Comparison

DeadGraph vs The Dead Archive

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

Head to head
About

DeadGraph

Explore over 2,250 Grateful Dead shows from 1965-1995, accessing soundboards, audience tapes, and matrices. Ask natural language questions to find specific songs, guest appearances, or show details, and then play the recordings. Features visualizers and extensive playback options for an immersive listening experience.

Highlights
  • Access 2,250+ Grateful Dead shows
  • Natural language AI search
  • Stream soundboards, audience tapes, matrixes
  • Detailed recording information
  • Interactive year-based vault map
  • Eight built-in visualizers
  • CarPlay and AirPlay support
Features
Read full description

The shows. The songs. 1965-1995. 2,250+ Grateful Dead shows, with their soundboards, audience tapes and matrixes, straight from the Internet Archive. DeadGraph is a player for them, and a way to ask questions about them in plain language. ASK, DO NOT SEARCH "Longest Dark Star in 1972." "Shows where Branford sat in." "What did they open with at Cornell." Type it the way you would say it to a friend who knows, or just ask Siri: "Play Cornell 77 on DeadGraph." DeadGraph reads setlists, transitions, guest sit-ins and run histories, and answers with the show, then plays it. RECORDINGS, HONESTLY LABELED Many nights survive in several versions. DeadGraph lists the ones it has for each night with the source, the taper or transferer credit and the community rating, so you can pick the Miller transfer or the Betty board on purpose rather than by accident. THE VAULT, AT A GLANCE Thirty one rings, one per year, each show in DeadGraph a mark on its ring. Touch a year to go there. It is a map of the thing rather than a list of it. A LIGHT SHOW Eight visualizers built to be watched, not to fill space: liquid light, mandalas, prism folds, wormholes. Build your own color palettes, let it cycle through them on a timer, or leave it running on its own with no music at all, as a decoration. Works on the TV through AirPlay. BUILT FOR HOW PEOPLE ACTUALLY LISTEN CarPlay. AirPlay and Bluetooth output switching without leaving the app. Playlists. Background playback. Lock screen and Now Playing controls. iPhone, iPad and Mac, including landscape on the couch. FREE, AND MEANT TO STAY WORTH USING Browsing, listening, playlists and the whole light show are free. Free accounts get five AI questions a day. Pro raises that to five hundred and adds offline downloads, plus more playlists and chat threads, at 7.99 a month or 79.99 a year. Recordings are streamed from archive.org, where the taping community has kept them for decades. DeadGraph is not affiliated with the Grateful Dead or Rhino Entertainment. Terms of Use: https://deadgraph.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://deadgraph.com/privacy

About

The Dead Archive

Explore a comprehensive catalog of Grateful Dead shows, including setlists, song histories, and venue details. Stream available recordings and discover curated jams. Engage with a community of listeners and enjoy background playback with lock-screen controls.

Highlights
  • Grateful Dead show catalog
  • Stream Archive.org recordings
  • Setlists, songs, and venues
  • Curated and community-favorite jams
  • Community discussion board
  • Background audio playback
  • Tribute band recordings
Features
Read full description

Find your next Grateful Dead show, and the tape you want to hear. • On This Day: revisit shows played on today's date. • The 1965-1995 show catalog: browse every cataloged show and stream available Archive.org recordings. Community-rated sources help you find the best soundboard fast or compare audience tapes. • Setlists, songs and venues: follow a song through the years, explore venue histories and read each show's setlist. • Heady Picks: discover curated jams and community-favorite performances. • The Board: talk about the jams and see who is listening now when listeners choose to share. • Keep listening: background audio, lock-screen controls, AirPlay and Bluetooth let the music travel with you. • Tribute bands: explore Dark Star Orchestra (DSO) and Joe Russo's Almost Dead (JRAD) recordings. The Dead Archive is an independent fan app. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Grateful Dead. Free, with no ads and no account needed to listen.

Screenshots

DeadGraph4 screens
The Dead Archive4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: The Dead Archive at none against DeadGraph's 2. 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. DeadGraph sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. The Dead Archive 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 DeadGraph against 5.0 for The Dead Archive. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

DeadGraph ships an update every 2 days, The Dead Archive every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
DeadGraph versus The Dead Archive: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDeadGraphThe Dead Archive
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterEvery 3 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size56 MB7 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperMyron KochJohn D'Attoma

In-app purchases

2 purchases

DeadGraph

Subscriptions2
  • DeadGraph Pro$7.991 Month
  • DeadGraph Pro$79.991 Year
None

The Dead Archive

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is DeadGraph free?
DeadGraph is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is The Dead Archive free?
The Dead Archive is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, DeadGraph or The Dead Archive?
DeadGraph and The Dead Archive are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do DeadGraph or The Dead Archive have ads?
Neither DeadGraph nor The Dead Archive shows ads.
Which is updated more often, DeadGraph or The Dead Archive?
DeadGraph ships an update every 2 days, and The Dead Archive every 3 days. Most recently, DeadGraph was updated on November 5, 2026 and The Dead Archive on October 31, 2026.

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