Comparison

Card Codex vs Master Set Collector

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

Head to head
About

Card Codex

Instantly identify trading cards by pointing your camera. Get card name, set, number, and current value without typing. All recognition happens on your device for complete privacy.

Highlights
  • Instant card identification
  • Automatic value lookup
  • Camera-based scanning
  • On-device processing
  • Unlimited free scans
  • Supports English and Japanese sets
Features
Read full description

Point. Scan. Know. Card Codex identifies your trading cards in an instant — name, set, card number and current value — just by pointing your camera. No typing, no searching, no guesswork. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Card recognition runs entirely on your phone. Photos of your cards never leave your device. No ads, no trackers, and no account needed to scan. Check the permissions: we ask for the camera, and nothing else. UNLIMITED SCANNING, FREE Scan as many cards as you like. We don't put the thing that matters behind a weekly limit. FAST AND ACCURATE A purpose-built recognition engine identifies cards across English and Japanese sets, including tricky holo and full-art cards — through a sleeve, or straight off a binder page without taking anything out. TWO WAYS TO SCAN • Auto — hold steady and it identifies hands-free. • Manual — line up the shot and tap the shutter for tough or vintage cards. Priced in £, with English and Japanese sets built in. YOUR SESSION, ORGANISED Build up a scan session and see the total value at a glance. Card Codex is the companion app to cardcodex.com. Card Codex is an independent tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Nintendo, The Pokémon Company International, or Game Freak. Trademarks are used only to describe compatibility.

About

Master Set Collector

This app is a comprehensive collection tracker designed for enthusiasts who meticulously catalog every printing of their cards. It allows users to differentiate between various printings, track individual copies with detailed notes, and manage their collection across multiple devices via iCloud.

Highlights
  • Track individual card printings
  • Differentiate between holo, reverse holo, 1st edition
  • Record condition, grading, and valuation per copy
  • Browse collection by Pokémon, set, or illustrator
  • Add custom photos for unique printings
  • Sync collection via iCloud
  • Export and import collection data
Features
Read full description

Track every card. Not just every Pokémon. MasterSet is a collection tracker built for master set collectors — the people who know that a reverse holo, a 1st edition and a stamped promo are three different cards, not one. BUILT AROUND PRINTINGS, NOT JUST CARDS Most trackers count cards. MasterSet counts printings. Check off a normal, a holo, a reverse holo and a 1st edition separately, and your completion percentage finally means what you always thought it should. THREE WAYS THROUGH YOUR COLLECTION Browse the full national dex as a binder, greyed out until you discover each Pokémon and filling with gold as you complete it. Or browse by set. Or by illustrator, if you chase artists rather than species. EVERY COPY DESCRIBED PROPERLY Three copies of the same card aren't always the same thing. Record condition, grading company and grade, your own photograph and your own valuation, per copy — so a PSA 10, one away at the graders and one with a bent corner are three separate entries rather than a quantity of three. KNOW WHAT YOU'RE HUNTING Bookmark printings you're looking for and find them again through the Bookmarks filter, with an estimated cost for the lot. YOUR OWN PHOTOS Some promos have never been photographed by any card database. Add your own picture and it becomes that card's artwork everywhere in the app. YOUR DATA STAYS YOURS No accounts and no sign-in. Your collection syncs through your own iCloud, so it's on every device and survives a lost phone — and nothing about what you own reaches our servers, because there aren't any. Export the whole thing to CSV whenever you like, and import it back. ALSO · Fourteen languages, each tracked as its own scope · Market prices from TCGPlayer or Cardmarket · Custom printings for stamps and promos the databases don't carry · Pinch, rotate and lift any card to look at it properly · Share a link to any card Card data from the open-source TCGdex project. Pokémon and the Pokémon Trading Card Game are trademarks of Nintendo, Creatures Inc. and GAME FREAK Inc. MasterSet is unaffiliated and not endorsed by them.

Screenshots

Card Codex4 screens
Master Set Collector4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Card Codex at 15.1 against Master Set Collector's 17. On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Card Codex against 5.0 for Master Set Collector. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 2 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Card Codex versus Master Set Collector: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCard CodexMaster Set Collector
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings12 — better
Update frequencyFortnightly—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.1 — better17
Further details — not scored
Size78 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCard Codex LtdJoshua Stoffey

In-app purchases

None

Card Codex

No in-app purchases

None

Master Set Collector

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Card Codex free?
Card Codex is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Master Set Collector free?
Master Set Collector is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Card Codex or Master Set Collector?
Card Codex and Master Set Collector are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 2 ratings respectively.
Do Card Codex or Master Set Collector have ads?
Neither Card Codex nor Master Set Collector shows ads.

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