CLZ Books vs LibraryThing
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CLZ Books
Easily catalog your book collection by scanning ISBN barcodes or searching by author and title. Automatically retrieve book details, values, and cover art. Organize your library with customizable views, multiple collections, and cloud syncing.
- Scan ISBN barcodes for automatic data retrieval
- Search by author and title
- Automatic book details, values, and cover art
- Edit all book fields and add personal notes
- Create multiple collections
- Customizable browsing, sorting, and grouping
- Cloud backup and multi-device syncing
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Easily catalog your book collection. Automatic book details, cover art and estimated values. Just scan ISBNs (barcode or text) or search our CLZ Core database by author and title. CLZ Books is a paid subscription app, costing US $1.99 per month or US $19.99 per year. Use the free 7-day trial to try all of the app's features and online services! == 2 easy ways to add books: == 1. Search our CLZ Core by ISBN: You can either scan ISBN barcodes or scan the ISBN numbers using OCR Guaranteed 98% success rate on ISBN lookups! 2. Search our CLZ Core by author and title Our CLZ Core online book database automatically provides cover images and full book details, like author, title, publisher, publication date, plot, genres, subjects, estimated pricing, etc.. == Edit all fields == Modify all automatically provided details from Core, like Authors, Titles, Publishers, Publications Dates, Plot descriptions, etc.. you can even upload your own cover art (front and back!). Add personal details like condition, location, purchase date / price / store, notes, etc.. Create your own Custom Fields so that you can catalog information for which the app does not have a built-in data field. == Create multiple collections == Collections will appear as Excel-like tabs at the bottom of your screen. E.g. for different people, to separate your physical books from your ebooks, to keep track of books you sold or have for sale, etc... == Fully customizable == Browse your book catalog as a list with small thumbnails or as cards with big images. Sort any way you want, e.g. by author, title, publication date, date added etc.. Group your books into folders by author, publisher, genre, subject, location, etc... == CLZ Cloud storage == Sync your data to the CLZ Cloud, to: * Always have an online backup of your book organizer database. * Sync your book library between multiple devices * View and share your book collection online == Got a question or need help? == We are always ready to help or to answer your questions, 7 days a week. Just use "Contact Support" or "CLZ Club forum" from the menu. == About CLZ == CLZ has been developing collection database software since 1996. Located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, the CLZ team now consists of 12 guys and one gal. We're always working to bring you regular updates for the apps and software, and to keep our Core online databases up-to-date with all weekly releases. Our other CLZ apps: * CLZ Movies, for cataloging your DVDs, Blu-rays and 4K UHDs * CLZ Music, for creating a database of your CDs and vinyl records * CLZ Comics, for your collection of US comic books. * CLZ Games, for creating a database of your video game collection == What our users say == "A fantastically nice book library app that I am incredibly happy with, you really get an overview of the things that need to be sorted out, for a good overview, easy to use and everything works seamlessly. Strongly recommend." Emmanate (Norway) "The best I have found. I have over 1200 books and have used a number of book cataloging apps over the years. CLZ Books does the job of keeping track of my library and gets syncing right. Most importantly (speaking as a software developer) they keep improving the app. It’s tough to make a business of niche software products. These folks have apparently figured out how to make a go of it and they keep improving. Kudos to them!" LEK2 (USA) == About auto-renewable subscriptions == * The payment will be charged to your iTunes Account when you confirm the purchase. * The subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. * Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Automatic renewals will cost the same price you were originally charged for the subscription.
LibraryThing
Catalog your personal book, DVD, and CD collections. Easily add items by searching or scanning barcodes. Enhance your catalog with high-resolution cover photos and browse your collection visually.
- Catalog books, DVDs, and CDs
- Search for media items
- Scan ISBN barcodes
- Add high-resolution cover photos
- Browse collection by cover type
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The LibraryThing app allows LibraryThing members to catalog and browse their collections. LibraryThing is focused on books, but you can add most media, including books, DVDs and CDs. LibraryThing relies on data from Amazon, and over 65 million library records. Add books by searching for them or scanning their ISBN barcode with the camera. Add high-resolution cover photos of your books with the cover editor and browse your books by cover type to find copies that need better covers.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: CLZ Books at 4.8 against LibraryThing's 3.5. CLZ Books also leads on review sentiment (90% vs 48%) and ratings volume (2.6K vs 278). LibraryThing's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 13.0). On price, ads 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. CLZ Books sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. LibraryThing asks for nothing beyond the download.
CLZ Books holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CLZ Books has 2.6K ratings behind it against 278, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 90% of CLZ Books's written reviews are positive against 48% of LibraryThing's.
CLZ Books ships an update every 2 weeks, LibraryThing every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CLZ Books | LibraryThing |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (2.6K ratings) — better | 3.5 (278 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 90.1% of reviews — better | 48.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.6K — better | 278 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 4 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Subscription | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #177 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 28 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | CLZ | LibraryThing.com |
Customer experience
CLZ Books
LibraryThing
User reviews
CLZ Books
From 2.6K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 📚 Excellent book cataloging app
- 🔍 Helpful for avoiding duplicate purchases
- 🔖 Ability to organize books into collections
- 🔍 Useful for checking book inventory while shopping
- 🔍 Comprehensive book database with good coverage
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional sync issues or data loss
- 💰 Subscription model can be expensive for some users
- 🔍 Limited ability to add custom fields or notes
- 🔍 Difficulty finding older books without ISBNs
LibraryThing
From 278 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Quick barcode scanning
- 👍 Useful for cataloging library
- 🚀 Fast book addition
Room to improve
- 🐛 Glitches and crashes
- 🔍 Limited search and editing capabilities
- 🤖 Outdated and dated UI
Bugs and requests
CLZ Books
Reported bugs
2 issues- Crashes when removing books during sync
- Issues with barcode scanning on newer devices
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to track reading progress or notes
- Option to export data in more formats
- Improved search and filtering capabilities
- Integration with other book-related apps or services
LibraryThing
Reported bugs
3 issues- Barcode scanner not working
- Books disappearing from catalog
- Editing and saving issues
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to create custom collections
- Offline access to library
- Integration with other book apps
- Lending/loan tracking feature
In-app purchases
CLZ Books
- CLZ Books (Pay Monthly)7 Days trial$1.991 Month
- CLZ Books (Pay Yearly)7 Days trial$19.991 Year
LibraryThing
No in-app purchases






