Comparison

TBR vs SwipeLit

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

TBR

Easily track books you want to read, are currently reading, or have finished. Rate and review books, log favorite moments, and discover new reads. Set yearly reading goals and celebrate milestones with fun animations.

Highlights
  • Track books (to-read, reading, finished)
  • Rate and review books
  • Log favorite moments and quotes
  • Browse public ratings and genre-specific insights
  • Set custom yearly reading goals
  • Earn achievement stickers
  • Pro features: tropes, playlists, adaptations
Features
Read full description

Got a growing TBR list? See great book recommendations, but forget them later? Meet TBR Bookshelf! Easily track books you want to read, are currently reading, or have finished with no limits. Rate and review books once you’ve read them and log your favorite moments using our quick and intuitive rating system. Browse public ratings to see a book’s POV, tropes, reread rate, and up to four genre-specific ratings. For example, Romance tracks Spice, Fluff, Humor, and Tear. All ratings are anonymous, so you can be honest with your reviews. Within our rating system, you can log: * Reading format * 5 Star Rating including half stars * Up to four genre ratings * If you would reread a book * DNF (Did Not Finish) * Favorite characters and quotes * Series and standalone books * Pro quotes and annotations (Paid Subscription Required) * Any additional thoughts about the book Celebrate your reading milestones with special book confetti and earn stickers for completing books and certain book tropes. Exclusive Pro features include: * Book tropes * Book playlists to track songs (cannot be played within the app) * POV format and amount * TV show and movie adaptation ratings * Four seasonal ratings All users can create custom yearly reading goals. When you finish a book, it is automatically added to your yearly reading goal bookshelf. Pro users can also fully customize their bookshelves with color themes, bookshelf items, and layouts. TBR Bookshelf makes managing your TBR list fun, easy, and satisfying. Track books, set reading goals, log quotes, and discover new reads all in one place. With customizable shelves, anonymous ratings, and a supportive community, staying on top of your reading has never been more enjoyable. Join TBR Bookshelf, a woman-owned and operated company, BookTok’s favorite, and trusted by millions of readers. TBR Bookshelf is free to download and use. No account or sign-up is required. TBR Bookshelf Pro includes a 7-day free trial and then options for a monthly plan ($4.99), a 6-month plan ($19.99), or a yearly plan ($29.99). All other features remain free indefinitely. A subscription will be applied to your iTunes account at the end of your free trial. Subscriptions automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can cancel anytime in your iTunes account settings. Any unused portion of a free trial will be forfeited if you purchase a subscription. These prices are for United States customers. Pricing in other countries may vary. Note: This app is for tracking your reading journey. Reading is not available within the app. Privacy Policy: http://jordanpetersonstudio.com/tbr-bookshelf-privacy-policy/
Terms of Service: http://jordanpetersonstudio.com/tbr-bookshelf-terms-of-service/

About

SwipeLit

Discover your next favorite book with a fun, intuitive swiping interface. Quickly decide on books by swiping left to pass, right to add to your wishlist, or up if you've already read it. Access detailed book information and filter by various criteria.

Highlights
  • Tinder-style book swiping
  • TBR wishlist management
  • Detailed book information
  • Smart filtering by genre, mood, author
  • High-quality book covers
  • Private discovery experience
Read full description

SwipeLit is Tinder for book lovers. Discover your next favorite book by swiping through beautiful covers and making instant decisions — no endless scrolling, no pressure, just pure discovery. How It Works • Swipe left if it’s a pass • Swipe right if you love it — add it to your TBR wishlist • Swipe up if you’ve already read it • Tap for details like author, genre, summary, ISBN, and Amazon pricing Built for Real Readers SwipeLit keeps things simple so you can focus on what matters: finding your next great read. Features • Swipe-based discovery — quick, intuitive, and fun • Dual libraries — keep your TBR wishlist separate from books you’ve read • Rich book details — author, published year, genre, summary, ISBN • Smart filtering — browse by mood, genre, year, author, title, or NYT Best Sellers • Stunning covers — high-quality book covers from Open Library and NYT • Share your finds — send great discoveries to fellow book lovers • 100% private — no social feeds, no public profiles Stop doom scrolling for recommendations. Start discovering books the fun way. Your next favorite book is just a swipe away.

Screenshots

TBR4 screens
SwipeLit4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: TBR at 71% against SwipeLit's 0%. TBR also leads on rating (4.5 vs 2.0) and ratings volume (4.4K vs 1). SwipeLit's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ads (none vs shown). On price and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. TBR sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. SwipeLit asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

TBR holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 2.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: TBR has 4.4K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 71% of TBR's written reviews are positive against 0% of SwipeLit's.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
TBR versus SwipeLit: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTBRSwipeLit
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (4.4K ratings) — better2.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews70.9% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings4.4K — better1
Update frequencyWeekly—
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#31 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.615.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size98 MB47 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperTBR - Bookshelf, LLCMichael Cadenhead

Customer experience

TBR

All ratings4,416 ratings
Positive88.6%
Neutral5.0%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews1,011 reviews
Positive70.9%
Neutral10.5%
Negative18.6%

SwipeLit

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Bugs and requests

TBR

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Books disappearing from shelves
  • Inability to edit read dates
  • Search function not working properly
  • Crashing when trying to access certain features

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to organize books by series
  • Option to view other users' reviews and ratings
  • Customizable bookshelves and themes
  • Sync across multiple devices
  • More genre/category options for ratings

SwipeLit

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

TBR

Subscriptions3
  • Pro Access7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • Pro Access7 Days trial$29.996 Months
  • Pro Access$39.991 Year
One-time7
  • 1500 Gems$2.99
  • 4500 Gems$5.99
  • 20,000 Gems$9.99
Show 4 more
  • Gift 6 Months$19.99
  • Gift 1 Year of Pro$29.99
  • Gift Lifetime Pro$119.99
  • Lifetime Purchase$179.99
None

SwipeLit

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is TBR free?
TBR is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SwipeLit free?
SwipeLit is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, TBR or SwipeLit?
TBR is rated higher. TBR averages 4.5 out of 5 from 4.4K ratings, while SwipeLit averages 2.0 from 1 ratings.
Do TBR or SwipeLit have ads?
TBR shows ads; SwipeLit does not.

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