BookBub vs PINES (Georgia)
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
BookBub
Discover daily deals on bestselling and free ebooks across all genres. Track your wishlist and receive price alerts for your favorite titles, ensuring you never miss a sale on books you want to read.
- Daily ebook deals
- Hundreds of free ebooks
- Personalized recommendations
- Wishlist tracking
- Price alerts
- Genre and price filtering
Read full descriptionHide full description
Discover amazing deals on bestselling ebooks, plus hundreds of free ebooks. Track your wishlist and get alerts when your most wanted titles go on sale. BookBub helps millions of readers save money on ebooks they'll love. Our expert editors hand pick incredible ebook deals every day across all major genres — romance, mystery, thrillers, women's fiction, fantasy, contemporary fiction, nonfiction, and many more — from bestselling authors to hidden gems. WHY READERS LOVE BOOKBUB: THE BIGGEST EBOOKS, UP TO 95% OFF We feature limited-time ebook deals from all major retailers. Get huge savings on the biggest books and authors, including #1 New York Times bestsellers. HUNDREDS OF FREE EBOOKS Unlock a vast selection of free ebooks across 40+ genres, with new titles added each day YOUR PERSONAL BOOK TRACKER Build your reading wishlist and never miss a sale. Add any book you want to read, and we'll notify you when it's discounted. Track your TBR (to-be-read) list, sort by release date or author, and mark it as read when you're done. PERSONALIZED TO YOUR READING TASTE Our editorial team hand picks from thousands of ebooks to bring you only the best — from BookTok favorites to award-winning fiction. FEATURES: - Browse daily ebook deals personalized to your reading preferences - Track unlimited books on your wishlist - Get price alerts for specific titles or favorite authors - Discover popular titles to add to your list - Filter deals by genre and price - Buy from your favorite ebook store "When we say 'deal,' we mean it — many of BookBub's titles are free entirely, $0.99, or just a couple of bucks." — Lifehacker "Bargain-basement deals on ebooks." — The New York Times Join millions of happy readers saving money on ebooks every day. Questions? Visit bookbub.com/apphelp
PINES (Georgia)
Access over 275 libraries across Georgia with your library card. Search the catalog, place holds on items, and renew checked-out materials directly from your device.
- Search library catalog
- Place holds on items
- Renew checked-out items
- Access 275+ Georgia libraries
Read full descriptionHide full description
PINES gives you access to more than 275 libraries across Georgia. To use this app, you must have a library card with a PINES member library and know your password. PINES lets you: * Search the catalog * Place a hold on an item * Renew items you have checked out Problem? Send email to kenstir.apps@gmail.com Development of this software has been sponsored by Georgia PINES. This app is open source! If you have the means and the interest to contribute, head on over to https://github.com/kenstir/hemlock-ios
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: BookBub at 4.7 against PINES (Georgia)'s 4.2. BookBub also leads on ratings volume (961 vs 20) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 6 weeks). PINES (Georgia)'s advantage is review sentiment (66% vs 54%) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
BookBub holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BookBub has 961 ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 54% of BookBub's written reviews are positive against 66% of PINES (Georgia)'s, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
BookBub ships an update every 3 weeks, PINES (Georgia) every 6 weeks. Both last shipped on October 26, 2026.
| Parameter | BookBub | PINES (Georgia) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (961 ratings) — better | 4.2 (20 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 54.4% of reviews | 65.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 961 — better | 20 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 6 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | #22 — better | #203 |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Pubmark Inc. | Kenneth Cox |
Customer experience
BookBub
PINES (Georgia)
User reviews
BookBub
From 961 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🤩 Great deals on books
- 📚 Variety of genres and authors
- 💰 Affordable and free books
- 🔍 Personalized recommendations
Room to improve
- 🔒 Limited to Apple Books only
- 🔍 Lack of search functionality
- 📝 Inability to leave reviews
- 🔁 Repeated email subscriptions
PINES (Georgia)
From 20 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Convenient for searching and placing holds
- 👍 Easy to renew books
- 👍 Developer responsiveness noted
- 👍 App works smoothly otherwise
- 👍 Useful for searching across the Pines system
Room to improve
- 😞 Cannot pay fines through the app
- 😞 No longer able to pay fines
- 😞 Removed option to pay fines
- 😞 Inconvenient to delete messages
- 😞 Lists missing on iOS
Bugs and requests
BookBub
Reported bugs
3 issues- App crashes or freezes during use
- Sign-up and login issues
- Incompatibility with certain devices or operating systems
Requested features
4 requests- Add support for Kindle and other ebook platforms
- Implement search and filtering options
- Allow users to manage their reading lists and leave reviews
- Improve email subscription management
PINES (Georgia)
Reported bugs
9 issues- Cannot sign in (Error message)
- Error decoding OSRF object
- Won't delete messages
- App no longer opening
- System down (app or browser)
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Crashes when viewing holds or checkouts
- Login issues after password change
- App crashes constantly
- Ebook feature not working on Apple
Requested features
9 requests- Ability to pay fines through the app
- Fix message deletion bug
- Add 'Lists' feature to iOS app
- Support for ebooks and audiobooks
- Ability to renew multiple books at once
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Reinstating color alert for due dates
- Add barcode for scanning at checkout
- Improve book description display
- Make app more like Android version
In-app purchases
BookBub
No in-app purchases
PINES (Georgia)
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is BookBub free?
Is PINES (Georgia) free?
Which has better reviews, BookBub or PINES (Georgia)?
Do BookBub or PINES (Georgia) have ads?
Which is updated more often, BookBub or PINES (Georgia)?
Which is more popular, BookBub or PINES (Georgia)?
Other comparisons
