Comparison

Forge vs Anvil

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

Head to head
About

Forge

This app offers a comprehensive suite of 24 developer tools, including text and data manipulation, encoding, hashing, and web utilities. It operates entirely offline, prioritizing user privacy by not collecting personal data. Access generators, converters, and cheat sheets conveniently on your mobile device.

Highlights
  • 24+ offline developer tools
  • Text & data manipulation
  • Encoding & hashing utilities
  • Web & API tools
  • Generators & converters
  • Cheat sheets & playgrounds
  • Privacy-focused, no data collection
Features
Read full description

Forge puts 24 essential developer tools in your pocket — all running 100% offline, with no personal data collected (just anonymous usage diagnostics). Stop Googling for converters, formatters, and generators. Forge handles them all in one beautiful, lightning-fast app. WHAT'S INSIDE Text & Data Tools • JSON Studio — format, validate, minify, and explore with tree view • Regex Lab — build and test patterns with live highlighting and a built-in playground • Markdown Preview — instant rendered preview as you type • Diff Viewer — side-by-side text comparison with highlighted changes • SQL Formatter — beautify and minify SQL queries • Lorem Generator — configurable placeholder text Encoding & Hashing • Base64, URL, and HTML entity encoder/decoder • Hash Generator — MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, SHA-512, HMAC • String Escaper — escape/unescape for JSON, regex, SQL, HTML, XML Web & API Tools • JWT Inspector — decode tokens, view claims, check expiration • cURL Builder — visual HTTP request builder with generated commands • HTTP Reference — status codes, methods, and headers at a glance Generators & Converters • UUID Generator — v4 with bulk mode and copy history • Password Generator — strong passwords and API-key-style tokens • Timestamp Converter — Unix to human-readable with timezone support • Color Converter — HEX, RGB, HSL, SwiftUI, and CSS with live preview • Number Base Converter — decimal, binary, hex, and octal • Pixel Density Converter — pt, dp, px, rem, and em across platforms • Unix Permissions Calculator — chmod made visual • Cron Expression Builder — create and decode cron schedules • String Case Converter — camelCase, snake_case, kebab-case, and more • Text Statistics — word, character, line, and byte counts • IP/Subnet Calculator — CIDR, subnet masks, and IP ranges • QR Code Generator & Reader — create and scan QR codes on-device CHEAT SHEETS & PLAYGROUNDS • Regex, Git, SQL, Bash, Vim, CSS cheat sheets — always available offline • Interactive Regex Playground with 25 progressive challenges • SQL Playground with a built-in sample database • 53 pre-loaded snippet templates across 8 languages BUILT DIFFERENT • Tools run 100% Offline — no internet needed for any of the 24+ tools (App Store purchases and iCloud sync use your own accounts) • Private by design — no accounts; anonymous, aggregated usage diagnostics only; we never sell or share your data • iCloud Backup — snippets, presets, and favorites back up to your own iCloud Drive; restore on a new device by signing into the same Apple ID • Smart Clipboard — detects copied content and suggests the right tool • Clipboard History — persistent log of everything you copy (stays on your device, never backed up) • Code Snippets — save and organize reusable code with tags • Batch Mode — process multiple inputs at once • Share Extension — send text from any app directly to Forge • 7 Home Screen Widgets — quick access without opening the app • Siri Shortcuts — "Hey Siri, generate a UUID with Forge" • Spotlight Search — find any tool from your home screen • Custom Themes — 8 accent colors to match your style 5 tools are free. Unlock all 24+ tools with Forge Pro — one price, forever. No subscriptions. DATA STORAGE - Your snippets, presets, and favorites back up automatically to your personal iCloud Drive, and favorites/recents also sync via iCloud Key-Value Store. All of this uses your own iCloud account — no data reaches our servers. - Clipboard history stays on your device and is never backed up. - Anonymous, aggregated usage diagnostics (no personal data, no tracking) are sent so we can prioritize fixes.

About

Anvil

A native toolkit for developers on macOS, iPhone, and iPad that streamlines everyday formatting, encoding, conversion, and inspection tasks. It supports a wide range of data types and formats, offering a focused and fast interface for common development workflows.

Highlights
  • JSON formatting and validation
  • Base64, URL, and HTML entity encoding/decoding
  • Timestamp and number base conversion
  • JWT decoding and payload inspection
  • UUID, ULID, and QR code generation
  • String analysis and data cleaning
Features
Read full description

Anvil is a native developer toolkit for macOS, iPhone, and iPad, built to make everyday formatting, encoding, conversion, and inspection tasks faster. Work with JSON, Base64, URLs, timestamps, JWTs, UUIDs, hashes, regular expressions, strings, SQL, CSV, YAML, QR codes, and more from one focused app. Instead of jumping between web utilities, Anvil keeps common developer workflows close at hand in a fast, native interface. Use Anvil to: Format, validate, repair, and inspect JSON. Encode and decode Base64, URLs, HTML entities, and escaped strings. Convert timestamps, number bases, CSV, YAML, and other structured data. Decode JWTs and inspect token payloads. Generate UUIDs, ULIDs, QR codes, hashes, sample text, and formatted code. Analyze strings, compare text, and clean up data while building or debugging. Anvil is designed for developers who want practical tools without clutter. Whether you are debugging an API response, preparing test data, checking a token, formatting a query, or converting values during development, Anvil gives you a polished native workspace for the small tasks that happen all day. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Terms and Conditions: https://anvilmac.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://anvilmac.com/privacy

Screenshots

Forge4 screens
Anvil4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Forge at free against Anvil's freemium. Forge also leads on iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. Forge sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Anvil sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Forge against 5.0 for Anvil. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Forge ships an update every 9 days, Anvil every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 3, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Forge versus Anvil: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterForgeAnvil
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyEvery 9 daysEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS18.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB96 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperZIma Logistics LLCAlex Javier Rivas Martinez

Customer experience

Forge

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

Anvil

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Forge

One-time4
  • Forge: Small Tip$0.99
  • Forge: Medium Tip$2.99
  • Forge: Large Tip$4.99
Show 1 more
  • Forge Pro$5.99
3 purchases

Anvil

Subscriptions2
  • Anvil Pro Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Anvil Pro Yearly$37.991 Year
One-time1
  • Anvil Pro Lifetime$79.99

Questions

Is Forge free?
Forge is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Anvil free?
Anvil is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Forge or Anvil?
Forge and Anvil are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Forge or Anvil have ads?
Neither Forge nor Anvil shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Forge or Anvil?
Forge ships an update every 9 days, and Anvil every 5 days. Most recently, Forge was updated on October 3, 2026 and Anvil on September 30, 2026.

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