Comparison

ARC vs Loreum

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

Head to head
About

ARC

Engage with stories by making choices that shape the narrative and lead to unique endings. Explore various genres, from romance to fantasy, with both short reads and full-length books. An AI companion can help guide your decisions.

Highlights
  • Interactive stories with branching paths
  • Short stories for quick reads
  • Full-length books with multiple endings
  • AI companion for decision guidance
  • Audio narration for chapters
  • Regularly added new stories
Features
Read full description

Stories you don't just read, you control. No gems. No ads. No walls. Try the first chapter of all the books on ARC. One flat price unlocks every chapter of every book. Make choices that change what happens next. Follow branching paths across romance, thriller, fantasy, mystery, and more — with endings that are genuinely yours. Got five minutes? ARC Shorts are complete interactive stories built for your next break. Want to go deeper? Full-length books with multiple endings are waiting. Features: • Interactive stories where your choices matter • 3–10 minute story shorts for quick, immersive reads • Full-length interactive books with multiple endings • Kiro AI companion to guide your decisions • Audio narration available for every chapter • New stories added regularly Pick a story, make your choices, and see where your path leads. Perfect for fans of interactive stories, story-driven games, and readers who want a more immersive experience. Download ARC and start your first story today. Every choice is yours. Every ending is earned. https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Loreum

Explore and create interactive stories with multimedia elements. Engage with a community of readers and writers across various genres. Offers a unique reading experience with choices and immersive content.

Highlights
  • Discover original fiction across genres
  • Experience stories with multimedia
  • Create interactive stories with choices
  • Publish stories chapter by chapter
  • Build and engage with an audience
  • Save favorite stories and collections
  • Follow creators and get notifications
Features
Read full description

Read, play, create, and share stories made for the digital age. Loreum is a social storytelling app for short drama, romance, mystery, true crime, horror, fantasy, fanfiction-inspired stories, investigations, escape games, and interactive fiction. Stories can have text, images, videos, sounds, messages, clues, codes, secrets, questions, choices, and multiple endings. Read and watch, send stories to friends, react together, follow creators, and discover what’s going viral. FOR READERS: • Read short, addictive stories and serialized novels • Make choices that change what happens next • Solve mysteries, investigations, codes, clues, and escape-game-style stories • Discover romance, drama, thriller, horror, fantasy, true crime, and more • Experience sounds, images, videos, messages, and interactive moments • Send stories to friends and talk about what you’re reading • Follow writers and get notified about new chapters • Find trending, viral, and editor-picked stories • Filter stories by trope, genre, or mood, and choose whether to include AI generated content FOR WRITERS & CREATORS • Write and publish stories directly from your phone • Create short chapters, interactive fiction, branching stories, and multiple endings • Add choices, questions, sounds, images, videos, clues, and secrets • Build an audience and grow your community • Share your stories on social media • Monetize eligible stories in one click • Earn money from completed chapter reads every month • Experiment with new formats without needing to code Write a romance where readers choose who to kiss. Create a true crime investigation with clues and suspects. Build a horror story with sounds triggered at the perfect moment. Make an escape game full of codes, secrets, and wrong turns... Or just write. Human-made stories. No AI. No Ads. Loreum is where stories become something you can read, play, share, and create. ---- Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy policy: https://loreum.co/privacy

Screenshots

ARC4 screens
Loreum4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Loreum at 5.0 against ARC's 4.0. Loreum also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 75%) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 26.0). 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. ARC sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Loreum sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Loreum holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 18 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of ARC's written reviews are positive against 100% of Loreum's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ARC ships an update every 2 weeks, Loreum weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
ARC versus Loreum: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterARCLoreum
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (8 ratings)5.0 (18 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings818 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS26.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB77 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperFishybear LLCPooki, Inc.

Customer experience

ARC

All ratings8 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%

Loreum

All ratings18 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

ARC

Subscriptions4
  • ARC Reader7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • ARC Reader Plus7 Days trial$24.991 Month
  • ARC Reader7 Days trial$99.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • ARC Reader Plus7 Days trial$199.991 Year
6 purchases

Loreum

Subscriptions4
  • Loreum Unlimited3 Days trial$5.997 Days
  • Loreum Unlimited$12.991 Month
  • Loreum Unlimited$49.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Loreum Unlimited3 Days trial$59.991 Year
One-time2
  • One Chapter$0.99
  • 7-Day Story Boost$19.99

Questions

Is ARC free?
ARC is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Loreum free?
Loreum is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ARC or Loreum?
Loreum is rated higher. ARC averages 4.0 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while Loreum averages 5.0 from 18 ratings.
Do ARC or Loreum have ads?
Neither ARC nor Loreum shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ARC or Loreum?
ARC ships an update every 2 weeks, and Loreum weekly. Most recently, ARC was updated on October 25, 2026 and Loreum on October 24, 2026.

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