# My Book List vs Bookshelf

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Bookshelf at 94% against My Book List's 49%. Bookshelf also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.1) and chart position (#188 vs unranked). My Book List's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. My Book List sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Bookshelf sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Bookshelf holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 639 and 3K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 49% of My Book List's written reviews are positive against 94% of Bookshelf's.

My Book List ships an update every 4 days, Bookshelf every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | My Book List | Bookshelf |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.1 (639 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/my-book-list-library-tracker/id443391908/reviews) | **[4.8 (3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bookshelf-your-virtual-library/id1464032274/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 639 | **3K** |
| Positive reviews | 48.5% of reviews | **93.8% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 4 days** | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | **#188** |
| Size | 41 MB | 80 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [BigBalli Consulting llc](https://appshunter.io/developer/363765325) | [SquidBit d.o.o.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1464032273) |

## What reviewers say

### My Book List

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/my-book-list-library-tracker/id443391908)

Effortlessly catalog your personal book collection with this library organizer. Easily add books by scanning barcodes or searching online, and view your library with customizable sorting and filters. Keep track of reading status, ratings, and notes for each title.

**Highlights:** ISBN barcode scanning, Online book search, Customizable library views, Read status and ratings, Multi-device syncing, Import/export library data

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (14)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Full unlock | $4.99 | per month |
| Premium Yearly Offer | $14.99 | per year |
| Full unlock | $24.99 | per year |
| extra details for all books | $0.99 | one-time |
| Barcode scanner | $0.99 | one-time |
| remote database & device sync | $1.99 | one-time |
| CSV Import | $3.99 | one-time |
| Amazon Kindle eBook import | $3.99 | one-time |
| BibTeX and Zotero export | $4.99 | one-time |
| 500 Tokens | $4.99 | one-time |
| 1000 Tokens | $9.99 | one-time |
| 10000 Tokens | $49.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime Full Unlock | $49.99 | one-time |
| 20000 Tokens | $79.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 📚 Helpful for tracking books
- 💻 Convenient virtual bookshelf
- 🔍 Useful barcode scanning feature

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent glitches and bugs
- 💰 Excessive in-app purchases required
- 🔍 Barcode scanner not always reliable
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with mandatory Facebook login
- 🤔 Confusing pricing and feature structure

**Reported bugs**

- Books disappearing from user libraries
- Scanning and importing issues
- Crashes and freezes when using certain features
- Inconsistent behavior across iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Ability to sort books by series or genre
- Option to manually add book details
- Offline access to book lists
- Improved search and filtering capabilities
- Sync across multiple devices


### Bookshelf

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bookshelf-your-virtual-library/id1464032274)

**Currently charting:** #188 Top Grossing · Book (US App Store)

Organize your book collection with virtual shelves and tags. Track reading progress, set goals, and manage your TBR list. Discover new books, share recommendations, and connect with friends' reading journeys.

**Highlights:** Virtual bookshelves and tags, ISBN barcode scanner, Reading progress tracking, TBR wishlist management, Social reading profiles, Book statistics and insights, OCR text scanning for quotes

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Bookshelf (1 Month) | $2.99 | per month |
| Bookshelf (1 Year) | $19.99 | per year |
| Bookshelf (Lifetime) | $59.99 | one-time |
| Bookshelf (Lifetime) | $79.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Batch scanning feature
- 📚 Excellent for organizing book collections
- 💰 Free app with no limits
- 🔍 Helpful for avoiding book duplicates

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Search function could be improved
- 🔢 Inability to add multiple copies of the same book
- 📷 Limited cover image options for some books

**Reported bugs**

- Occasional issues with scanning barcodes
- Trouble accessing app after account creation

**Requested features**

- Ability to organize books by author and series
- Option to filter statistics by bookshelf
- Manual page count entry
- Borrowing/lending tracking system


## Frequently asked questions

### Is My Book List free?

My Book List is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Bookshelf free?

Bookshelf is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, My Book List or Bookshelf?

Bookshelf is rated higher. My Book List averages 4.1 out of 5 from 639 ratings, while Bookshelf averages 4.8 from 3K ratings.

### Do My Book List or Bookshelf have ads?

Bookshelf shows ads; My Book List does not.

### Which is updated more often, My Book List or Bookshelf?

My Book List ships an update every 4 days, and Bookshelf every 2 weeks. Most recently, My Book List was updated on September 26, 2026 and Bookshelf on September 29, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*