Comparison

Chonky vs CBZ Manga Reader

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

Head to head
About

Chonky

Features
Read full description

Chonky is a fast, elegant comic reader for iPad and iPhone, built for your own collection and offline reading. Import comics from Files, iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive or OneDrive, one at a time or as entire folders, and start reading. FORMATS • CBZ, CBR, CBT and PDF, plus ZIP, RAR and TAR READ YOUR WAY • Single pages or two-page spreads in landscape • Left to right, right to left for manga, or continuous vertical scrolling • Smooth zooming and double-tap zoom • Glass-style magnifier with adjustable size for fine details • Live Text: select and copy text directly from a page ORGANIZE YOUR LIBRARY • Groups and collections, with automatic grouping by series • Swipe to select multiple items, rename, duplicate and choose a custom cover • Bookmarks, reading progress, read and unread status, filters and search MAKE IT YOURS • Light and dark modes, accent colors, and English or German • Storage overview and one-tap library cleanup PRIVATE BY DESIGN • No tracking, advertising or data collection. Your collection stays on your device. Chonky is completely free and ad-free. If you enjoy the app, you can support the developer with an optional tip. No features are locked.

About

CBZ Manga Reader

Features
Read full description

CBZ Manga Reader is a local manga, comic, and EPUB reader for iPhone and iPad. Download it free and start reading. No account. No ads. Your books stay on your device. Open CBZ, ZIP, CBR, CB7, PDF, and EPUB without DRM. Password-protected PDFs are not supported. Turn pages by swipe or tap, read right to left or left to right, use two-page spreads on iPad, or scroll a vertical strip. Zoom, fit the page, and continue from the page you left. Keep books in more than one folder. Series sort themselves. Recents, continue, and the next volume are free. The reader gets out of the way. Bars hide after a few seconds. Tap the center of the page to bring them back. Choose Smooth, Balanced, or Sharp scaling. Sharp keeps line art crisp when you zoom. Premium is optional. It does not charge you to open a book or turn a page. On-device colorize includes 20 free pages. Premium removes the cap. Coloring runs on your device. Pages are not uploaded. Premium also includes: • Panel reading. Step through one panel at a time. Detection runs on your iPhone or iPad. • Volume buttons. Volume up is the next page, volume down the previous. In panel mode the buttons step from panel to panel. Swipe and tap stay free. • Favorites and piles. Group books you already have, and add every volume in a folder or series in one step. • Library search, unread / reading / finished filters, and a display name for a shelf. • Brightness, contrast, saturation, margin trim, and a magnifier. Pinch zoom stays free. • Bookmarks and a table of contents. • More accent colors. Coral stays free. • Discover. Sort, search, and more title suggestions. A short Featured sample, and a few Sequel and Similar titles, stay free. Titles and covers only. Never chapters. • Optional iCloud sync of reading progress for the same Apple ID. One Premium purchase works on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Premium Monthly is an auto-renewable subscription for 1 month at €1.99 per month. Premium Lifetime is a one-time purchase at $9.99 in the United States. The price you are charged is the price shown before you confirm, in your storefront’s currency. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. The monthly subscription renews unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel subscriptions in your App Store account settings after purchase. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://vytas-industries-web.vercel.app/privacy

Screenshots

Chonky4 screens
CBZ Manga Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: CBZ Manga Reader at every 10 days against Chonky's every 3 weeks. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Chonky sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and CBZ Manga Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Chonky ships an update every 3 weeks, CBZ Manga Reader every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 5 level
Chonky versus CBZ Manga Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChonkyCBZ Manga Reader
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS17.617.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB96 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperMichael SchiefeleVYTAUTAS SAPRANAVICI

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Chonky

One-time3
  • Kleine Kaffeekasse$0.99
  • Chonky-Förderer$2.99
  • Chonky-Superfan$3.99
1 purchases

CBZ Manga Reader

One-time1
  • Premium$9.99

Questions

Is Chonky free?
Chonky is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CBZ Manga Reader free?
CBZ Manga Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Chonky or CBZ Manga Reader have ads?
Neither Chonky nor CBZ Manga Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Chonky or CBZ Manga Reader?
Chonky ships an update every 3 weeks, and CBZ Manga Reader every 10 days. Most recently, Chonky was updated on October 28, 2026 and CBZ Manga Reader on October 29, 2026.

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