Comparison

Riveo vs Crucible for Plex

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

Head to head
About

Riveo

Features
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Riveo brings your entire video world into one fast, beautiful player β€” movies, shows, and live TV from wherever they live. No conversions, no juggling apps. CONNECT EVERYTHING - Media servers: Plex, Emby, and Jellyfin with full library browsing - Network shares: stream straight from your NAS over SMB, NFS, WebDAV, or FTP - Cloud drives: Backblaze B2, Dropbox, OneDrive, pCloud and Koofr - Live TV: M3U playlists and Xtream portals with a full TV guide (XMLTV EPG) PLAY IT YOUR WAY - Play MKV, MP4, AVI, MOV, TS, and many more formats - Enjoy 4K UHD, HDR10, Dolby Vision, and high-frame-rate playback - Switch between multiple audio tracks - Use embedded and external subtitles - Watch in Picture in Picture - Stream to the big screen with AirPlay - Download videos for offline viewing LIVE TV DONE RIGHT Browse live channels, movies, and series from your own IPTV sources. Navigate a full programme guide, search your catalog, and set reminders before a show begins. DISCOVER WHAT’S NEXT Explore trending movies and shows, then see instantly where to watch them across your own connected libraries. MADE FOR APPLE PLATFORMS Built natively in SwiftUI for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. AirPlay to the big screen, lock the app with Face ID, and keep your library, watch progress, and history in sync across devices through your private iCloud. PRIVATE BY DEFAULT No Riveo account. No ads. No tracking. Credentials are stored securely on your devices, while synced app data stays in your private iCloud. SUPPORT RIVEO Riveo Pro is an optional way to support ongoing development. Available as a monthly or yearly subscription, or a one-time lifetime purchase. Family Sharing supported. YOUR CONTENT, YOUR PRIVACY No accounts, no ads, no tracking. Your credentials stay in the iOS Keychain, and sync happens through your private iCloud β€” we never see your data. β€” Important notice: Riveo is a player only. It does not provide, host, or include any media content, channels, or playlists. You connect the servers, services, and playlists you already own or subscribe to, and you are responsible for ensuring you have the right to access that content. Metadata and artwork provided by TMDB, a community-maintained movie and TV database. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms & Privacy: https://riveo.io/legal

About

Crucible for Plex

Features
Read full description

Crucible is a native client for your Plex Media Server on iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. It is built to feel like part of the system: the system player, native menus and context menus, Liquid Glass on the newest software, and a library that opens exactly where you left off. PICK UP WHERE YOU LEFT OFF Home opens on a Resume hero, then Continue Watching, Up Next and Recently Added. Library grids have filters for Unwatched and In Progress, genre and sort, an A–Z scrubber and folder browsing for unindexed content. Search groups results by type with a Top Result. A PLAYER THAT RESPECTS YOUR TIME Skip Intro and Skip Credits from Plex markers, audio and subtitle menus, adjustable speed, lock screen controls and Up Next that rolls the next episode as the credits start and carries on through the end of a season. On iPhone and iPad: Picture-in-Picture and background audio. Direct play when your device can handle the file, automatic transcoding when it can't. MADE FOR IPAD A sidebar with every Plex library, layouts that fit every window from Slide Over to a full 13-inch screen, and several windows at once: open any title in its own window from its menu, or drag its card to the edge of the screen. With a Magic Keyboard, a full menu bar and shortcuts: Command-1 to 4 for the tabs, Command-F to search, Space to play, S to skip the intro, N for the next episode. Posters lift under the trackpad and Apple Pencil, and right-click opens every menu. MADE FOR THE COUCH The Apple TV app is built for the Siri Remote: a cinematic Home that follows focus, one tab per library, native context menus, search, and Top Shelf with Continue Watching and Up Next. Liquid Glass on tvOS 26. TAKE IT OFFLINE On iPhone and iPad, download movies, seasons or single episodes in the quality you pick. Transfers continue in the background, stay on Wi-Fi by default and, on iPhone, show a Live Activity on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island. Offline playback uses the same player. KNOW YOUR VIEWING Watch History grouped by day, Statistics with streaks, heatmaps, binges and taste built from your own Plex history, and a Year in Review poster you can share. FREE TO USE, CRUCIBLE PRO TO GO FURTHER Browsing, search and playback are free on iPhone, iPad and Apple TV, and so is the Statistics view for the last week. Crucible Pro unlocks unlimited offline downloads, the full Statistics screen with every range and library filter, the Year in Review poster and Top Shelf. Pay once for lifetime access, or subscribe yearly. One purchase covers iPhone, iPad and Apple TV, and Family Sharing is on. TRY IT WITHOUT A SERVER No Plex server yet? Choose Try the demo on the welcome screen to explore a fictional library with everything unlocked, guided by a short tour. PRIVATE BY DESIGN No sign-up, no ads, no analytics. Crucible talks to plex.tv and the server you choose, and records Crucible Pro purchases with an anonymous Midgar ID, with no sign-up. OPEN SOURCE Crucible is free software under GPL-3.0: https://github.com/guitaripod/Crucible Crucible needs a Plex Media Server. Plex requires a Plex Pass or Remote Watch Pass to stream from your server away from home. Crucible is an independent app and is not made by, endorsed by or affiliated with Plex, Inc. Plex is a trademark of Plex, Inc. Crucible Pro Annual: billed yearly at the price shown in the app. The subscription renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Manage it in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://midgarcorp.cc/crucible/privacy

Screenshots

Riveo4 screens
Crucible for Plex4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Crucible for Plex at daily against Riveo's fortnightly. Crucible for Plex also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Riveo sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month and Crucible for Plex sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Riveo ships an update fortnightly, Crucible for Plex daily. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Β· 4 level
Riveo versus Crucible for Plex: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRiveoCrucible for Plex
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyFortnightlyDaily β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV β€” betteriPhone, iPad, Apple TV
Requires iOS26.017.0 β€” better
Further details β€” not scored
Size52 MB18 MB
Age rating4++4
DeveloperR17 GEEK DEVELOPMENT SRLMidgar Oy

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Riveo

Subscriptions2
  • Riveo Pro Monthly$1.491 Month
  • Riveo Pro Annual$12.991 Year
One-time1
  • Riveo Pro Lifetime$69.99
2 purchases

Crucible for Plex

Subscriptions1
  • Crucible Pro Annual$7.991 Year
One-time1
  • Crucible Pro Lifetime$17.99

Questions

Is Riveo free?
Riveo is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Crucible for Plex free?
Crucible for Plex is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Riveo or Crucible for Plex have ads?
Neither Riveo nor Crucible for Plex shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Riveo or Crucible for Plex?
Riveo ships an update fortnightly, and Crucible for Plex daily. Most recently, Riveo was updated on November 5, 2026 and Crucible for Plex on November 1, 2026.

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