The best Bible app for iOS is The Bible app from YouVersion. Information technology offers a not bad user interface, like shooting fish in a barrel (and free) access to a big number of translations in many languages, and offers a bunch of peachy reading plans. It also includes audio Bible support (if you prefer to mind), accessibility from most any device (with bookmark and note syncing), and is frequently updated. It strikes the perfect remainder between pattern and functionality for virtually users regardless of cost.

If you're looking for something for serious study, Logos is a great (only pricey) option. Information technology gives you lot several powerful tools like lexicons and interlinears that aid y'all take your Bible written report to the next level and dig into the original texts — even if y'all're not an expert on aboriginal Greek or Hebrew.

Why You lot Should Trust U.s.

This review is ane that I've e'er wanted to write.

In addition to being a nerd who loves Apple tree engineering science, I'm also a educatee who is passionate nigh my organized religion. In fact, I went back to school several years agone and got a Bible College caste just for funsies. I've never aspired to exist a priest or a pastor, only I did want to learn more virtually the Bible. So when I had the opportunity to have night classes through the sattelite campus at my local church, I did full-time for iv years.

While my Bible College experience was definitely not as rigorous every bit a lot of seminaries, it did requite me a greater appreciation for some of the technological report tools we have bachelor to united states today. So while I'chiliad not a Greek or Hebrew scholar, I can say I've gone to schoolhouse for this and I do take a bones agreement of the original languages the Bible was written in.

Why does this even matter?

Considering the original languages are often much more descriptive than our traditional English translations. For instance, at that place are multiple words used in the Greek (the language of the New Testament) for our English language give-and-take, dearest:

  • eros = want, sexual beloved
  • phileo = brotherly dear, similar equally a friend
  • agape = the highest grade of love, charity

(Note that these are the rough English language spelling of the original Greek words — this is a not intended to be a lesson in Biblical Greek.)

Every bit you lot can run into, understanding the differences betwixt the original words used can significantly modify your perception of the meaning a particular verse has. And with the applied science we have available to us today, it's easier than ever to understand which word was used and what the author actually meant.

And then in this review, nosotros'll await at two categories:

  1. The best everyday app for near people who just desire a great app for their daily Bible reading.
  2. The all-time serious study tool for people who want to dig deeper in their understanding of the scriptures.

Best Bible App Hero

The Candidates

There are a ton of options available for people who want to report their Bible on their iOS device. Here are the ones we considered for this review:

  • The Bible App by YouVersion
  • Logos
  • Accordance
  • NeuBible
  • ESV Bible
  • Bible+ by Olive Tree
  • Bible.is
  • Bible Gateway
  • Dwell
  • FaithLife

There are many other options available, just these were the well-nigh pop or the best fit for our selection criteria.

Our Criteria for The All-time Bible App

In order to pick the best Bible app for iOS, the following criteria were used.

  • Design: Does the app follow electric current iOS blueprint standards? Does it provide a great experience from initial launch, reading, and displaying any extras it provides?
  • Ease of Utilise: When it comes to apps that are used for reference and study, information technology's easy to be heavy on features and fabric while being near incommunicable to figure out the nuts. Does it provide an like shooting fish in a barrel way to admission what you want without needing ten taps to become there?
  • Bachelor Translation: There are lot of Bible translations available today. From the ESV, HCSB, NASB, and NKJV, at that place are a lot of translations that people use. Does the app provide versatility when it comes to translation options?
  • Offline Support: This is a must-have feature. My iPad is WiFi only, so I need the selection to be able to download my preferred translations then I can read them offline.
  • Study Tools: A skilful Bible app will give you lot more than just the text. Additional tools like reading plans, bookmarks, highlights, and scripture notes help you utilise what you read to your own life.
  • Update Schedule: A quick search in the App Store will render hundreds of options that are no longer in evolution. A proficient Bible app is consistently updated to accept reward of modern iOS features.
  • Price: You tin can get a lot for free, which makes price even more important when trying to residuum cost vs. features when picking the Bible app you're going to use.

The Winner: The Bible App by YouVersion

Best Bible App for iOS: The Bible App by YouVersion

I have multiple Bible apps on my devices, simply I utilise The Bible App by YouVersion 95% of the time because it offers the perfect rest between class and part. If y'all simply want a bang-up user experience while reading your Bible on your iOS device, The Bible App by YouVersion is difficult to shell.

The first thing to notice nigh YouVersion is it offers an incredibly make clean reading interface. Simply the affiliate and translation are displayed in the bar at the elevation, and a play button (when available) to bring up the audio version if you want to listen to the selected passage instead of reading information technology at the bottom.

Borer the bar at the acme brings upwards some additional options, similar related content (i.e. videos), audio and text display options (including a beautiful nighttime mode), buttons to spring forwards and back from the current affiliate, and a lesser bar that allows you to navigate to other parts of the app.

On the increased screen real-manor of the iPad, you also take the power to compare two versions side-past-side. This allows y'all add additional context to what you're reading. For example, yous could compare the traditional King James Version on one side with a more modern translation (like the New Living Translation) on the correct.

This is washed really well, and the verses are kept in parallel while y'all curl up and down the page.

Tapping a verse will underline it and give yous options to share the verse, create an paradigm from the text, compare it in dissimilar versions, add it as a bookmark, or create notes or prayer requests inside the app from your choice.

In that location are several colors you lot tin can choose from for highlights, and you can even bear witness related scriptures from either your personal study notes or from the YouVersion community. All of these features are easily accessible, only they aren't cluttering up the interface if you don't want or need them. The app really does an incredible job offering a bunch of discoverable and useful tools in a fashion that isn't distracting.

The biggest feature though is easily the number of translations that are available in the app. At the time of our review, at that place were ii,082 versions bachelor in one,420 languages!

In that location are 61 English versions alone, including:

  • English Standard Version (ESV)
  • New American Standard Bible (NASB)
  • New Living Translation (NLT)
  • Amplified Bible (AMP)
  • Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
  • The Message (MSG)
  • New King James Version (NKJV)
  • The Passion Translation (TPT)

And all of these translations are offered for costless.

That's kind of astonishing when you recall about it. The size of the library that yous have admission to is pretty incredible.

Many of these translations (near of them, in fact) are available to download for offline utilize, and a good number of them take audio versions included also.

Speaking of the audio versions, they are actually well done. There aren't whatsoever options for selecting different voices, and the narrator will vary from version to version. In our testing, all the narration sounded professional.

The audio thespian besides offers speed adjustment options like you'd notice in a podcast app, and includes a timer to automatically stop after a period of time.

I besides capeesh the streaks characteristic to help create momentum to go along growing your Bible-reading habit. It'southward accessible from the Dwelling house screen, and shows you the length of your current streak too as the number of perfect weeks you've had.

The Dwelling screen offers several other tools, including a daily story (that looks a lot like the topical stories you might find in a meditation app) and a verse of the day. Information technology besides gives you access to whatsoever prayer lists or reading plans, and makes suggestions for connecting to other people you might know in the YouVersion customs.

The reading plans in the app are done well, and there's a bunch of them to choose from. I'm currently doing 2 plans: one individual that I'k doing myself, and one that I do with my discipleship grouping at church. In addition to splitting up the readings the same way the private plans practise, the group plans also offering one additional stride at the cease where you tin share what you got out of the twenty-four hours's reading:

I really similar this feature.

By having to answer what you got out of the reading, your expectation level is heightened. In that location'southward less incentive to "just get information technology done" when you know you lot'll have to give a public answer based on what you just read. At that place'due south also built-in accountability with bank check marks that appear over the icons for the people in the group (sometimes you but need a little help from your friends).

Bible by YouVersion hero

Overall, The Bible App by YouVersion is tough to shell. It gives you a agglomeration of incredible tools and translations in a great user interface that makes information technology piece of cake and fun to read. It'due south kind of hard to believe that information technology'south gratis, only if you desire to back up the development, consider making a donation.

You can download The Bible App by YouVersion for complimentary on the App Store.

Best Option for Serious Written report: Logos (Honorable Mention: Accordance)

Best Bible App

When it comes to scholarly study, at that place are really two heavyweight contenders: Logos, and Accordance. Both offer powerful tools to assist you lot take your Bible study to the adjacent level and offer powerful Mac apps that give you additional control when unlocking the power of your theological library. We like Logos because it offers a better iOS experience.

Like YouVersion'south Bible App, the interface in the Logos iOS app is very clean and piece of cake to utilize. It'south extremely minimal, and I personally like it a little fleck better.

Merely (in my opinion) the biggest do good that both Logos and Accord give you is the ability to rapidly access the original languages via Strong's Numbers — even on your iOS device.

Stiff's Numbers are basically a numerical index of every give-and-take used in the original Hebrew and Greek texts of our modern-day Bibles. The numbers make it easy to look upwards the original give-and-take and its accompanying definition in the English linguistic communication. Past looking up the Strong's Number, you can connect the pregnant of English language word used in our mod translations dorsum to the full meaning in the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts.

These Strong'south Numbers come from a reference piece of work called a concordance. A concordance is an alphabetical list of words and their definitions, like a dictionary. For example, you can exist reading your Bible and run into that the Strong'southward number for the discussion beloved is used in a specific scripture reference. For example, John 15:9 in the King James says:

As the Father hath loved me, and so accept I loved you: continue ye in my honey.

Using the cyclopedia, y'all can come across the Strong'due south number for the word dear at the terminate of this verse is G26. From here, you can go to the Greek section of a strong's concordance and find the 26th entry in numerical club, which is agape, and encounter the total pregnant of the original discussion.

Tools like this have existed for a long time, and allowed Bible students (like myself, back in the twenty-four hours) to await up the existent meanings of the words used in the original languages without having to be an expert in those languages to sympathise what they were maxim.

But at present information technology's a lot easier.

With tools like Logos and Accordance, you don't take to flip through a book anymore. Simply highlight a specific word in an English language translation, and you can instantly meet both the original word used and the definition of that word from the Potent's cyclopedia (or other original language tools you lot take access to):

This interlinking of available resources can be really powerful. Which is also why both Accordance and Logos toll their software based on the included works in the library y'all purchase, and can be insanely expensive.

Here'due south a listing of the current collections bachelor for purchase via the Logos website:

  • Basic (Gratuitous)
  • Essentials ($49.99)
  • Starter ($294.99)
  • Bronze ($629.99)
  • Silver ($999.99)
  • Gold ($1,549.99)
  • Platinum ($2,149.99)
  • Diamond ($iii,449.99)
  • Portfolio ($4,979.99)
  • Collector'due south Edition ($10,799.99)

Aye, you lot read that right — you can actually spend over $10,000 on a Bible app.

If yous're a Pastor, maybe some of the those larger plans brand sense. But for most people, you won't ever demand to spend that much.

This can be a little confusing because Logos is available every bit a gratuitous download on the App Store. There'southward also a bones in-app purchase that gives y'all a bunch of resource for $three.99/month, simply to become the maximum benefit out of the app y'all'll need to invest in a library package.

As a Bible College student myself, I accept paid for both Logos and Accordance. My library continues to transfer over with me from version to version, and normally the core features upgrade for the Mac app (where both of these applications really polish) is somewhere around $50.

The library is really important if you lot decide to invest in a tool like this. Using the Bible text as an anchor, you're able to link together ideas and passages from any reference works in your library. This makes topical study or post-obit chains of related scripture references incredibly like shooting fish in a barrel.
The dainty part about these apps is that your library is able to sync with you to your iOS devices. Once yous sign up for an account and make a buy, you accept access to all the versions, commentaries, and tools included everywhere you go. And there are a bunch more tools you lot can't get anywhere else. For example, hither's a couple of things yous can do with Logos:

  • Passage Guide — Search all your commentaries, books, journals, and fifty-fifty ancient literature to aid you lot learn from scholarly, pastoral, and celebrated guidance on your passage.
  • Reference Scanner — Snap a photo of a Bible reference in a book, bulletin, and more, and the Logos mobile app will open up your Bible to that reference.
  • Topic Guide — Gathers information from your library most a topic or concept. Using included datasets that you have access to, the guide finds topics in your Bible dictionaries and other resources that stand for to the key term y'all enter.
  • Exegetical Guide — Helps you accurately translate a poesy or passage by investigating textual variance, grammatical constructions, syntax, or even a word-past-word assay of the text in its original language.
  • Bible Word Study — Provides detailed information about specific English, Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic words. Includes definitions, dissimilar translations of the discussion, grammatical relationships, prepositional uses, and more.

On iOS, the iPad is where these tools can really shine. You can separate your interface to brandish multiple tools and texts at a fourth dimension, for instance, a Bible text on one side and a Bible Discussion Study on the other:

By the way, similar versions to most of these tools are also available for Accordance. We think the Logos interface is a footling nicer, but each app has different included resources and different ways of implementing the additional study tools. For case, here's what the Accord iOS app looks like:

If you decide to brand an investment into an app by purchasing a library, we recommend that you look at both options showtime to see which ane clicks for you.

It's hard to say whether these apps are a worthwhile investment for an individual who'south considering investing in them. My rule of pollex would exist that if you're non sure you need tools similar these, and then you don't. For almost people, Logos is overkill. Simply if yous know y'all demand something to help y'all in your theological written report, and then Logos may be a worthwhile investment.

Our Must-Have, Most Used Productivity Apps

We spend an inordinate amount of time sorting through hundreds of apps to find the very best. Nosotros put together a short listing of our must-take, near-used apps for increasing productivity.

Send me the roundup »

Other Options to Consider

Hither are the other apps nosotros looked at when selecting the best Bible app for iOS.

NeuBible

NeuBible is a beautiful app designed to give a stellar reading feel. It doesn't include audio Bible back up, commentaries, or notation taking — just a keen user interface for lark-gratis reading. It only includes nine translations, and many of them are in-app purchases.

Unfortunately, information technology looks similar it's no longer being actively developed.

Previously our runner-up, the concluding update NeuBible received was in 2018. It however offers a solid UI, but I'd be hesitant to invest much into the app. Since nigh of the available translations are in-app purchases, nosotros recommend that you lot look at The Bible App past YouVersion first.

You lot can download NeuBible on the App Store for $4.99.

ESV Bible

The free ESV Bible app is published by Crossway, the publishers of the English Standard Version Bible known for its residue between historical accurateness and modern linguistic communication. If you lot are all-in with the ESV translation, then this is a solid app that gives you admission to reading plans, audio capability, and more than.

But personally, I similar to await at verses in multiple translations when I study. Because this app is built entirely upon a single translation, yous lose the ability to do that. The design is not quite as prissy as The Bible App past YouVersion, and at that place's really nothing here that would crusade the average person to option this app instead.

Bible App by Olive Tree

Bible App past Olive Tree is a well-known Bible app on iOS that is developed by Harper Collins Publishing. Information technology has apps for iOS, Mac, and the web that feature a really nice design, and gives you access to a lot of study tools — even in the free version.

Like Logos, you can build your library and utilize original language tools, interlinearies, and commentaries. Just the library is express when compared to Logos or Accordance. The app is consistently updated though, so if you're looking to dabble in something more powerful but aren't ready to make a serious financial delivery, Bible App past Olive Tree is a good way to kick the tires.

Bible App by Olive Tree is available for free on the App Store and offers several in-app purchases to expand your library. On the plus side, y'all can buy them individually, simply they tin can likewise add up quickly.

Faithlife Study Bible

If the Faithlife Study Bible app looks familiar, it should. It'southward developed by the same visitor behind the Logos app we discussed earlier. It's almost identical in its user interface design, but doesn't offer the same level of power-user study features that its big brother does.

Think of the Faithlife Report Bible app every bit Logos Light. It gives you admission to a Bible dictionary, reading plans, and lots of multimedia resources like photos, videos, and infographics (these things are as well available in Logos).

You can download the app for free on the App Shop, just many features are available via in-app buy. If you're going to invest in additional resources, nosotros recommend that you take a look at Logos first.

Bible.is

Bible.is originally started as an audio Bible experience and includes dramatized versions in over 1,000 languages. I used to use Bible.is exclusively for listening to the Bible, before those features were added to other apps like The Bible App past YouVersion.

Over the years they've added other features like highlighting and reading plans, rounding it out into a solid app. But the interface is a picayune clunky and doesn't quite mensurate upwards in comparing to The Bible App by YouVersion equally our pick for the best Bible app for iOS.

You can download Bible.is for free on the App Store.

Dwell

If yous're simply looking for the best audio Bible experience, check out Dwell. It offers a range of voices to choose from, offers a great user interface, and allows you to select from different types of ambient musical backgrounds. You lot can mix the voice and music levels, and there are controls to alter the playback speed.

The knock against Dwell is that it is sound-only (in that location is no text version if you desire to read along). And while it'south technically free to download from the App Shop, it's actually $29.99/yr in order to apply information technology (which is a little pricey). The app requires you lot to sign upwardly for a subscription on launch (with a 1-week costless trial) before y'all gain access to the app. Personally, it's hard for us to justify the actress toll compared to what YouVersion gives you lot for free.

Bible Gateway

Bible Gateway is an app by Biblegateway.com. The website and the name accept been around for a long time, originally started in 1993 past then-pupil Nick Hengeveld who had a vision to brand the Bible digitally attainable to everyone via the cyberspace.1 Information technology'south been a major histrion in making the digital Bible accessible.

Unfortunately for Bible Gateway, it's only not equally nice as The Bible App by YouVersion. It does offering a lot of translations, sound Bible back up, and reading plans, merely the interface isn't slap-up. It's also advertizement-supported, which only looks odd in a Bible app.

Information technology can be downloaded for free on the App Store, and includes monthly and yearly subscription options. These become you "fewer ads" and access to additional resources.

Wait. There's a Bonus….

Custom Productivity Templates for Your iPad

If you lot want to use custom productivity templates on your iPad, nosotros've put together a free, walkthrough guide forth with two of our in-house templates that can help you become started.

We'll show you…

  • How to create and salvage custom page templates.
  • How to use those folio templates to transform GoodNotes into your own productivity notebook (or any other type of notebook replacement).

Plus, we also have included two of our custom productivity templates for you to get started with.

This guide is bachelor for FREE to our e-mail subscriber community. And you can get it right now.

By joining the Sugariness Setup community you'll as well get access to our other guides, early previews to big new reviews and workflow articles we are working on, weekly roundups of our best content, and more.

GET THE FREE TEMPLATES

Bible App hero

Conclusion

There are a lot of great options out at that place for Bible written report on iOS, but the Bible App past YouVersion is the 1 we recommend for about people. It sets the bar extremely high with a great user interface, a large number of available translations, a large library of reading plans, and audio Bible support. If you need something more for serious written report, we recommend Logos because it gives you incredibly powerful research tools — though it can come with a pretty hefty price tag.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Posted by: brownemenim.blogspot.com