Comparison

iBOOKLIGHT vs TBR

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Turns device into a book light
  • Simple and clean interface
  • Adjustable positioning
  • Stays on indefinitely
  • No fussy controls
Features
Read full description

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.

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/

Screenshots

iBOOKLIGHT2 screens
TBR4 screens

Verdict

The call

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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iBOOKLIGHT ships an update every 12 months, TBR weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
iBOOKLIGHT versus TBR: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriBOOKLIGHTTBR
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (41 ratings)4.5 (4.4K ratings) — better
Positive reviews46.0% of reviews70.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings414.4K — better
Update frequencyEvery 12 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#33 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS10.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size14 MB98 MB
Age rating4+12+
Developerjami beckerTBR - Bookshelf, LLC

Customer experience

iBOOKLIGHT

All ratings41 ratings
Positive53.7%
Neutral17.1%
Negative29.3%
Written reviews124 reviews
Positive46.0%
Neutral5.6%
Negative48.4%

TBR

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

User reviews

iBOOKLIGHT

From 41 App Store ratings

What 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 ratings

What 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
Show 5 more
  • 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
Show 3 more
  • 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

2 purchases

iBOOKLIGHT

One-time2
  • Remove Logo on Light Screen$0.99
  • Change light screen color hue$0.99
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

Questions

Is iBOOKLIGHT free?
iBOOKLIGHT is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is TBR free?
TBR is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, iBOOKLIGHT or TBR?
TBR is rated higher. iBOOKLIGHT averages 3.5 out of 5 from 41 ratings, while TBR averages 4.5 from 4.4K ratings.
Do iBOOKLIGHT or TBR have ads?
TBR shows ads; iBOOKLIGHT does not.
Which is updated more often, iBOOKLIGHT or TBR?
iBOOKLIGHT ships an update every 12 months, and TBR weekly. Most recently, iBOOKLIGHT was updated on October 23, 2026 and TBR on October 27, 2026.

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