# BookFusion vs Hoshi Reader

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Hoshi Reader at none against BookFusion's 6. Hoshi Reader also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 77%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). BookFusion's advantage is ratings volume (514 vs 20) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. BookFusion sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Hoshi Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

Hoshi Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BookFusion has 514 ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of BookFusion's written reviews are positive against 100% of Hoshi Reader's.

BookFusion ships an update every 10 days, Hoshi Reader weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | BookFusion | Hoshi Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (514 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bookfusion/id1141834096/reviews) | **[5.0 (20 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hoshi-reader/id6758244332/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **514** | 20 |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 158 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.1** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [BookFusion](https://appshunter.io/developer/1141834095) | [Manh-Hao Steffen Pham](https://appshunter.io/developer/1871502447) |

## What reviewers say

### BookFusion

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bookfusion/id1141834096)

Manage, read, and organize your entire eBook collection across all devices with cloud synchronization. Customize your reading experience with extensive settings, highlights, and annotations. Supports various formats and offers text-to-speech functionality.

**Highlights:** Cross-platform eBook reader, Cloud synchronization, Organize with virtual bookshelves, Highlights and annotations, Text-to-Speech (TTS), Send to Kindle, Calibre integration

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Casual Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Advanced Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Power Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Casual Yearly | $18.99 | per year |
| Advanced Yearly | $47.99 | per year |
| Power Yearly | $95.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Excellent cross-platform sync
- 👍 Highly customizable reading experience
- 🚀 Seamless Calibre integration
- 👍 Responsive and helpful developers
- 🚀 Smooth reading experience

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes
- 💰 Subscription model may be costly for some
- 🔒 Requires account creation to use
- 🐛 Inconsistent page turn behavior
- 🐛 Issues with PDF and fixed-layout EPUB support

**Reported bugs**

- Highlights and notes not always saving properly
- Reading position sometimes resets unexpectedly
- Widget not functioning as expected
- Occasional crashes and freezes
- Issues with importing certain ebook formats

**Requested features**

- Add page numbers instead of just percentages
- Implement a true dark mode
- Improve PDF viewing and annotation capabilities
- Add support for DJVU format
- Provide an option to purchase a lifetime license


### Hoshi Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hoshi-reader/id6758244332)

This app is a lightweight Japanese EPUB reader designed for immersion learning. It features a pop-up dictionary with deinflection and supports Anki integration for vocabulary mining. Organize your library with bookshelves and track your reading progress.

**Highlights:** Vertical and horizontal reading modes, Yomitan-like pop-up dictionary, Anki mining support, Customizable Anki card format, Reading statistics, Bookshelves for library organization, Customizable themes and fonts

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is BookFusion free?

BookFusion is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Hoshi Reader free?

Hoshi Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, BookFusion or Hoshi Reader?

Hoshi Reader is rated higher. BookFusion averages 4.7 out of 5 from 514 ratings, while Hoshi Reader averages 5.0 from 20 ratings.

### Do BookFusion or Hoshi Reader have ads?

Neither BookFusion nor Hoshi Reader shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, BookFusion or Hoshi Reader?

BookFusion ships an update every 10 days, and Hoshi Reader weekly. Most recently, BookFusion was updated on October 14, 2026 and Hoshi Reader on October 5, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*