Comparison

undertext Bible vs Colophon

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

Head to head
About

undertext Bible

Explore the original languages of scripture, word by word. Understand the Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic behind English translations with transliterations, glosses, and Strong's numbers. Listen to spoken pronunciations and enjoy a distraction-free reading experience.

Highlights
  • Original language word analysis (Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic)
  • Transliteration, gloss, and Strong's number for each word
  • Audio pronunciation of original languages
  • Distraction-free reading modes
  • Offline chapter access
  • Verse-a-day notifications
  • Cross-platform support (iOS, watchOS, tvOS, macOS)
Features
Read full description

sit with the language beneath the verse. undertext Bible is a quiet place to read the Bible next to its original words: Hebrew in the Old Testament, Greek in the New, and the Aramaic Peshitta beside it. one word at a time, each with its transliteration, a short gloss, and its Strong's number. tap any word to see what the English is standing on. every word can be heard, too. Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic, each read aloud in a real recorded voice. when You want to go deeper, Grace is an optional study companion grounded in the passage on the screen. when You choose send, undertext shares Your question, the passage in front of You with its original-language context, and from this sitting only, up to eleven recent messages and up to eleven of the verses You stopped at. the request goes to Claude from Anthropic, through Amazon Bedrock, and only after You give explicit permission. Your name, account, device identifier, and the rest of what You read are not part of the request. when You choose the mic, Your spoken audio streams through Amazon Transcribe to make an editable draft. the draft does not go to Grace until You choose send. keep what matters in a private journal and library. Your writing is kept in Your own private iCloud, or on this device when iCloud is not reachable, or held just until You close the app when neither is. the journal always tells You which of those is holding the page in front of You, and if a save does not go through, the words stay on the screen with a way to try again. undertext is built for stillness, not speed. one verse fills the screen. nothing else asks for Your attention. this iOS app includes iPhone and iPad, an Apple Watch verse-of-the-day glance, and Apple Silicon Mac availability through Designed for iPad. the App Clip opens one verse without an install. undertext TV remains a separate App Store app. - read offline while a chapter remains in the app's cache. - receive a single verse each day, at an hour You choose. - switch between light and dark appearance whenever the room changes. - search by word, reference, transliteration, or Strong's number. - share a verse through the native iOS share sheet. - tune type and haptics to how You like to read. no account. no ads. no third-party tracking. the first time You use Grace or voice search, Amazon gives this copy of the app a random ID, so those two features can be reached. it is not an undertext account. it holds no name, no email address, no advertising identifier, nothing You have read, and nothing You have written. it is never used for analytics, advertising, identifying You, or tracking. Grace Pro is an auto-renewable subscription purchased through the App Store. monthly is $4.99 per month; annual is $39.99 per year. payment is charged to Your Apple Account at purchase. the subscription renews automatically unless turned off at least 24 hours before the current period ends, and Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. You can manage or cancel in Your Apple Account settings after purchase. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://undertext.org/privacy

About

Colophon

Explore the original Greek and Hebrew words behind English text in this offline study Bible. Tap any word to see its definition, transliteration, and usage frequency. Your notes and highlights are private and saved locally.

Highlights
  • Reverse-interlinear word lookup
  • Offline access to translations
  • Private notes and highlights
  • Search and cross-references
  • Distraction-free reading
  • Optional Pro features
Features
Read full description

Colophon is an offline study Bible built on one idea: there are older words under your English, and now you can touch them. Reverse-interlinear style — tap any English word to see the Greek or Hebrew behind it: the original word, its transliteration, its sense, and how often it appears across Scripture. No account. No feed. No ads. Nothing you read or write ever leaves your device. Just the text and its languages. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Tap any word in the KJV for its Strong's Greek or Hebrew entry — right inside your reading, without losing your place • Read public-domain translations (KJV, WEB, BSB) fully offline • Keep notes and highlights that survive every update — your study is never lost • Search the text, follow cross-references, and read in a calm, distraction-free page • Free at the core — every translation, Strong's, search, notes, and export NO ONE'S INTERPRETATION Colophon carries the text and its original languages, not a doctrinal slant. Public-domain sources, transparently attributed. Your notes and highlights stay on your device — Colophon has no servers and collects nothing about your study. COLOPHON PRO (optional, one-time) A single unlock — never a subscription, never a nag — adds the study desk (two translations abreast, verse by verse), notebooks that gather scattered notes into a study, print-ready study sheets, note import, the reading backgrounds beyond the plain page, your own text size, and Backup & Restore: your whole study in one file you keep, on any device, with no account. The study itself is always free. The words under the words.

Screenshots

undertext Bible4 screens
Colophon4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Colophon at 5.0 against undertext Bible's 3.9. Colophon also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). undertext Bible's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and update cadence (every 5 days vs monthly). On price, ads 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. Colophon sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. undertext Bible asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Colophon holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: undertext Bible has 7 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of undertext Bible's written reviews are positive against 67% of Colophon's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

undertext Bible ships an update every 5 days, Colophon monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
undertext Bible versus Colophon: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameterundertext BibleColophon
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (7 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.0% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings7 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS17.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB168 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMatthew GenningsMustafa Salim Erek

Customer experience

undertext Bible

All ratings7 ratings
Positive71.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative28.6%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%

Colophon

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

None

undertext Bible

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Colophon

One-time4
  • Tip: Ink$1.99
  • Tip: Quill$4.99
  • Colophon Pro$9.99
Show 1 more
  • Tip: Patron$9.99

Questions

Is undertext Bible free?
undertext Bible is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Colophon free?
Colophon is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, undertext Bible or Colophon?
Colophon is rated higher. undertext Bible averages 3.9 out of 5 from 7 ratings, while Colophon averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do undertext Bible or Colophon have ads?
Neither undertext Bible nor Colophon shows ads.
Which is updated more often, undertext Bible or Colophon?
undertext Bible ships an update every 5 days, and Colophon monthly. Most recently, undertext Bible was updated on October 7, 2026 and Colophon on October 3, 2026.

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