Critica vs Isnad
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Critica
This app provides critical annotations for Islamic texts, including the Quran, Hadith, Sira, Fiqh, and Tafsir. It flags and explains issues like violence, misogyny, and historical errors, citing specific sources for verification. Designed for readers seeking a deeper, critical understanding of Islamic tradition.
- Annotated Quran (Meccan/Medinan)
- Six Sunni & Twelver Shia Hadith collections
- Event-based biography of Muhammad (Sira)
- Classical jurisprudence (Fiqh) on contested topics
- Major classical Tafsir commentaries
- Source citation for every claim
- Filterable flags for critical issues
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Critica is a critical-edition reference covering the full primary sourcebase of Islam across five tabs: • QURAN — All 114 surahs, grouped Meccan / Medinan, with section-by-section annotations. • HADITH — The six Sunni books (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Nasa'i, Ibn Majah) and the Twelver Shia al-Kafi, with the most consequential and most-cited narrations. • SIRA — Muhammad's biography by event cluster — Mecca, Hijra, Badr, Uhud, the Jewish-tribe encounters, Khaybar, the conquest of Mecca, the Farewell Sermon. • FIQH — Classical jurisprudence on contested topics across the four Sunni madhabs (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali) and the Twelver Ja'fari school: apostasy, marriage age, hudud, polygamy, jizya, FGM, and more. • TAFSIR — Major classical exegetes (Tabari, Ibn Kathir, Qurtubi, Razi, Tabarsi, Zamakhshari) with their distinctive readings of famous verses. Every flag is sourced. Each section cites a specific ayah (Q surah:verse), a hadith number (Bukhari 5134), a sira page (Ibn Hisham 2:240), or a madhab manual (al-Mughni 9:486) so a curious reader can verify the claim in any translation. The eleven flag categories: • Violence • Misogyny • Slavery • Hostility to unbelievers • Anti-LGBTQ teaching • Harm to children • Scientific errors • Historical errors • Contradictions • Moral problems • Logical issues Filter by flag to focus on one kind of issue at a time. Tap any flag to expand its full annotation. The reading level is middle-school to high-school. The tone is editorial, not polemical — the reader assumed throughout is someone who was told the tradition was perfect and noticed otherwise, and wants substantive engagement with what mainstream critical scholarship has actually said. SOURCES Patricia Crone, Michael Cook, John Wansbrough, Gerd-R. Puin, Christoph Luxenberg, Tom Holland, Robert G. Hoyland, Fred Donner, Joseph Schacht, G.H.A. Juynboll, Ignaz Goldziher, Jonathan Brown, Wael Hallaq, Ibn Warraq, and the Skeptic's Annotated Quran. Classical sources cited directly include the Six Books of Sunni hadith, al-Kafi, Ibn Hisham's recension of Ibn Ishaq, al-Tabari's history, and the classical tafsirs of Tabari, Ibn Kathir, Qurtubi, Razi, Tabarsi, and Zamakhshari. Critica is the Islamic-tradition companion to Decanon (the same critical-edition treatment applied to the Protestant Bible).
Isnad
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Trace the people and paths behind hadith transmission. Isnad is a visual reference for exploring chains of narration, narrator generations, and the structure of Sahih al-Bukhari. Begin with Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), follow transmission through the Companions, Tabi'un, and later narrators, and see how each path reaches the compiler. FEATURES - Explore interactive chains of transmission - Browse Sahih al-Bukhari by books, chapters, and hadiths - Read hadith texts and view available isnad information - Discover narrator profiles and their place in the transmission network - Study the Beautiful Names of Allah with meanings, reflections, and cited evidence - Switch between English, Russian, and Arabic - Use the core library without an account, advertising, analytics, or tracking Isnad is designed as an educational reference. Information about sources and methodology is available inside the app. If you notice an error in a hadith text, narrator name, chain of transmission, or translation, you can contact us directly from Settings. The application does not replace qualified scholarly guidance.
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Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Isnad at none against Critica's 1. Isnad also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs monthly). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. Critica sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Isnad asks for nothing beyond the download.
Critica ships an update monthly, Isnad every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Critica | Isnad |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | — |
| Number of ratings | 1 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 19 MB | 24 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | OMAR DANIEL GRAZIANO | Mirshod Makhmudov |
In-app purchases
Critica
- Full Access$9.99
Isnad
No in-app purchases








