# Mebae vs Setsumei

The clearest difference is update cadence: Mebae at weekly against Setsumei's every 3 weeks. Setsumei's advantage is iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Mebae sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Setsumei sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Mebae ships an update weekly, Setsumei every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Mebae | Setsumei |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mebae/id6762408746/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1** | — |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 3 MB | 164 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.4 | **18.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Agustin Jaimes](https://appshunter.io/developer/948495400) | [Igor Kulman](https://appshunter.io/developer/1859561306) |

## What reviewers say

### Mebae

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mebae/id6762408746)

Learn to read and write Japanese kana with a structured, ad-free approach. Features spaced repetition, stroke order animations, and progress tracking. An optional purchase unlocks advanced handwriting practice and customization.

**Highlights:** Learn Hiragana and Katakana, Spaced repetition system, Animated stroke order, Pronunciation audio, Progress tracking charts, Multiple difficulty levels, iCloud sync

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mebae Pro | $4.99 | one-time |


### Setsumei

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/setsumei/id6797044009)

This app breaks down Japanese sentences into understandable grammar lessons. It highlights grammar points, provides pronunciations, and offers plain-English explanations. Users can save and review grammar points in context, with an offline sentence library available.

**Highlights:** Grammar highlighting in sentences, Word pronunciations and dictionary forms, Plain-English explanations and examples, Offline Japanese-English sentence library, Save and review grammar points, JLPT level estimation

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Setsumei Premium | $14.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Mebae free?

Mebae is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Setsumei free?

Setsumei is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Mebae or Setsumei have ads?

Neither Mebae nor Setsumei shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Mebae or Setsumei?

Mebae ships an update weekly, and Setsumei every 3 weeks. Most recently, Mebae was updated on October 7, 2026 and Setsumei on October 16, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*