Zen Stories vs ZenKoan
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Zen Stories
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Zen Stories is a calm, ad-free audio app for short Zen-inspired stories and quiet reflection. Listen to a story in a few minutes, track what you've heard, and come back with your own thoughts when something stays with you. What you'll find: - A calm library of short reflective stories - Gentle audio playback with low-noise controls - Simple progress tracking as you listen - Reflections from listeners, plus space to write your own - A one-time unlock for the full library, with restore support Zen Stories keeps the experience simple: listen, reflect, return. No ads. No subscription pressure. Just short stories with room to think.
ZenKoan
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ZenKoan is a quiet koan practice companion for people who want a daily Zen prompt, a simple sitting timer, and a private reflection log without audio clutter or account setup. WHAT IS INCLUDED - A daily koan with a short practice pointer - A searchable starter library, with the complete library available in Pro - Sitting timer presets for 5, 10, 20, and 40 minutes - Start and end bell sounds using system audio - Optional private reflection after a sitting - Sitting history and practice insights, including total minutes, streak, and weekly rhythm WHY IT IS DIFFERENT Most meditation apps optimize for large audio catalogs. ZenKoan is intentionally focused on koan study and silent sitting. It opens quickly, keeps practice controls obvious, and avoids feeds, ads, social mechanics, and forced login. FREE VERSION Use the daily koan, starter library, reflection flow, and up to three sittings per day. ZENKOAN PRO ZenKoan Pro unlocks the complete koan library, unlimited daily sittings, and the full practice history/insights archive. Monthly and yearly auto-renewing plans are available through the App Store. PRIVACY Your sittings and reflections stay on your device. ZenKoan does not require an account, does not show ads, and does not sell personal data. Terms: https://zenkoan.uptrail.ai/terms Privacy: https://zenkoan.uptrail.ai/privacy Support: https://zenkoan.uptrail.ai/support
Screenshots
Verdict
Zen Stories and ZenKoan are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters โ price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them โ neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
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
Both are free to download. Zen Stories sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and ZenKoan sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
| Parameter | Zen Stories | ZenKoan |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | โ |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.7.10 โ better | 18.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 21 MB | 3 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Fable Labs | Mitaanshu Agarwal |
In-app purchases
Zen Stories
- Full Unlock$2.99
ZenKoan
- ZenKoan Pro Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
- ZenKoan Pro Yearly7 Days trial$59.991 Year
Questions
Is Zen Stories free?
Is ZenKoan free?
Do Zen Stories or ZenKoan have ads?
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