Comparison

PocketModel vs Brae

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

Head to head
About

PocketModel

Features
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PocketModel brings private, on-device AI chat to your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Start with the easiest path for your device. On supported Apple Intelligence hardware, PocketModel can use Apple Foundation Models with no model download required. Everywhere else, PocketModel highlights a recommended local GGUF model first, then keeps deeper catalog filters available when you want them. PocketModel is built for people who want personal AI without creating an account or sending normal chat requests to a cloud inference service. Features: - Apple Foundation Models support on compatible devices with no download required - Curated local GGUF model catalog with device-aware recommendations - Simple default mode that puts Apple Foundation Models or the recommended local model before advanced filters - Device-fit filtering, runtime budget status, and fallback/degraded state indicators when you need more detail - Private chat history stored on-device - Thinking Mode on supported models - Prompt suggestions for empty chats and follow-up suggestions after replies - Search within the current chat and across saved chats - Edit, regenerate, or fork earlier prompts into a new chat - Image attachments for supported local model workflows - Structured replies with preserved lists, links, and code formatting - Download, pause, resume, retry, update, and remove local models - Advanced: browse and install any GGUF file directly from a model's HuggingFace repository - Bundled and user-imported GGUF models are clearly distinguished in Discover and Library - Redacted diagnostics export that excludes prompt text, conversation text, document text, attachment paths, and personal facts - iPhone, iPad, and Mac support - No sign-up required PocketModel is designed around privacy-first usage. Chat generation and saved history stay on-device during normal use. Network access is used for actions you explicitly trigger, such as downloading model files or refreshing the curated catalog when that capability is enabled in a build.

About

Brae

Read full description

Brae is a local-first AI assistant for daily work and personal notes. It gives you a calm place to chat, capture ideas, review meetings, and keep useful context on your device. Use Brae to: - Chat with an on-device assistant for everyday questions and drafts. - Talk in Live mode, with typed fallback when speech is unavailable. - Use See World to ask about what the camera sees, powered by an on-device vision model when available. - Capture Meeting Notes, edit the transcript, and save it to your Library. - Review saved notes, call records, imported files, and generated artifacts in Library. - Keep Today focused on local follow-ups from your own notes and calls. - Manage local models in Model Setup, including downloads you explicitly choose. - Control privacy-sensitive features from Settings. Brae is built around local-first behavior. There is no account, no analytics, no advertising, and no tracking. Your chats, transcripts, notes, files, memory, and settings stay on your device by default. Brae does not operate a Bubustudio backend that stores your content. Network use is explicit and user-initiated: - Model downloads happen only when you choose to download a local model from Hugging Face. - Location, nearby-place, destination, and route lookups use Apple MapKit and Core Location only when you ask. - Optional iCloud sync is off by default and, when enabled, uses your private CloudKit database. - Optional web search is off by default. When enabled, Brae sends the search query to DuckDuckGoโ€™s keyless Instant Answer API so results can be returned.

Screenshots

PocketModel4 screens
Brae4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Brae at every 2 days against PocketModel's weekly. Brae also leads on iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PocketModel ships an update weekly, Brae every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 18, 2026 and September 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 4 level
PocketModel versus Brae: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPocketModelBrae
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 2 days โ€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac โ€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.018.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size10 MB33 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperWai Hei LamHaosheng Li

In-app purchases

None

PocketModel

No in-app purchases

None

Brae

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PocketModel free?
PocketModel is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Brae free?
Brae is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do PocketModel or Brae have ads?
Neither PocketModel nor Brae shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PocketModel or Brae?
PocketModel ships an update weekly, and Brae every 2 days. Most recently, PocketModel was updated on September 18, 2026 and Brae on September 12, 2026.

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