Comparison

Flow Audiobook Player vs Archive Sifter

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Plex integration
  • Audiobookshelf support
  • Dropbox and cloud storage streaming
  • WebDAV connectivity
  • Offline audiobook downloads
  • Multiple audio format support
  • Files app import
Features
Read full description

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/

About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read full description

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

Flow Audiobook Player4 screens
Archive Sifter4 screens

Verdict

The call

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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

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.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Flow Audiobook Player versus Archive Sifter: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFlow Audiobook PlayerArchive Sifter
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings15 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better17.2
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB2 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperMike FifieldWILLIAM DANN HARVIE

Customer experience

Flow Audiobook Player

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Archive Sifter

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Flow Audiobook Player

Subscriptions1
  • Flow Pro Annual$4.991 Year
None

Archive Sifter

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Flow Audiobook Player free?
Flow Audiobook Player costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Archive Sifter free?
Archive Sifter is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Flow Audiobook Player or Archive Sifter?
Flow Audiobook Player and Archive Sifter are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 5 ratings respectively.
Do Flow Audiobook Player or Archive Sifter have ads?
Neither Flow Audiobook Player nor Archive Sifter shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Flow Audiobook Player or Archive Sifter?
Flow Audiobook Player ships an update every 5 weeks, and Archive Sifter daily. Most recently, Flow Audiobook Player was updated on October 28, 2026 and Archive Sifter on October 24, 2026.

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