abstand vs Fable Frog
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
abstand
This app unifies your audiobooks and podcasts into a single library. Listen to both long-form books and episodic shows seamlessly, with offline downloads for uninterrupted enjoyment. Track your listening habits and stay motivated with built-in achievements.
- Unified audiobook and podcast library
- Offline downloads
- Listening habit tracking
- Achievements and motivation
- Designed for Audiobookshelf servers
Read full descriptionHide full description
Your Audiobookshelf library: audiobooks and podcasts in one place. Abstand is built for listeners who don’t want to switch libraries. Connect to your Audiobookshelf server and browse audiobooks and podcasts side by side. All-in-1 library Audiobooks and podcast shows live together. Continue listening, browse your catalog, and switch between long-form books and episodic shows without leaving the app. Auto-download Save what matters offline. Download audiobooks and podcast episodes for travel, commutes, and spotty connections—ready when you are, not when the network is. Achievements Turn listening into progress you can see. Track your habits, level up, and stay motivated with achievements that reward real time spent with your library. Made for Audiobookshelf Fast, focused, and designed for iPhone and iPad. Your server, your content, your pace. Download Abstand and listen the way your library was meant to work: one app, every story.
Fable Frog
This app offers a premium listening experience for your self-hosted audiobooks. Enjoy advanced playback controls, library management, offline downloads, and detailed listening statistics. It's designed with accessibility and privacy in mind, connecting seamlessly to your Audiobookshelf server.
- Variable speed and volume boost
- Sleep timer with shake to extend
- Chapter navigation with durations
- Bookmarks with notes
- Per-book playback settings
- Offline downloads with smart management
- Listening statistics and charts
- CarPlay and widget support
Read full descriptionHide full description
The best way to enjoy your audiobooks. Fable Frog is a native iOS client for Audiobookshelf — built from the ground up for a premium listening experience. Connect to your self-hosted server and enjoy your library with a beautiful, feature-packed player designed for how you actually listen. PLAYBACK THAT JUST WORKS • Variable speed (0.5x – 3x) and volume boost up to 200% • Sleep timer with presets, custom duration, or end of chapter • Shake to extend your timer without opening your phone • Chapter navigation with durations at a glance • Bookmarks with notes up to 5,000 characters • Per-book playback settings that remember how you like each title • AirPlay streaming to your favorite speakers YOUR LIBRARY, YOUR WAY • Browse by books, authors, series, narrators, or genres • Filter by progress and genre, sort by title, author, date added, duration, or last listened • Instant search across your entire library • Follow series and track upcoming releases automatically • Create custom playlists, rate and review books • Alphabetical index for jumping through large collections OFFLINE DOWNLOADS Download books and listen anywhere — no connection needed. Smart Downloads automatically grab your next listen and clean up finished titles. Wi-Fi only mode keeps your data plan safe. LISTENING STATISTICS Understand your listening life with daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly charts. See genre breakdowns, top series rankings, speed savings, finished book trophies, and fun facts about your habits. CARPLAY A dedicated driving interface built for safe, distraction-free listening in the car. Large touch targets, simplified controls, and quick access to recent and library books. WIDGETS Lock screen widget with a circular progress gauge for your current listen. iOS 18 Control Center widgets for quick play/pause without leaving what you're doing. MAKE IT YOURS • 20 themes including 3 accessibility-optimized options • Custom app icons (Neon, Sunset, Forest) • 6 text size levels from XS to XXL • Customizable lock screen widget icons • Configurable skip durations and player controls BUILT FOR EVERYONE • Full VoiceOver support with comprehensive labels and adjustable controls • Voice Control compatible — navigate by voice • Dynamic Type support — text scales to 200%+ with in-app size slider • Accessibility themes: High Contrast (AAA), Blue-Orange (CVD), Pink-Teal (CVD) • Differentiate Without Color support — shapes and icons supplement color • All themes validated for WCAG AA contrast standards • Respects Reduce Motion and Reduce Transparency system settings • Car mode with extra-large touch targets • Siri integration for hands-free playback control PRIVACY FIRST No analytics. No telemetry. No tracking. No ads. Your data stays between your device and your server — nothing else. Credentials are stored exclusively in the iOS Keychain. CONNECTS TO YOUR SETUP • Username/password and OIDC authentication (Keycloak, Authelia, Authentik, and more) • Custom HTTP headers for reverse proxies (Caddy, Nginx, Traefik) • Multi-library support on the same server • Automatic token refresh and session management Available in 15+ languages with full RTL support. Requires a self-hosted Audiobookshelf server (v2.x). Fable Frog is an independent third-party client and is not affiliated with the Audiobookshelf project. Terms of Service: https://fablefrog.app/terms Apple EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stddla/ Privacy Policy: https://fablefrog.app/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: abstand at 5.0 against Fable Frog's 4.3. abstand also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2). Fable Frog's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 3 weeks) and ratings volume (3 vs 1). On price, ads and device support 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
Both are free to download. Fable Frog sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $8.00 per year. abstand asks for nothing beyond the download.
abstand holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 3 respectively.
abstand ships an update every 3 weeks, Fable Frog every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 14, 2026 and September 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | abstand | Fable Frog |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | 4.3 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | — | 50.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 3 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 9 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 26.2 | 17.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 17 MB | 30 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Daniel Goletz | Paul DeVito |
Customer experience
abstand
Fable Frog
In-app purchases
abstand
No in-app purchases
Fable Frog
- Premium Annual$8.001 Year
- Premium Lifetime$12.00





