Flow Audiobook Player vs Archive Sifter
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Flow Audiobook Player
Stream or download audiobooks from various sources like Plex, Audiobookshelf, Dropbox, and WebDAV. Supports multiple file formats and offers offline playback. Import files directly for immediate offline access.
- Plex integration
- Audiobookshelf support
- Dropbox and cloud storage streaming
- WebDAV connectivity
- Offline audiobook downloads
- Multiple audio format support
- Files app import
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Turn everyday moments into time for a good book. Flow brings your own audiobooks into one beautiful player, with offline listening, flexible playback, and a library that feels like yours. YOUR AUDIO, ALL TOGETHER Connect Plex or Audiobookshelf to stream your audiobook libraries. Listen directly from Dropbox, or connect a compatible NAS, WebDAV server, Nextcloud, or ownCloud. Bring the books you already own and choose where they live. BRING FILES FROM YOUR CLOUD Import individual audio files or whole folders through the Files app, including On My iPhone, iCloud Drive, and installed providers such as Google Drive, OneDrive, and Box. Imported files are copied into Flow for offline playback; these providers are not direct streaming connections. GO OFFLINE. STAY IN THE STORY. Download books from connected sources before a flight, commute, or weekend away. Your downloaded and imported books remain available without a network connection. Removing a download from Flow leaves your original server or cloud file untouched. LISTEN AT YOUR PACE Choose playback speeds from 0.5x to 3x, jump between chapters, and return to your saved position. Use AirPlay or your connected headphones to listen where you like. WIND DOWN WITH A GOOD BOOK Set a sleep timer or stop at the end of a chapter. Save bookmarks for the ideas, passages, and moments you want to hear again. A LIBRARY THAT FEELS LIKE YOURS Browse cover art or switch to a list. Search, sort, mark favorites, and keep track of your listening progress. Personalize Flow with themes and accent colors. BUILT FOR YOUR AUDIOBOOK FILES Play common audiobook formats, including MP3, M4B, M4A, AAC, FLAC, and WAV. M4B chapter support makes longer books easy to navigate. Flow is a player for your own audio, not an included audiobook store or catalog. Audio must be playable without DRM. Server and cloud connections require your own account and access to the files. Files-provider imports require the provider to be available in the Files app. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Archive Sifter
Explore digitized films and images from the National Archives with a fast, modern interface. Browse archival media directly with smooth scrolling and streamlined search tools, designed for mobile devices. Discover historical content efficiently for research, education, or curiosity.
- Fast search of archival films and images
- Continuous image scrolling
- Keyword, ID, and date search
- Direct viewing of digitized films
- Download video files
- Bookmark and save records
- View record details
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Archive Sifter makes it easy to explore digitized films and images from the National Archives with a fast, modern, mobile-friendly experience. Unlike traditional archive websites that require navigating through record pages and image links, Archive Sifter lets you browse archival media directly with smooth image scrolling, streamlined search tools, and a sleek interface designed for mobile devices. Search archival records, view historic photographs, watch digitized films, and quickly save the records you want to revisit. Whether you're a researcher, student, filmmaker, historian, or simply curious about the past, Archive Sifter helps you discover archival content faster and more efficiently. Features: • Fast search across National Archives films and images • Browse images directly with continuous scrolling • Search records by keyword, ID, date, and other details • Watch digitized film records directly in the app • Download available video files for offline viewing • Bookmark records to revisit later • Save images directly to your camera roll • View record titles, descriptions, dates, IDs, and source details • Clean, modern interface optimized for iPhone and iPad Archive Sifter helps make public archival media easier to search, browse, view, and organize from your mobile device. Archive Sifter is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the National Archives.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Archive Sifter at Free against Flow Audiobook Player's $4.99. Archive Sifter also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (daily vs every 5 weeks). On rating, ads, monetization model 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
Archive Sifter is free to download; Flow Audiobook Player costs $4.99 up front. Flow Audiobook Player sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per year. Archive Sifter asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Flow Audiobook Player against 5.0 for Archive Sifter. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Archive Sifter has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Flow Audiobook Player ships an update every 5 weeks, Archive Sifter daily. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Flow Audiobook Player | Archive Sifter |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) | 5.0 (5 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 5 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 17.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 10 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Mike Fifield | WILLIAM DANN HARVIE |
Customer experience
Flow Audiobook Player
Archive Sifter
In-app purchases
Flow Audiobook Player
- Flow Pro Annual$4.991 Year
Archive Sifter
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Flow Audiobook Player free?
Is Archive Sifter free?
Which has better reviews, Flow Audiobook Player or Archive Sifter?
Do Flow Audiobook Player or Archive Sifter have ads?
Which is updated more often, Flow Audiobook Player or Archive Sifter?
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