In short, if we consider the basic functionality, both Scarlet Installer and Sideloadly help us to install/sideload apps on iPhone/iPad by using an IPA file of the respective app. Truth be told, if you are looking to sideload apps on your iOS device, you can go with either of Scarlet or Sideloadly; however, looking deep there are some differences between the two.
In this post, we are going to primarily focus on these differences which can help the expert iOS users to decide between the two.
Scarlet Installer
The major difference between the Scarlet app store and Sideloadly is that Scarlet, apart from facilitating sideloading of iOS apps, is a third-party app store as well. Hence, instead of looking for an IPA file over the internet and then installing it via Sideloadly, on Scarlet; you can usually find popular IPA files present in its app inventory itself. The bonus here is that you will not find these apps present on the official Apple App Store making them exclusive for scarlet users.
- Just like Sideloadly, you do not require a jailbreak to install Scarlet and use its services.
- The IPA signing process is sleek and faster.
- Tweak injection facility for customizing the apps.
- Automatic updates, backups, and app refreshes.
- Support up to iOS 16+.
- Sophisticated encryption methods provide a safe and secure IPA sign-in and app download experience.
Sideloadly
Coming to Sideloadly next, speaking of basic functionality, as mentioned above, you can download Sideloadly to sideload iOS apps via IPA files using a free or a paid Apple Developer account. Going a bit deeper check out some more features of Sideloadly below.
- Save your creds for sideloading to avoid having them enter again and again.
- Support up to iOS 17.1+.
- Like Cydia Impactor, you need a system to sideload apps, however, with the WiFi sideloading feature, you do not require connecting your device to the system via USB for the process to work.
- Automatic refresh for the sideloaded apps.
- Supports sideloading on Apple TV (tvOS).
- Change the app name as well as the app icon.
- Ability to modify the bundle ID of the IPA file thereby allowing multiple installs of the same app.
- You can hide sensitive information before taking screenshots or recording tutorial videos.
- Ability to inject multiple dylib, deb, framework & bundle to your IPA. Including Cydia Substrate & Substitute framework support.
- Comes with a light/dark mode for macOS.
Notable Differences
Based on the above-provided info, there are some notable differences between Sideloadly and Scarlet.
| Scarlet | Sideloadly |
| Scarlet is a whole third-party app store. The management system that is a part of Scarlet allows users to browse and install apps from trustworthy sources. | Sideloadly facilitates IPA sideloading; however, it doesn’t have an inbuilt app store. |
| Faster, sophisticated, and safe IPA sign-in process | Comparably complex but safe IPA sign-in process |
| You cannot modify the bundle ID of the apps | You can modify the bundle ID of the app and go with multiple installations of the same app. |
| Better GUI interface | Comparably less user-friendly interface |
| PC is not required | PC is required |
| Doesn’t support Apple TV sideloading | Supports sideloading to Apple TV as well |
Final Words
We hope this post helps you to arrive at a decision when it comes to choosing between Scarlet and Sideloadly. Let us know what your decision was and why, in the comments section below. Feel free to ask questions, if any.