Comparison

Arbiter vs Control

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

Head to head
About

Arbiter

This privacy-focused AI assistant operates entirely on your device, offering offline functionality. Choose from various open-source models to suit your needs, with all conversations securely stored locally. It's ideal for brainstorming, proofreading, and exploring AI capabilities without data collection.

Highlights
  • On-device AI processing
  • Offline model execution
  • Document summarization
  • Privacy-focused design
  • Multiple AI model selection
  • Local data storage
Features
Read full description

Arbiter is a privacy-first offline AI assistant that runs on your device. Choose from lightweight open-source models like Gemma, Llama, DeepSeek, Qwen, and Mistral, or connect to larger models running on your PC or Mac over your local network. You can also connect to Arbiter for Mac when it is serving a local model on your network. There are no accounts, servers, or data collection. All your conversations are stored securely on your device, under your control. Key Features: - On-Device AI: Download and run models locally on your iPhone - Apple Intelligence Support: Use Apple’s on-device Foundation Model on supported devices without downloading another model - Local Image Generation: Create images directly on your device with Stable Diffusion - Local Network Models: Connect to more powerful models running on your PC or Mac through tools like LM Studio, Ollama, or Arbiter for Mac - Visual AI Support: Upload images or take photos in-app to use with MLX-powered visual models - Document & File Uploads: Summarize files and extract key insights - Expanded File Support: Work with DOCX, RTF, HTML, Markdown, CSV, JSON, code, PDF, and text files - Bring Your Own Model: Search Hugging Face, download compatible models, or import supported GGUF files and MLX folders already on your device - MCP Tools: Connect to compatible MCP servers, review tool arguments, and run tools when needed - Optional Web Search: Access up-to-date information when needed, while keeping your core experience private and local - Smart Chat Suggestions: Context-aware suggestions tailored to your selected model and role - Personalization: Customize system prompts and model settings for a more tailored experience - Advanced Model Controls: Adjust context size, maximum response length, temperature, Top-P, and Top-K - Local Model Benchmarking: Measure model quality, speed, response time, and memory use directly on your device - Privacy by Design: Your conversations and data never leave your device unless you choose to enable web search or connect to a local network model - Model Flexibility: Choose from multiple open-source AI models to balance speed, accuracy, and memory use - Improved Reliability: Smarter context handling and enhanced error management for a more stable experience - No Hidden Costs: Avoid expensive cloud fees with local and local-network processing Whether you want to brainstorm, code, proofread text, analyze images, summarize files, search the web, or experiment with the latest open-source AI, Arbiter makes advanced AI models accessible while keeping your data in your hands. Device Requirements: For smooth on-device performance, Arbiter is recommended for iPhone 13 Pro or later, or devices with at least 6GB RAM. Older devices may experience memory issues or crashes.

About

Control

Features
Read full description

Your AI conversations with complete privacy. Control is a free LLM interface that puts you in charge of your AI experience. Chat with lightweight open source language models while keeping your data completely private. These mobile-optimized models offer basic AI assistance with the trade-off of complete privacy and offline functionality - everything runs locally on your device. This is a basic tool. Privacy & Data Protection: All processing happens on your device with no data collection or sharing. Your conversations never leave your phone and no accounts, logins, or cloud storage are required. Works completely offline with zero network dependencies for chat, no tracking or analytics. Your data stays yours and history resets after every session or 24 hours, whichever comes first, ensuring no persistent data storage. Choice: Choose from various open source language models and switch between models instantly to find the perfect AI assistant for your specific needs. Free and open source with no subscriptions or hidden costs.

Screenshots

Arbiter4 screens
Control3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Control at none against Arbiter's 4. Control also leads on update cadence (every 5 days vs fortnightly). On price, 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

Both are free to download. Arbiter sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Control asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Arbiter ships an update fortnightly, Control every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Arbiter versus Control: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterArbiterControl
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (16 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings16 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, MaciPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.4 — better18.5
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB9 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperJordan StoneCarlos Tarrats

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Arbiter

One-time4
  • Small Tip$1.99
  • Medium Tip$4.99
  • Large Tip$9.99
Show 1 more
  • Extra Large Tip$19.99
None

Control

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Arbiter free?
Arbiter is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Control free?
Control is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Arbiter or Control have ads?
Neither Arbiter nor Control shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Arbiter or Control?
Arbiter ships an update fortnightly, and Control every 5 days. Most recently, Arbiter was updated on October 8, 2026 and Control on September 29, 2026.

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