# Grim Reader vs Rowa

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Grim Reader at none against Rowa's 1. Rowa's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 weeks) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Rowa sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Grim Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

Grim Reader ships an update every 3 weeks, Rowa every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Grim Reader | Rowa |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/grim-reader/id6782366876/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **3** | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 2 days** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 15 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Maarten de Kreij](https://appshunter.io/developer/6774006735) | [Long Hoang Tuan](https://appshunter.io/developer/6779539360) |

## What reviewers say

### Grim Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/grim-reader/id6782366876)

Organize and enrich your personal library of e-books, comics, and audiobooks. This app allows you to manage your collection locally or via your own servers, adding details like covers and author information. Enjoy a seamless reading and listening experience across all your content.

**Highlights:** Library management for e-books, comics, and audiobooks, Enrich library with online book and author data, Supports local files and personal servers (WebDAV, OPDS), Cross-device reading and listening progress tracking, Organize by author, series, and genre, Mark favorites

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Rowa

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rowa-router-manager/id6802244094)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Rowa Full Unlock | $9.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Grim Reader free?

Grim Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Rowa free?

Rowa is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Grim Reader or Rowa have ads?

Neither Grim Reader nor Rowa shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Grim Reader or Rowa?

Grim Reader ships an update every 3 weeks, and Rowa every 2 days. Most recently, Grim Reader was updated on September 24, 2026 and Rowa on September 15, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*