# iCollect Books vs Shelfable

The clearest difference is rating: iCollect Books at 4.6 against Shelfable's 1.0. iCollect Books also leads on review sentiment (42% vs 0%) and ratings volume (4.1K vs 1). Shelfable's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 weeks). On price and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. iCollect Books sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $29.99 per year. Shelfable asks for nothing beyond the download.

iCollect Books holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iCollect Books has 4.1K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 42% of iCollect Books's written reviews are positive against 0% of Shelfable's.

iCollect Books ships an update every 2 weeks, Shelfable every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | iCollect Books | Shelfable |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (4.1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/icollect-books-library-list/id476621639/reviews)** | [1.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelfable/id6740754533/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **4.1K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | **42.4% of reviews** | 0.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 39 MB | 36 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [iCollect Everything, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1505869775) | [Frederick Andersen](https://appshunter.io/developer/1766765116) |

## What reviewers say

### iCollect Books

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/icollect-books-library-list/id476621639)

Organize and manage any book collection, from personal libraries to classroom inventories. Features include barcode scanning, cloud backup, and cross-device syncing. Customize layouts and export your data.

**Highlights:** Manage and inventory any book, Barcode scanning and database search, Cloud backup and sync across devices, Customizable layouts and fields, Exporting and importing capabilities, Store multiple images per book, Track personal details like loan status and purchase price

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlimited Books | $29.99 | per year |
| Pro User - Yearly | $79.99 | per year |
| 50 AI Identification Scans | $9.99 | one-time |
| 250 AI Identification Scans | $44.99 | one-time |
| Add Unlimited Books | $49.99 | one-time |
| 500 AI Identification Scans | $79.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 📚 Useful for cataloging book collections
- 📸 Ability to add book cover photos
- 🔍 Helpful for avoiding duplicate book purchases
- 🔍 Provides a way to keep track of loaned books

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Paid version required to add more than 30 books
- 🐛 Bugs causing data loss or app crashes
- 🔍 Limited book database, requiring manual entry
- 🔍 Difficulty finding/sorting books by author's last name
- 🔍 Inconsistent book data (incorrect covers, authors, etc.)

**Reported bugs**

- App crashing or freezing when adding/editing books
- Randomly deleting or losing previously added books
- Login/account issues preventing access to data

**Requested features**

- Add ability to sort/filter by book genre
- Improve search functionality and book data accuracy
- Allow customization of data fields and organization
- Provide an option to keep collection data private


### Shelfable

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelfable/id6740754533)

Effortlessly manage your book collection with barcode scanning and smart organization. Track reading progress and access detailed book information to find your next read faster.

**Highlights:** Barcode scanning for instant cataloging, Custom organization by room and shelf, Reading progress tracking, Access book metadata, Handles large collections

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is iCollect Books free?

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

### Is Shelfable free?

Shelfable is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, iCollect Books or Shelfable?

iCollect Books is rated higher. iCollect Books averages 4.6 out of 5 from 4.1K ratings, while Shelfable averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do iCollect Books or Shelfable have ads?

Neither iCollect Books nor Shelfable shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, iCollect Books or Shelfable?

iCollect Books ships an update every 2 weeks, and Shelfable every 5 days. Most recently, iCollect Books was updated on October 26, 2026 and Shelfable on October 10, 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.*