Hardcover.app vs Softcover
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hardcover.app
This app helps you organize and discover books. Track what you've read, create custom lists, and see what friends are reading. Set reading goals and share your thoughts on books.
- Track read and to-read books
- Organize with lists and tags
- See friends' reading activity
- Discover trending books
- Rate and review books
- Set reading goals
- Track reading statistics
Read full descriptionHide full description
Hardcover is a book tracking app with a social side, built for readers, not algorithms. Add books you’ve read or want to read. Keep your library tidy with lists and tags. See what your friends are reading, explore trending picks, and discover hidden gems through curated lists. Rate, review, and share your thoughts. Make your profile public, private, or friends-only—your reading, your rules. Set goals, track your stats, and find your reading rhythm. We use Apple's standard Terms of Service (EULA). https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Softcover
Track your reading progress, manage book lists, and connect with a community of readers. Discover new titles, follow friends, and engage in discussions. Features include detailed statistics, release notifications, and home screen widgets.
- Track reading progress (page/percentage/time)
- Manage reading lists (Currently Reading, Want to Read, Finished)
- Follow friends and explore trending titles
- Community book discussions and curated lists
- Detailed reading statistics and annual goals
- Release notifications for anticipated books
- Home screen widgets for reading progress
Read full descriptionHide full description
Your favorite book tracking companion is here! Softcover brings the power of Hardcover to your iPhone with a beautifully designed, native iOS experience. Track Everything You Read Manage your Currently Reading, Want to Read, and Finished lists with ease. Update your progress by page, percentage, or time—perfect for both books and audiobooks. Stay Connected Follow friends, explore trending titles, discover curated community lists, and engage with book discussions. Join a vibrant community of passionate readers. Beautiful Home Screen Widgets Keep your reading progress at your fingertips with elegant widgets showing your current books and reading goals. Smart Features • Detailed reading statistics and annual goals • Release notifications for anticipated titles • Comprehensive book search with ratings and reviews • Edition selection Seamlessly Syncs with Hardcover All your reading data stays perfectly in sync with your Hardcover.app account across all your devices. Requires a free Hardcover.app account.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Softcover at none against Hardcover.app's 2. Softcover also leads on update cadence (every 2 months vs every 6 months). Hardcover.app's advantage is review sentiment (52% vs 33%) and ratings volume (66 vs 3). On price, rating, ads 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. Hardcover.app sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Softcover asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Hardcover.app against 4.3 for Softcover. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hardcover.app has 66 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 52% of Hardcover.app's written reviews are positive against 33% of Softcover's.
Hardcover.app ships an update every 6 months, Softcover every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hardcover.app | Softcover |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (66 ratings) | 4.3 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 52.2% of reviews — better | 33.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 66 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 18.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 7 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Hardcover LLC | Robin Bolinsson |
Customer experience
Hardcover.app
Softcover
In-app purchases
Hardcover.app
- Supporter - Monthly$4.991 Month
- Supporter - Yearly$49.991 Year
Softcover
No in-app purchases
