Comparison

Understudy vs Minds

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

Head to head
About

Understudy

Features
Read full description

Record your scene partner's lines, then practice the back-and-forth on your own. β—† Who it's for Actors, voice actors, comedians, presenters β€” anyone who has to learn lines and then perform in front of people. Professional or not. β—† How it works 1. Record your scene partner's lines 2. On the practice screen, play them back and say your own lines out loud 3. Tap to play. The app moves to the next line for you β—† What you can do Work without looking at the screen Tap and swipe are all you need, so you can move around and keep your eyes up. Every action comes back as a small vibration. Change the playback speed From 0.5x to 2.0x. Slow it down to check a passage, or speed it up for a quick run-through. Attach a PDF script Link a PDF to a work and read it while you record. The file stays on your device β€” Understudy only points to it, so nothing is uploaded anywhere. Add bookmarks and jump to a page in one tap. Bring in audio you already have Import music or any audio file you've prepared. Useful when you practice against a sound cue. Export your recordings and share them Export a scene as a ZIP. Move it to another device, or hand it to the person you're working with. You can also practice against a ZIP someone else recorded, with their voice as your scene partner. β—† From the developer At home, on the way to rehearsal, or in the hour before a performance β€” I wanted something I could practice with anywhere. That's why I made this. I hope it helps you. β—† About Understudy Pro Everything you need to practice stays free. With Understudy Pro you can see more of your data on the Practice Ticket and choose from all 7 ticket designs. You also get the Pro colors, and you can set a color of your own. Understudy Pro is an auto-renewing subscription, available monthly or yearly. It renews at the same price unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the current period ends. You can cancel any time from Manage subscription in the app. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://shimeco.github.io/understudy-pages/privacy.html

About

Minds

Features
Read full description

Speak it, snap it, or type it. Capture ideas by text, voice, or photo (OCR), and organize them into a clean mind map. Minds is a simple, lightweight, and completely free mind map app. β–  Three ways to capture β€” effortless Beyond the keyboard, jot ideas by voice or pull text from a photo with OCR. Get thoughts down without breaking your flow. β–  Clear and organized Nodes are auto-arranged into a tidy tree. Color-code, zoom/pan, and collapse subtrees to keep even large maps clean. β–  Search and export Tag items (with colors) and search across all your maps. Export to Markdown to move your work into other tools. β–  AI for a quick first draft (optional) If you like, generate a starter map from a conversation with AI β€” handy for brainstorming and planning drafts. ・Completely free ・Data stays on your device; iCloud sync is optional ・Works on iPhone, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro ・Great for organizing thoughts, brainstorming, meeting notes, and study Turn what's in your head into a map β€” just by speaking or snapping. *The optional AI generation feature requires your own API key for the AI service you use (Claude / OpenAI). The app itself and its core features are free and need no setup.

Screenshots

Understudy4 screens
Minds4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Minds at none against Understudy's 5. Minds also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs monthly). Understudy's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Understudy sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Minds asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Understudy ships an update monthly, Minds every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences Β· 2 level
Understudy versus Minds: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterUnderstudyMinds
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 2 days β€” better
AdsNo β€” betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo β€” better
DevicesiPhone, iPod β€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS14.0 β€” better17.0
Further details β€” not scored
Size42 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperShingo OtsuhataJun Tsuda

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Understudy

Subscriptions2
  • Understudy Pro (Monthly)$4.991 Month
  • Understudy Pro (Yearly)$29.991 Year
One-time3
  • Buy me a coffee$0.99
  • Add a donut$1.99
  • Add a sandwich$3.99
None

Minds

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Understudy free?
Understudy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Minds free?
Minds is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Understudy or Minds have ads?
Minds shows ads; Understudy does not.
Which is updated more often, Understudy or Minds?
Understudy ships an update monthly, and Minds every 2 days. Most recently, Understudy was updated on September 29, 2026 and Minds on September 27, 2026.

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