Below are your favorite Bible Apps for the iPhone as voted by you. Don’t forget to add your suggestions and cast your votes. Have an Android? Check out the Top Bible Apps for Android Phones.
- crowd rank
- curated
- alpha
- newest
- queue
-
ESV Bible for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the
Is the ESV your preferred translation? With this simple, elegant, and fast responding App from Crossway you can have quick access to the ESV for free.
-
PocketBible
Added by Wes Lusk on Jun 15, 2011
PocketBible for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch gives you everything you need for Bible study or casual reading. It is available free and includes 40 classic Bibles and reference titles to get you started studying the Bible on your iPhone or iPad!
-
Bible+ for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the iTu
Read and study the Bible in English for free (comes with ASV translation). There are over 100 free additional titles that can be downloaded while other resources and translations in English, Greek and Hebrew can be purchased.
-
Bible ✙ (Logos) for iPhone
Read the Bible in English (ESV, NASB, HCSB, NKJV, NLT, KJV and others) or Greek for free with over 30 available translations. This App becomes much more powerful if you are a Logos Bible Software 4 user as it can sync with your library.
-
ESV Study Bible + for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad
Like the ESV but want to carry the notes from the ESV Study Bible with you as well? This App contains the content of the ESV Study Bible as well as access to the audio of the ESV when connected to the internet.
-
Blue Letter Bible for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad
Read the Bible in English (KJV, ASV & NET) or Greek for free with over 30 available translations. Some translations are downloadable, others only available with an internet connection.
-
Bible (YouVersion) for iPhone
Read the Bible in English for free (NIV, ESV, NLT, NKJV, AMP, NASB, CEV, NET, WEB, NCV, TNIV, HCSB, The Message, and others). Some translations are downloadable, others only available with an internet connection. It is presently ranked as the most popular Bible reading App in the App Store.
-
The Reformation Study Bible for iPhone, iPod touch
Read the text of the ESV along with the notes and resources from the Reformation Study Bible. Includes the free download of other translations including a Greek NT.
-
Accordance Bible Software for iPhone, iPod touch,
Read the Bible in English (ESV, KJV) and download other free Bible study tools. This App becomes much more powerful if you are an Accordance user on Mac as you can download any of your Accordance modules to use on your iPhone without the need for an internet connection.
-
ReadingPlan for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad on the
ReadingPlan helps you track your progress as you read through the Bible. You can start a plan at any time, progressing at your own rate or on the schedule dictated by the plan. The developer is easy to contact and will add your plan if it’s not available in the app already.
Also see:
- 5 Reasons To Tell Your Facebook Friends Where You Go To Church
- Technology, no matter how promising and brilliant, will never satisfy
- Pixels Are People
- The Best iPhone / iPad App For Tracking Your Bible Reading
- Technology’s Temptation: Double and Dangerous
- Amazon Kindle Tips, Tricks, & Resources
- 3 Tips from C.S. Lewis on Blogging and Tweeting
Unless you have use for the Greek, I’d pass on the Wave app for iPhone. Translations you’d be likely to want to use are expensive (translations that are free in other apps), the parallel columns option does not work well on iPhone/iPod touch due to small screen size (although could have potential on an iPad) and the random verse feature kinda encourages bad bible reading methods.
I quite like ESV study bible+. Certainly beats taking a massive print version of the ESV with me!
YouVersion is fantastic for its range of translations, especially given that so many of them are downloadable for offline use. As well as a lot of English translations, it also has translations in other languages. This has come in useful in bible studies with people for whom English is not their native language. When they have had trouble understanding the passage in English I’ve been able to show them the passage in their native language on YouVersion.
I recently discovered PocketSword for iPod Touch/iPhone. It’s built on the open source Sword library. Includes ESV free and other free versions. Also includes commentary (such as MHC and Calvin), Strong’s Greek and Hebrew linked in the KJV, so that you can pull up original language while reading. These are all downloadable modules, but it’s free.
Link here: http://www.crosswire.org/pocketsword/PocketSword/PocketSword/PocketSword.html
I second PocketSword. By far the best, easily managed,
customizable APP out there. He is even working on an iPad
version.
I have three: The Reformation Study Bible, the ESV Study
Bible+, and the YouVersion Bible. My favorite is the RSB–I like
the navigation, the RSB notes, and having the Greek NT available. I
picked up the ESV Study Bible+ on sale for the notes, since I’d
heard they were good and I don’t own the hard copy version of it.
But it’s the YouVersion one I’m using daily these days, because it
has Professor Horner’s Bible Reading Plan–I love the reading plan
integration. I also tried PocketBible by Laridian, because I used
to use their desktop software, but I didn’t really like the
navigation in the iPhone app, so I stopped using it at
all.
I use the Wave Study Bible app on my iphone, as do most of
the people in our home bible study group. It is particularly useful
as it is a parallel bible with greek and greek translation. It also
has a powerful concordance which is useful for putting together
word studies. I highly recommend the Wave to bible beginners or
bible scholars.
I have had YouVersion for several months now and I love it. I use it over the network or wifi and it’s fine…even in church or Bible study. It updates quickly and is a great app!
Thanks all for sharing your hands on experiences with the Apps.
When I do an update to the list I may at PocketSword as well.
I think you should add PocketBible of Laridian (http://www.laridian.com) as well to see if anyone will vote for it. It’s listed on iTunes Store too. I’m using it too, but mostly it has only English bibles.
Yong: If you look at the bottom of the list there is the option for you to add items. Feel free to add Laridian.:-)
I love the Reading Plans on YouVersion!
I’m actually working on the Lucado Life Lessons Study Bible with Thomas Nelson at the moment. While not a true Bible app, and more of a devotional, we just released a free 365-day mobile app for both iPhone and Android that is based upon the Lucado Life Lessons Study Bible. It’s a an awesome little app.
I have been using the Wave Study Bible app for many months. I use it on a daily basis when I don’t have. Its search feature is very fast and accurate and the included 4-step approach is very powerful to both beginner and adept. I also use it in my small group studies and it has quickly become the go-to for bible verse lookup. Everyone that I show this app to downloads it from the App Store at first chance. The tie-in with the small group study guide, “How to Read the Bible SO God Speaks to You” is a natural extension of the materials. Since using this bible app, I’ve stopped using all others.
Awesome list. I will be added some of these to what I already have.
Thanks for posting this Nathan!
(I work at Blue Letter Bible too)
I’ve watched an recommended this list for awhile – getting ready to revamp my own. Thought I’d throw in my 2 cents.
YouVersion now has audio Bibles and excellent reading plans so it makes a few of these obselete.
Pocketsword is great for the commentaries alone.
Logos is good for inline cross references and they have a great selection of free books. I wish I were a paying customer but haven’t had the money to spend to start using their system.
I’m not an Olive Tree Reader fan – entirely too overpriced.
-Thanks for building such a comprehensive list.
Thanks for putting together such a great list and fostering discussion.
I have ten of these apps installed on my iPod Touch and iPad right now as part of a comparative review I’m working on. I wanted to point out a few things some people may not realize.
Logos and Pocketsword do not have any notes feature that I am aware of. I still use them (I actually have Logos on MBP and really like it) but it limits their usefulness for me for sermon preparation. Several of the other apps (at least Accordance and Glo) have notes, but no note searching.
@Keith, I did a bit of comparison between Laridian, Logos, Mantis and Olive Tree comparing the prices of a variety of resources and Olive Tree was actually cheaper than any of the other three options, in almost every instance. If you are looking for a large library of free resources, then Pocketsword may be the best option. I also enjoy Logos app. However, even if you only install the free resources available from Olive Tree, their notes syncing, in-note verse hyperlinking, word “look up” feature, resource guide, incredibly versatile highlighting, etc., etc., add up to what is, for me, the very best mobile study resource I have been able to find on the iOS platform. It’s definitely worth a hard look. I’d be lost without it.
P.S. I’m not affiliated with Olive Tree. Just a VERY satisfied customer.
Youversion is the one I use the most. It is so easy to use and has a lot of versions available and all free of charge.