iBOOKLIGHT vs TBR
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
iBOOKLIGHT
Transform your iPhone or iPad into a convenient book light for nighttime reading. This app offers a simple, clean interface to illuminate your pages without disturbing others. Position it upright or on a pillow for a fuss-free reading experience.
- Turns device into a book light
- Simple and clean interface
- Adjustable positioning
- Stays on indefinitely
- No fussy controls
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Turn your iPHONE or iPAD into a book light. iBOOKLIGHT is now simple & clean. It will illuminate your reading while the rest of the world sleeps. Stand it upright or rest it on the pillow, on yourself or behind your shoulder. Goodbye fussy book lights that awake your partner. Stays on indefinitely We appreciate simple, clean design. This is the answer, you can read your book without fussing with too many controls. GET IT NOW FOR FREE! Support development with in app purchase. BY: www.nomadcandy.com GREAT Reading Light for your favorite fiction and non fiction: Freakonomics, An Innocent Client, Where the Crawdads Sing, Pachinko, Before We Were Yours, Circe, Defending Jacob, We Were The Lucky Ones, Everything I Never Told you, Becoming, Educated, The Matriarch, The Right Side of History, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone, Commander in Cheat, Ladies Who Punch, Doing Justice and Bad Blood. Anything you read to fall asleep this is for you.
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.
- 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
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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/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: TBR at 4.5 against iBOOKLIGHT's 3.5. TBR also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 12 months) and ratings volume (4.4K vs 41). iBOOKLIGHT's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 18.6). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
Both are free to download. iBOOKLIGHT sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and TBR sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
TBR holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: TBR has 4.4K ratings behind it against 41, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 46% of iBOOKLIGHT's written reviews are positive against 71% of TBR's.
iBOOKLIGHT ships an update every 12 months, TBR weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | iBOOKLIGHT | TBR |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.5 (41 ratings) | 4.5 (4.4K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 46.0% of reviews | 70.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 41 | 4.4K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 12 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | #35 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 98 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | jami becker | TBR - Bookshelf, LLC |
Customer experience
iBOOKLIGHT
TBR
User reviews
iBOOKLIGHT
From 41 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💡 Simple and straightforward design
- 📖 Perfect for bedtime reading without disturbing others
- 🔆 Adjustable brightness for comfortable reading
- ⏱️ Stays on indefinitely when configured properly
- 🆓 Free app with no mandatory payments
Room to improve
- 🐛 Screen turns off after 30 seconds to a few minutes without proper settings
- 📱 Just adjusts phone brightness - limited functionality
- 💰 In-app purchases for hue changes that don't work properly
- 📢 Intrusive ads that pop up frequently
- 🔊 Ads with sound can wake sleeping partners
TBR
From 4.4K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Cute and visually appealing
- 📚 Helpful for tracking reading progress
- 🌟 Unique rating system
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔒 No account/sync option to prevent data loss
- 💰 Too many features locked behind paywall
- 🔍 Limited book database, hard to find some titles
Bugs and requests
iBOOKLIGHT
Reported bugs
10 issues- Screen goes dark after 30 seconds despite claims of indefinite operation
- In-app hue purchase feature non-functional
- Page number saves don't persist after closing app
- Settings button does nothing or is non-functional
- Brightness changes affect phone's system brightness permanently
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- App causes excessive battery drain in some cases
- Ads block portions of the light display
- Incompatibility issues with iPhone 6 and newer models
- Auto-lock setting gets overridden by app
- Porn ads appearing in some versions
Requested features
8 requests- Built-in brightness adjustment within app without phone settings
- Auto-lock settings integrated into app
- Multiple color/hue options that actually work
- Clear in-app instructions for first-time users
- Dark mode or warmer light options for eye comfort
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- Swipe-based brightness adjustment
- Different light bulb shapes or designs
- Remove or customize ad placement and type
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
In-app purchases
iBOOKLIGHT
- Remove Logo on Light Screen$0.99
- Change light screen color hue$0.99
TBR
- Pro Access7 Days trial$5.991 Month
- Pro Access7 Days trial$29.996 Months
- Pro Access$39.991 Year
- 1500 Gems$2.99
- 4500 Gems$5.99
- 20,000 Gems$9.99
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- Gift 6 Months$19.99
- Gift 1 Year of Pro$29.99
- Gift Lifetime Pro$119.99
- Lifetime Purchase$179.99









