B4X vs B4i

B4X8.0Visit B4i7.9Visit

Higher score B4X #8 in Mobile Development IDEs 8.0/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 3 of 3 features Visit B4X

vs

B4i #9 in Mobile Development IDEs 7.9/10 Paid ✓ 3 of 3 features Visit B4i

• B4X fits best

  Native Android and iOS developers

• B4i fits best

  Low-cost Windows iOS development

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Side by side

Feature	B4X 8.0/10 Visit ↗	B4i 7.9/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.0	7.9
Ranking	#8 in Mobile Development IDEs	#9 in Mobile Development IDEs
Best for	Native Android and iOS developers	Low-cost Windows iOS development
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Paid
Starting price	$59/user one-time	$26/yr
Free plan	✓ (best)	—
Free trial	—	—
Money-back guarantee	30 days	30 days
Deployment	Desktop, Mobile	Desktop, Cloud
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows, macOS, iOS
Support	Email, Community, Docs	Email, Community, Docs
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features B4X 3/3 · B4i 3/3
Emulator or simulator	✓	✓
Visual UI designer	✓	✓
App packaging	✓	✓
Specs
Mobile targets	Android, iOS	iOS
Desktop platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows
Supported languages	B4X, Java	B4X
Our review
Pros	Native Android and iOS application development Code and layout reuse across B4A, B4i and B4J Visual designers, emulators and device debugging	Native iOS compilation with visual UI design and device debugging $59 perpetual Standard license with local Mac compilation Hosted Mac Builder option removes the need for a local Mac
Cons	B4i requires a paid perpetual developer license Local Mac builder is needed for iOS simulator support The suite spans several products rather than one focused IDE	Development targets iOS rather than multiple mobile platforms Local compilation requires a Mac computer No trial version; the IDE uses a B4X programming language
Our verdict	B4X is a suite from Anywhere Software for building native Android and iOS applications, along with desktop, server and IoT software. B4A targets Android, B4i targets iOS, B4J supports desktop and server development, and B4R supports… Read the review →	B4i is a Windows-based development environment for building native iOS applications with B4X, a Visual Basic-like programming language. It is aimed at solo developers, small teams, and organizations that want to create iPhone and iPad… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• B4X — where it wins

  • Native Android and iOS application development
  • Code and layout reuse across B4A, B4i and B4J
  • Visual designers, emulators and device debugging

  Where it doesn't

  • B4i requires a paid perpetual developer license
  • Local Mac builder is needed for iOS simulator support
  • The suite spans several products rather than one focused IDE

• B4i — where it wins

  • Native iOS compilation with visual UI design and device debugging
  • $59 perpetual Standard license with local Mac compilation
  • Hosted Mac Builder option removes the need for a local Mac

  Where it doesn't

  • Development targets iOS rather than multiple mobile platforms
  • Local compilation requires a Mac computer
  • No trial version; the IDE uses a B4X programming language

• B4X8.0/10 · Free plan

  A broad B4X suite for native Android and iOS work with reusable code and visual designers.

  Visit B4XFull verdict →
• B4i7.9/10 · Paid

  A low-cost route to native iOS development from Windows, with Mac-based compilation options.

  Visit B4iFull verdict →