Etymonline English Dictionary vs EtymologyExplorer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Etymonline English Dictionary
Explore the origins and history of English words with this comprehensive dictionary app. It offers instant search, related word suggestions, and an offline mode for premium users. Enhance your vocabulary and understanding of word roots.
- Word origin exploration
- Instant search with suggestions
- Related words by root
- Offline dictionary (Premium)
- Ad-free experience (Premium)
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The official, complete app of Douglas Harper's Online Etymology Dictionary, with useful features to help you understand the origins of words as well as improve your vocabulary. • From etymonline.com, the internet's top choice for quick, reliable, comprehensive yet comprehensible English word origins • Instantaneous search with spelling suggestions works fast on your iPhones • Offline Dictionary - find out word origins anytime, anywhere (Premium only) • Universal app - works on your iPhones and iPads • Related Words - easily access words that share the same origin/root. For example, you can check out all the words with root –logy, such as agriology, anthropology, biology, cardiology, choreology, Christology, chronology, cosmology, etc. Get even more with ETYMONLINE PREMIUM: • No Ads - Enjoy a calm, ad-free reading environment • Offline dictionary - Search and view etymology without the need of an internet connection - Privacy Policy: https://www.etymonline.com/legal/privacy - Terms of Use: https://www.etymonline.com/legal/terms
EtymologyExplorer
Discover the fascinating origins and connections of words. This app provides visual maps of word roots, detailed etymologies, definitions, and audio pronunciations. Explore how seemingly unrelated words can share common ancestry.
- Visual map of word origins
- Connections between related words
- Full written etymology
- Definitions
- Transliterations
- Audio pronunciations
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Etymology Explorer is the word origin app you've been waiting your whole life for! Features include: • Visual map of word origins • Connections between related words (e.g. acrobat and acronym) • Etymology in full written form • Definition, transliterations, and audio pronunciations I would love to hear your feedback on how to improve the app, so please let me know if there are any issues or what features you want next! Ever wonder if the words album and albino are related? They are! Download the app and you'll find out how. For more information on our Terms of Use and Terms and Conditions please visit https://etymologyexplorer.com/terms_and_conditions.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: EtymologyExplorer at none against Etymonline English Dictionary's shown. EtymologyExplorer also leads on iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.0). Etymonline English Dictionary's advantage is ratings volume (12K vs 1.6K). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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. Etymonline English Dictionary sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and EtymologyExplorer sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Etymonline English Dictionary holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Etymonline English Dictionary has 12K ratings behind it against 1.6K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 94% of Etymonline English Dictionary's written reviews are positive against 96% of EtymologyExplorer's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Etymonline English Dictionary ships an update every 9 days, EtymologyExplorer fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Etymonline English Dictionary | EtymologyExplorer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (12K ratings) — better | 4.8 (1.6K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 94.2% of reviews | 95.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 12K — better | 1.6K |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 64 MB | 33 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | 崇伟 柳 | Might Could Studios LLC |
Customer experience
Etymonline English Dictionary
EtymologyExplorer
User reviews
Etymonline English Dictionary
From 12K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent app
- 👍 Comprehensive and well-researched
- 👍 Useful for understanding word origins
- 👍 Informative and insightful
- 👍 Straightforward and easy to use
Room to improve
- 🐛 App version has incomplete entries
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with data collection
- 💰 Subscription fees too high
EtymologyExplorer
From 1.6K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Intuitive and user-friendly
- 🔍 Comprehensive and detailed etymology information
- 🌟 Visually appealing and well-designed
- 📚 Helpful for language learning and vocabulary building
- 🔍 Ability to explore word origins across multiple languages
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes
- 🔍 Limited database of words
- 💰 Subscription model may be costly for some users
- 🕰️ Slow performance on older devices
Bugs and requests
Etymonline English Dictionary
Reported bugs
3 issues- Bottom of related words list cut off
- Search bar not always visible
- App version not compatible with dark mode
Requested features
3 requests- Dark mode option
- Offline access to full entries
- One-time purchase option instead of subscription
EtymologyExplorer
Reported bugs
2 issues- Word of the day feature not working consistently
- Occasional freezing or unresponsiveness of the app
Requested features
4 requests- Add more words and languages to the database
- Implement a dark mode option
- Improve search functionality to allow cross-language searches
- Provide more advanced features for power users (e.g., flashcards, quizzes)
In-app purchases
Etymonline English Dictionary
- Etymonline Premium 1 Month7 Days trial$4.991 Month
- Etymonline Premium 6 Months14 Days trial$13.996 Months
- Etymonline Premium 12 Months1 Month trial$17.991 Year
EtymologyExplorer
- Supporter$1.491 Month
- Premium Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
- Premium Annual Special7 Days trial$9.991 Year
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- Premium Annual7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Lifetime Special Premium$29.99
- Premium Lifetime Special$29.99
- Lifetime Premium2 variants$59.99
