# RedShelf vs BU READY

The clearest difference is update cadence: RedShelf at every 5 weeks against BU READY's every 7 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

RedShelf ships an update every 5 weeks, BU READY every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | RedShelf | BU READY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (7.1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/redshelf/id1511013608/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **7.1K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 3.1% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 weeks** | Every 7 months |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 26 MB | 30 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.6** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [RedShelf](https://appshunter.io/developer/1511013606) | [Brandon University](https://appshunter.io/developer/1227872410) |

## What reviewers say

### RedShelf

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/redshelf/id1511013608)

Access and read your digital textbooks on any device. Highlight text, take notes, create flashcards, and have content read aloud. Your notes and highlights sync across all your devices.

**Highlights:** Access textbooks on any device, Highlight text and take notes, Create flashcards from content, Define unfamiliar words, Text-to-speech functionality, Sync notes and highlights across devices

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Convenient to access textbooks in one place
- 🚀 Decent overall performance

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
- 💤 Slow loading and page turning
- 👎 Unreliable highlighting and note-taking features
- 🤖 Poor text-to-speech functionality
- 📵 Inability to access books offline

**Reported bugs**

- Books not loading or showing blank screens
- Highlighting issues (selecting wrong text, unable to edit)
- Sync issues between devices and web version

**Requested features**

- Improve highlighting and annotation tools
- Add support for split-screen mode
- Enhance text-to-speech capabilities
- Allow offline access to downloaded books


### BU READY

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bu-ready/id6749778279)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is RedShelf free?

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

### Is BU READY free?

BU READY is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do RedShelf or BU READY have ads?

Neither RedShelf nor BU READY shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, RedShelf or BU READY?

RedShelf ships an update every 5 weeks, and BU READY every 7 months. Most recently, RedShelf was updated on November 3, 2026 and BU READY on October 25, 2026.

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