Comparison

Plezy vs HydraShelf

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

Head to head
About

Plezy

Enjoy your media library with a sleek, modern interface focused on superior playback and offline access. Stream, download, and watch with friends, all without needing a separate subscription.

Highlights
  • Wide codec and HDR playback support
  • Download media for offline viewing
  • Synchronized watch parties with friends
  • Auto-skip intros and credits
  • Resume playback across devices
  • Browse libraries with rich metadata
  • Connect to multiple Plex servers
Features
Read full description

Plezy is a modern client for Plex, Jellyfin, and Emby, built for high-quality playback, effortless discovery, and offline access. Connect multiple servers at once and enjoy your media in one clean, native app—no subscription required. BROWSE & DISCOVER - Browse libraries, collections, playlists, folders, extras, and personalized recommendations - Search across every connected Plex, Jellyfin, and Emby server - Explore trending, popular, watchlist, and recommendation rows from Plex Discover, Trakt, MyAnimeList, AniList, Simkl, and Seerr - Match catalog titles back to your own libraries and request movies or shows through Seerr - See resolution, HDR, Dolby Vision, and audio-format badges at a glance PLAYBACK - Wide codec support including HEVC, AV1, VP9, and more - HDR playback, direct play, and configurable transcode quality - Switch between media versions with detailed file and stream information - Full ASS/SSA subtitles with styling controls and online subtitle search - Auto-play the next episode with skip intro and skip credits - Chapter navigation, thumbnail scrubbing, playback speed, audio sync, sleep timer, and video zoom - Picture-in-Picture, loudness normalization, and stereo downmix with center-channel boost - Resume progress and remembered audio/subtitle choices MUSIC - Browse artists, albums, and tracks with rich artwork - Gapless playback with a reorderable queue, Play Next, and Add to Queue - Synced lyrics, a persistent mini-player, and sleep timer - Background playback with lock-screen and media controls - Offline albums and tracks, plus selectable streaming quality LIVE TV & DVR - Browse and tune live channels with favorites and a full program guide - See what's on, browse show schedules, and manage DVR recording rules - Use Live TV across multiple supported servers DOWNLOADS & OFFLINE - Download movies, shows, albums, and tracks - Pause or resume the background queue - Create automatic download rules, including optional show specials - Browse offline and sync watch state when you reconnect PROFILES & INTEGRATIONS - Use multiple profiles with per-profile settings, downloads, and watch state - Switch Plex Home users with optional PIN protection - Discover Jellyfin and Emby servers locally and use Quick Connect - Sync watchlists, ratings, watched state, and scrobbles with connected services - Watch together with synchronized play, pause, and seeking - Control desktop and TV devices with Plezy Remote - Available in English plus 21 translations Some features require a supported server, media format, or connected service.

About

HydraShelf

Features
Read full description

HydraShelf è un client iPhone per Audiobookshelf pensato per accedere in modo rapido alla tua libreria audio personale. Collega il tuo server con la tua API key e ritrova subito librerie, contenuti recenti, statistiche di ascolto e progresso reale del tuo account. Puoi esplorare la libreria, cercare nuovi podcast, aggiungerli al server e scaricare episodi direttamente sul telefono.

Screenshots

Plezy4 screens
HydraShelf4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: HydraShelf at Free against Plezy's $5.99. HydraShelf also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (daily vs weekly). Plezy's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and chart position (#8 vs unranked).

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

HydraShelf is free to download; Plezy costs $5.99 up front. Plezy sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. HydraShelf asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Plezy ships an update weekly, HydraShelf daily. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Plezy versus HydraShelf: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlezyHydraShelf
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (124 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews74.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings124 — better—
Update frequencyWeeklyDaily — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree—
Best chart rank#8 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.5 — better17
Further details — not scored
Size124 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEdvard WikhallFederico Sebastiani

Bugs and requests

Plezy

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes on clicking movies/TV shows
  • Crashes within seconds of opening

Requested features

3 requests
  • Support for ripped extras
  • Picture-in-picture or background playback
  • Subtitle support

HydraShelf

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Plezy

One-time1
  • Supporter$3.99
None

HydraShelf

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Plezy free?
Plezy costs $5.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is HydraShelf free?
HydraShelf is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Plezy or HydraShelf have ads?
HydraShelf shows ads; Plezy does not.
Which is updated more often, Plezy or HydraShelf?
Plezy ships an update weekly, and HydraShelf daily. Most recently, Plezy was updated on November 5, 2026 and HydraShelf on October 31, 2026.

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