Comparison

Nest vs Swiftly Player

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

Head to head
About

Nest

Features
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Nest is the beautiful, native way to watch everything on your own media server. Connect to Plex, Jellyfin or Emby and your movies and TV shows are ready to play in seconds — in stunning quality, with no monthly fee. Built from the ground up in Swift for iPhone, iPad and Mac, Nest plays your files exactly as they are. No transcoding, no re-compression, no quality loss: just Direct Play of virtually any format, powered by the VLC engine. WHY NEST • DIRECT PLAY EVERYTHING — MKV, HEVC, H.264, AV1, 4K, HDR, 10-bit, multichannel audio. If your file has it, Nest plays it, straight from the source at full quality. • THREE SERVERS, ONE APP — Plex, Jellyfin and Emby, side by side. Sign in the way each server expects (Plex secure browser login with 2FA; Jellyfin/Emby with your username and password). • WATCH OFFLINE — Download movies and episodes to your device and take them on the plane, the train, anywhere. Your "Continue Watching" list can even download the next episode automatically. • PICKS UP WHERE YOU LEFT OFF — Resume playback to the exact second, on any device. Your progress stays in sync with your server, so it's the same on your TV and your phone. • AUDIO & SUBTITLES, YOUR WAY — Switch audio tracks and subtitles on the fly, load external subtitle files, and set a preferred language that's selected automatically for every video. • FAST AND OFFLINE-READY — Your libraries are cached so browsing is instant, even with no connection. Adjustable grid density, per-library search, and crisp artwork throughout. • MAC AND iOS, NATIVELY — A true Mac app, not a stretched iPad port, and a true iPhone/iPad app. Keyboard shortcuts on Mac included. • PRIVATE BY DESIGN — Nest has no account of its own and no tracking. It talks only to the server you point it at. Your viewing stays between you and your own hardware. HOW IT WORKS Nest is a player for media you already own and host yourself. You need your own Plex, Jellyfin or Emby server (running on a Mac, PC, NAS or home server) — Nest connects to it and plays your library. It does not include or stream any content on its own. No subscription. No ads. Just your library, the way it should look.

About

Swiftly Player

Stream your Jellyfin media library without transcoding. Seamlessly resume playback across devices, download content for offline viewing, and enjoy features like skip intro and picture-in-picture.

Highlights
  • No transcoding required
  • Cross-device playback resume
  • Offline downloads
  • Picture-in-picture support
  • Multiple server support
  • Skip intro/credits
Features
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Swiftly plays the films on your Jellyfin server just as they are. Most apps have the server rebuild a film while you're watching. Swiftly leaves it alone — and tells you beforehand that it will. If something ever does have to be converted, you'll see which part of the file was responsible. Picture in Picture is built in, so a film can carry on in the corner while you get on with something else. RESUME ON THIS DEVICE Something playing on the Apple TV turns up as a button on your iPhone. One tap and it carries on here, at the second you left it. It works in every direction between iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. SERVERS AND ACCOUNTS Add more than one Jellyfin, stay signed in to all of them, and switch from your profile without typing a password again. DOWNLOADS Take episodes and films with you. Swiftly downloads the original file, so what you watch offline is the same quality as what you stream. MORE • Request what your server doesn't have yet, through Seerr, without leaving the app • Skip Intro and Skip Credits, via the Jellyfin plugin • People pages: tap a name in the cast for a biography and everything of theirs you own • Your home screen in your order — rows off, rows moved, genres as rows or as chips • Custom headers per server, for Jellyfin behind Cloudflare Access, Authelia, Authentik or Pangolin • Collections and each library, straight from the Movies and Shows title • Sign in with a Quick Connect code instead of a password • Lock screen and headphone controls, plus background audio • Your audio and subtitle language, chosen once • Next episode on its own, sleep timer, playback speed • Watchlist, filters and search • English and German Swiftly brings no films of its own — it simply shows what's already on your server. And it collects nothing: no analytics, no advertising, no account with us. Your viewing position goes to your server and nowhere else. You'll need a Jellyfin server of your own, 10.8 or newer, on a secure (https) address, and an iPhone or iPad with iOS 18. Uses VLCKit and libVLC by VideoLAN under the LGPL 2.1 or later. Licenses and source code: https://swiftlyplayer.com/licenses/ SUPPORT - All features are free, for everyone. - Optional Supporter extras (app icons, accent colours, a heart in About): Monthly 1.99 EUR per month, or Lifetime 19.99 EUR once. Optional tips: 1.99, 4.99 or 9.99 EUR. Monthly Supporter is an auto-renewable subscription (1.99 EUR per month). Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel in your Apple Account settings. Lifetime is a one-time purchase and lasts for as long as Swiftly Player exists, on all your devices. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://swiftlyplayer.com/privacy.html

Screenshots

Nest4 screens
Swiftly Player4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Nest at none against Swiftly Player's 5. Swiftly Player's advantage is update cadence (every 6 days vs every 5 weeks). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Swiftly Player sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Nest asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Nest ships an update every 5 weeks, Swiftly Player every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Nest versus Swiftly Player: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNestSwiftly Player
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TViPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size103 MB61 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMarco TiniPaul Herter

In-app purchases

None

Nest

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

Swiftly Player

Subscriptions1
  • Supporter$1.991 Month
One-time4
  • A coffee$1.99
  • Coffee and cake$3.99
  • A movie night$8.99
Show 1 more
  • Swiftly Supporter Lifetime$17.99

Questions

Is Nest free?
Nest is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Swiftly Player free?
Swiftly Player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Nest or Swiftly Player have ads?
Neither Nest nor Swiftly Player shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Nest or Swiftly Player?
Nest ships an update every 5 weeks, and Swiftly Player every 6 days. Most recently, Nest was updated on October 28, 2026 and Swiftly Player on October 30, 2026.

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