Longbox vs Kasane
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Longbox
This app allows you to read your existing comic book files, including CBZ, CBR, and PDF formats, directly on your device. It offers various reading modes, library management, and offline access to your collection. Premium features unlock server connections, cloud browsing, and advanced reading tools.
- Reads CBZ, CBR, and PDF files
- Offline reading support
- Customizable reading modes (fit to width/height, two-page view)
- Right-to-left reading for manga
- Library management with search and favorites
- Optional cloud server integration
- EPUB novel support
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Longbox is a comic reader for people who already have the comics. Point it at your CBZ, CBR and PDF files and it opens them. No account, no upload, no waiting for a library to sync before you can read anything. READING • Fit to width, height or whole page — whichever suits the book • Turn your phone or iPad sideways to read two pages at once, and art drawn across a spread still gets the screen to itself • Pinch to zoom anywhere, double-tap to snap • Right-to-left for manga, set per series and remembered • Night and sepia filters, plus in-app brightness that leaves your system setting alone • Opens on the page you left, every time • Entirely offline — nothing is streamed unless you ask for it YOUR LIBRARY • Import from the Files app — anything on your iPhone or in iCloud Drive • However many comics you own — a hundred or ten thousand, there's no limit • Issues group into series on their own • Search, favourites and reading history • Up to eight libraries, any of them behind a passcode • Reading streaks and a leaderboard, if you want to be on it ALL OF THAT IS FREE The reader is never behind a paywall. Not the filters, not the fit modes, not the reading direction, not reading offline. There's no cap on how many comics you keep, either. If it opens a comic, it costs nothing. LONGBOX PREMIUM • Connect a Komga, Kavita or OPDS server — browse it, read from it, download for offline • Hide comics you'd rather not see, without touching the server • Browse your Dropbox from inside Longbox: a single issue or a whole folder, without leaving the app • Sharpening and upscaling for scans that need it • Beta features first – Panel by panel (alpha) — splash pages and complicated layouts often won't detect • Automatic metadata — publisher, year, creators and characters • EPUB novels — contents, adjustable type, themes and highlighting • Unlimited libraries • Smart Lists that keep themselves current • Your place follows you — across your devices, and in step with your server both ways • Your own picture as the app background • Seven accent colours, each with its own app icon Comics you have already downloaded from a server stay readable forever, even if Premium lapses. Paying us was never what made them yours. PREMIUM PRICING Longbox Premium is available as a one-time purchase, or as a subscription billed monthly or yearly with a 7 day free trial. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. A subscription renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and can be managed in Settings › Apple Account › Subscriptions. Privacy Policy: https://getlongbox.app/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://getlongbox.app/terms.html
Kasane
Consolidate your scattered comic resources into a single, seamless library. Access and manage comics from local storage or remote servers with an elegant interface. Enjoy a fluid, immersive reading experience with support for multiple formats and advanced viewing options.
- Aggregate multiple comic sources
- Local comic management with metadata support
- OPDS 1.2 & 2.0 protocol compatibility
- Supports Komga, Kavita servers
- CBZ, PDF, EPUB format support
- Dual-page reading mode
- Smart wide-image cutting
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Kasane (重ね, かさね) derives from the Japanese word for "stacks". It is dedicated to seamlessly aggregating your scattered comic resources into one organized place, providing a fluid and immersive reading experience. Whether your comic library is treasured locally or hosted on remote servers, Kasane helps you connect and manage them effortlessly. Say goodbye to constantly switching between apps, and browse your entire collection within one elegant interface. Core Features & Management • Multi-Instance Aggregation: Connect and manage multiple library sources simultaneously. Bring all your scattered collections together in one place. • Local Comic Management: Efficiently organize your local library. With native support for reading ComicInfo.xml metadata, your covers, authors, summaries, and tags are always perfectly organized. • Native support for Komga: enjoy a more stable and complete reading experience. • Universal Standard Protocols: Fully compatible with OPDS 1.2 and OPDS 2.0. Easily connect to self-hosted comic servers like Kavita and Lanraragi. Furthermore, it supports two-way reading progress write-back via OPDS 2.0, ensuring your reading progress stays perfectly in sync across all your devices. Powerful & Flexible Reader • Multi-Format Support: A reading engine highly optimized for comics, smoothly parsing mainstream formats including CBZ, PDF, and EPUB. • Authentic Reading Experience: Features a dual-page reading mode, perfectly recreating the page-turning feel of physical comic books. • Smart Image Splitting: Intelligently splits wide or double-page spreads, ensuring large illustrations remain clear and highly readable on any phone or tablet screen. Layer your comic world within Kasane.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Kasane at 5.0 against Longbox's 4.0. Kasane also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3). Longbox's advantage is ratings volume (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). 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
Both are free to download. Longbox sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Kasane asks for nothing beyond the download.
Kasane holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 1 respectively.
Longbox ships an update every 3 days, Kasane every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Longbox | Kasane |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (4 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 4 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 5 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.5 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 74 MB | 23 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | NOAH REILLEY BEARUP | 晨康 周 |
Customer experience
Longbox
Kasane
In-app purchases
Longbox
- Longbox Premium Monthly$1.991 Month
- Longbox Premium Yearly$14.991 Year
- Longbox Premium Lifetime$24.99
Kasane
No in-app purchases








