs ShelfPulse

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

Head to head
About

Icarus

Consolidate all your media management services into a single, intuitive application. Monitor requests, track releases, and view live streams from various connected platforms. Access and manage your media setup remotely with real-time notifications.

Highlights
  • Unified dashboard for requests and releases
  • Seamless integration with Sonarr, Radarr, Overseerr, Tautulli
  • Real-time notifications for media events
  • Discover and manage trending titles
  • Remote access to media setup
Features
Read full description

Your media. Your rules. Free to use. Every feature included. Icarus brings your movies, TV shows, music, and books together in one native app for Apple devices. Find a familiar favorite, discover your next obsession, and keep your media organized without jumping between apps. Divine by name. Unreasonably useful by nature. • Your library, together Browse media, requests, and activity from your connected servers and services in one place. • Discover more Explore recommendations, browse collections, and search for movies, shows, and people. Meet the cast and get the details behind the poster. • A little divine order See what’s available, upcoming, or requested. Manage supported library details and requests, and keep track of what comes next. • Press play Enjoy movies, music, and audiobooks through compatible connected services. Check playback activity and use supported playback controls from your device. • Stay in the loop Get push notifications for supported events, including media availability, requests, and playback activity. • Your setup, your choice Connect Icarus directly to supported services, or pair it with Hades, our optional self-hosted server. Access your setup away from home when your services are configured for remote access. FREE TO USE No subscriptions. No paid feature tiers. No ads. Every Icarus feature is included. HADES Icarus for iOS includes optional support for 'Hades - Media Server' which includes more robust features and permissions. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your media and server data stay with the devices and systems you control. We do not sell your data or use it for advertising. Essential account, connection, and notification-routing data are handled as described in our Privacy Policy. BRING YOUR OWN MEDIA Icarus is a client for your existing media servers and services. It does not provide or host movies, TV shows, music, books, or other media. You need your own media library and compatible services. Some connected services may require their own accounts or subscriptions. Features vary by platform and integration. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://myicarus.app/privacypolicy.html

About

ShelfPulse

Monitor your Audiobookshelf server with real-time dashboards, deep listening analytics, and library insights. Manage users, view beautiful home screen widgets, and gain personal or administrative perspectives on your audiobook collection. Enjoy a privacy-first experience with direct server connection.

Highlights
  • Real-time session monitoring
  • Deep listening analytics
  • Library and server insights
  • User management
  • Home screen widgets
  • Direct server connection
Features
Read full description

Real-Time Dashboard: Monitor active sessions, playback progress, and device details instantly. Deep Analytics: Track listening time, streaks, favorite genres, and full history. Library Insights: Explore detailed server trends and collection statistics. Admin Functionality: Manage Users: Create, Edit, Delete and reset passwords for users of your server. Beautiful Widgets: Keep your listening stats visible right on your home screen. For Everyone: Full server monitoring for Admins and personal insights for standard users. Privacy First: Direct connection to your server with no cloud services or data collection. 3-Day Free Trial: Experience full functionality risk-free. Requires an Audiobookshelf server. https://www.audrabooks.app/shelfpulse/terms https://www.audrabooks.app/shelfpulse/privacy

Screenshots

Icarus4 screens
ShelfPulse4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: ShelfPulse at 4.9 against Icarus's 4.0. ShelfPulse also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 78%). Icarus's advantage is device support (4 vs 1). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. Icarus sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and ShelfPulse sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ShelfPulse holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 9 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 78% of Icarus's written reviews are positive against 100% of ShelfPulse's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Icarus versus ShelfPulse: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIcarusShelfPulse
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (6 ratings)4.9 (9 ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings69 — better
Update frequencyWeeklyWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Vision Pro — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.5
Further details — not scored
Size68 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLantea LLCEric Randall

Customer experience

Icarus

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive77.8%
Neutral0.0%
Negative22.2%

ShelfPulse

All ratings9 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Icarus

Subscriptions5
  • Basic Access$0.991 Month
  • Supporter$0.991 Month
  • Supporter Family Access$1.991 Month
Show 2 more
  • Supporter - Yearly$9.991 Year
  • Supporter Family Access - Yearly$14.991 Year
2 purchases

ShelfPulse

Subscriptions1
  • ShelfPulse Monthly3 Days trial$0.991 Month
One-time1
  • Full Access$9.99

Questions

Is Icarus free?
Icarus is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ShelfPulse free?
ShelfPulse is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Icarus or ShelfPulse?
ShelfPulse is rated higher. Icarus averages 4.0 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while ShelfPulse averages 4.9 from 9 ratings.
Do Icarus or ShelfPulse have ads?
Neither Icarus nor ShelfPulse shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Icarus or ShelfPulse?
Icarus ships an update weekly, and ShelfPulse weekly. Most recently, Icarus was updated on October 24, 2026 and ShelfPulse on October 24, 2026.

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