# iPublishCentral Reader vs Books Reader

The clearest difference is rating: Books Reader at 4.7 against iPublishCentral Reader's 3.7. Books Reader also leads on review sentiment (38% vs 19%). iPublishCentral Reader's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 9) and ratings volume (156 vs 22). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Books Reader sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. iPublishCentral Reader asks for nothing beyond the download.

Books Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iPublishCentral Reader has 156 ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 19% of iPublishCentral Reader's written reviews are positive against 38% of Books Reader's.

iPublishCentral Reader ships an update every 2 months, Books Reader every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | iPublishCentral Reader | Books Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.7 (156 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ipublishcentral-reader/id510322929/reviews) | **[4.7 (22 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/books-reader-pocket-library/id1550557954/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **156** | 22 |
| Positive reviews | 19.0% of reviews | **37.5% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 178 MB | 59 MB |
| Requires iOS | **9.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [iPublishCentral](https://appshunter.io/developer/419606382) | [Villow](https://appshunter.io/developer/1550558286) |

## What reviewers say

### iPublishCentral Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ipublishcentral-reader/id510322929)

Read and manage your digital library with this app. It supports PDF and EPUB formats, allowing you to organize books, customize your reading experience with notes and highlights, and sync progress across devices. Download content from various sources, including cloud storage and email.

**Highlights:** Read PDF and EPUB ebooks, Organize books into shelves, Add notes and highlights, Bookmark pages, Sync reading progress across devices, Download content from Dropbox and email, Customize font, margins, and background

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Nice design, works well
- 🚀 Swiftly updated
- 👍 Easy to use
- 👍 Nice App, easy to download and read
- 👍 Keeps notes updated across devices

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 App constantly crashes
- 🐛 Notes/highlights not synced
- 🐛 Poorly built app
- 🐛 No way of writing notes
- 🐛 Deletes written notes

**Reported bugs**

- App constantly crashes
- Notes/highlights not synced between devices
- Highlighting and note-taking disappears after closing books
- Vertical scrolling resets to default every time the book is left
- App crashes every second after last update

**Requested features**

- Direct link to Bible scripture
- More colors for underlining
- Set vertical scrolling preference permanently
- Support split screen on iPad
- Improve highlighting function to avoid squares


### Books Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/books-reader-pocket-library/id1550557954)

This app provides a seamless e-reading experience, managing your ebook collection and offering customizable reading settings. It supports various formats and includes features like bookmarking, note-taking, and a read/unread tracker.

**Highlights:** Supports multiple ebook formats (epub, fb2, mobi, PDF), Manages and organizes ebook collections, Customizable text size, color, theme, and brightness, Progress tracking and bookmarking, Note-taking and excerpt selection, Read/unread book tracker, Filtering and search functionality

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Regular donation | $1.99 | per month |
| Regular donation | $3.99 | per month |
| Regular donation | $5.99 | per month |
| Regular donation | $9.99 | per month |
| Donation | $1.99 | one-time |
| Donation | $3.99 | one-time |
| Donation | $5.99 | one-time |
| Donation | $9.99 | one-time |
| Custom Fonts & Themes | $9.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is iPublishCentral Reader free?

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

### Is Books Reader free?

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

### Which has better reviews, iPublishCentral Reader or Books Reader?

Books Reader is rated higher. iPublishCentral Reader averages 3.7 out of 5 from 156 ratings, while Books Reader averages 4.7 from 22 ratings.

### Do iPublishCentral Reader or Books Reader have ads?

Neither iPublishCentral Reader nor Books Reader shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, iPublishCentral Reader or Books Reader?

iPublishCentral Reader ships an update every 2 months, and Books Reader every 3 months. Most recently, iPublishCentral Reader was updated on October 5, 2026 and Books Reader on September 23, 2026.

---

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