Guide · listings read 10 Nov 2026
What short-drama apps charge, from the store pages
These apps are free to download and paid to finish. The store page is a partial price list. The line that costs you money is the one about automatic renewal, which several of the listings print in their own descriptions.
The shape of the bill
The listings describe the same machine in different words. A run of episodes is open. Later episodes ask for coins, a pass, or an ad. Coins are one-time purchases. A pass renews until you stop it. The pass is the product that keeps charging after you have watched the series you came for.
Apple’s page shows a handful of in-app products, then a Learn More link. For the first apps below, the rows are that handful, read on the US App Store on 10 Nov 2026, except FreeReels, which is Google Play. ShortsWave, StardustTV, and DramaBite wrote their prices or periods in the description, so those lines are quoted from the description. A listing that names a subscription and prints no dollar stays blank. None of this is every product an app can offer in a promotion.
What each listing printed
DramaBox: Membership at $5.99, $17.99, and $19.99, and Special offer at $4.99, $9.99, and $19.99. No row says week or month. No row says how many coins the special offer contains.
ReelShort: the description says the subscription lasts 7 days, is billed weekly, and covers the mini series while active. Subscription rows were $19.99. One-time purchases were $4.99, $9.99, $14.99, $19.99, $24.99, and $29.99, with no coin count.
ShortMax: Weekly Pass Pro at $9.99 and $19.99. One-time purchases from $3.49 to $24.99. The description does not say the pass covers every show.
GoodShort: 500 coins for $4.99, then 1,000, 1,500, 2,000, and 2,500 coins up to $24.99. The rate is about one cent a coin on the smallest and largest of those packs. Weekly VIP at $5.99, $9.99, and $19.99, plus two other $19.99 names. The page does not say how many coins an episode costs.
NetShort: Weekly VIP at $5.99, $19.99, $24.99, and $29.99. One-time purchases at $6.99, $9.99, and $19.99. The description does not say those weekly prices unlock the same thing.
DramaWave: Weekly VIP Membership at $19.99 and Monthly VIP at $36.99. Purchase offers from $2.99 to $19.99.
PineDrama: the description says an auto-renewing subscription shows its price before you buy, and it links TikTok’s Drama Pass terms. A dollar row was not in the text we kept.
FreeReels, on Google Play: the about-text says always free, no subscriptions, no limits. The page is also marked for in-app purchases. No dollar row was printed in that about-text.
ShortsWave’s description prints two prices: $19.99 for a week and $199.99 for a year, both for paid episodes. Across 52 weeks the year comes to about $3.85 a week. That division is ours, from the two printed numbers.
StardustTV’s description says the subscription lasts 7 days and is billed weekly, and that the price may vary by region. No dollar amount is in the paragraph.
DramaBite names a 7-day, a 1-month, and a 12-month plan. The only figure is an example, annual subscription $199.99. The weekly and monthly dollar amounts are not printed.
My Drama, iDrama, MoboReels, JoyReels, Vigloo, FlexTV, FlareFlow, Kalos TV, and Sereal+ mention a subscription, a VIP, or coins, and do not print a dollar amount in the description we read.
HoneyReels prices a 7-day pass at $14.99 and pays it out as coins: 1,050 coins plus bonus coins. MiniShorts calls the period weekly and the price US$14.99/month in the same list. Those two lines do not agree, so the review does not pick one.
ShotShort says the catalog is free and supported by ads, with an optional subscription only to remove the ads. SnackShort says free episodes without ads, then a VIP. LoveShots says a weekly or yearly plan unlocks every series, and that ads can open selected episodes. None of those three print the subscription price.
Why a week at $19.99 is the trap
A series of one-minute episodes can be finished in an evening. A weekly plan that renews on day seven charges you for a second week you may not watch. ReelShort’s listing says the charge is taken within 24 hours before the next period. DramaBox, GoodShort, and NetShort tell you to turn renewal off at least 24 hours before the period ends. DramaWave says you can cancel in account settings. ShortMax’s description does not bother to say it. The Apple and Google subscription lists are where the renewal actually stops.
Deleting the app is not on any of those cancel paths. The receipt stays with the store account that paid.
What we will not price
A cost to finish “80 episodes” needs a coins-per-episode figure and a coin rate. GoodShort publishes the coin rate and not the episode price. The others publish neither, except as complaints inside user reviews. A review that says one episode was 60 coins is one person’s episode. It is not the price list. Check the lock screen on the series you want.
Questions
Which app has a published weekly price?
ReelShort describes a 7-day weekly subscription, with $19.99 rows. ShortsWave’s description says $19.99 a week and $199.99 a year. StardustTV says 7 days, billed weekly, and does not print the dollar. DramaBite names a 7-day plan and does not price it. ShortMax, GoodShort, NetShort, and DramaWave put “weekly” on product names. DramaBox does not.
Does deleting the app stop the charge?
No. Cancel the subscription in the Apple or Google account that paid, at least a day before it renews.