Comparison

Balance Browser vs Akari

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

Head to head
About

Balance Browser

A modern web browser designed for productivity and privacy. It offers built-in tools like notes, AI assistance, split view, and an RSS reader to enhance focus and organization while browsing.

Highlights
  • Productive sidebar with notes, history, and RSS
  • Split View for side-by-side browsing
  • Local AI chat assistant
  • Command Palette for quick actions
  • Reader Mode for distraction-free reading
  • Password Manager
  • Profile separation for work and personal use
Features
Read full description

Balance Browser is a modern web browser that combines fast and native browsing with powerful productivity tools and private AI. Stay focused, organize your work, and browse more efficiently with built-in notes, AI assistance, Reader Mode, Split View, maps, and more. Productivity Command Palette Quickly search browser commands, switch tabs, and perform actions with a single keyboard shortcut. Productive Sidebar Access Notes, History, Downloads, RSS feeds, and your favorite pinned websites from one customizable sidebar. Split View Browse and interact with two websites side by side in a single window. Built-in Notepad Capture ideas, snippets, and to-do lists without leaving your browser. AI Local AI Chat Chat with a private, on-device AI assistant for writing, coding, brainstorming, and everyday questions. Your conversations stay on your Mac. Interactive Map Workspace Extract locations from your open tabs and visualize them on an interactive map. Smart Address Bar Automatically recognizes URLs, domains, and search queries, so you can get where you're going faster. Reader Mode Enjoy a clean, distraction-free reading experiences. RSS Reader Subscribe to RSS feeds and access them directly from the sidebar. Password Manager Securely save and autofill passwords while browsing. Profiles Separate work and personal browsing with independent profiles. Optionally connect an IMAP account to view unread email counts for each profile. Chrome Extension Support Install compatible extensions from the Chrome Web Store to personalize your browsing experience. Flexible Tabs Choose horizontal tabs, vertical tabs, or hide the tab bar entirely to create the browsing experience that works best for you. More Features • Native macOS interface • Privacy controls and content blocking • Native PDF viewer • Customizable homepage • User Agent switching Balance Browser is designed for people who spend their day on the web and want a browser that helps them stay productive, organized, and focused.

About

Akari

A mobile web browser designed for a calmer online experience, it blocks ads, trackers, and pop-ups. Enjoy features like background video playback, reader mode, and private tabs with optional Face ID protection.

Highlights
  • Ad, pop-up, and tracker blocking
  • Video ad skipping
  • Reader mode and page summarization
  • Private tabs with Face ID lock
  • Background audio/video playback
  • Cross-device sync
Features
Read full description

Akari is a calmer web browser that blocks ads, pop-ups and trackers on your iPhone and iPad. BLOCK THE NOISE • Shields blocks ads and trackers using EasyList and EasyPrivacy, right on your device. • Pop-up blocking stops new windows and redirects you didn't ask for. • Block Video Ads skips the ads on video sites, so you get straight to the video. • Cookie banners hidden, and tracking tags stripped from the links you open and share. A CALMER WAY TO BROWSE • One bar for sites and searches. It fills in the websites you visit as you type. • Favorites as a grid of site icons, right on the start page. • Tabs as cards. Swipe the address bar to move between tabs, flick a card away to close it. • Peek previews a link before you open it. • Spaces keep work, home and everything else apart. • Reader turns cluttered articles into clean, easy text, and Summarize sums up a page on your device. • Keep audio and video playing in the background or in picture in picture. PRIVATE AND SECURE • Private tabs forget everything when you close them, and Face ID can lock them. • Sign in with passkeys, and set Akari as your default browser. • Find on page, downloads saved to the Files app, and "Open in Akari" in the share sheet. • Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets for quick search and your favorites. • Nine colors, including a true black. WORKS WITH AKARI FOR MAC AND WINDOWS Sign in with your email and your favorites and color follow you between your iPhone and your computers. Sync is end-to-end encrypted, so we can't read it. Signing in is optional. AKARI PRO (OPTIONAL) Focus Mode, Block Lists, Hide Element, Hide Annoyances, Video Speed and app icons. Monthly, yearly or a one-time purchase. Everything above stays free. No ads. No tracking. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://0arch.io/akari/privacy

Screenshots

Balance Browser3 screens
Akari4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Balance Browser at 5.0 against Akari's 3.8. Balance Browser also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3). Akari's advantage is ratings volume (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence, 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. Akari sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Balance Browser asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Balance Browser holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 4 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Balance Browser versus Akari: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBalance BrowserAkari
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better3.8 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings14 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 daysEvery 2 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB55 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperBryce AgostiniJoseph Rodriguez

Customer experience

Balance Browser

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Akari

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Balance Browser

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Akari

Subscriptions2
  • Akari Pro Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Akari Pro Yearly$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Akari Pro Lifetime$39.99

Questions

Is Balance Browser free?
Balance Browser is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Akari free?
Akari is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Balance Browser or Akari?
Balance Browser is rated higher. Balance Browser averages 5.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Akari averages 3.8 from 4 ratings.
Do Balance Browser or Akari have ads?
Neither Balance Browser nor Akari shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Balance Browser or Akari?
Balance Browser ships an update every 2 days, and Akari every 2 days. Most recently, Balance Browser was updated on October 28, 2026 and Akari on October 29, 2026.

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