# Learn with Forward Chess vs Gutenberg | eBook Reader

The clearest difference is ads: Learn with Forward Chess at none against Gutenberg | eBook Reader's shown. Learn with Forward Chess also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.5) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 weeks). Gutenberg | eBook Reader's advantage is chart position (#206 vs unranked). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Learn with Forward Chess sells 70 one-off in-app purchases and Gutenberg | eBook Reader sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Learn with Forward Chess holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 334 and 745 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Learn with Forward Chess's written reviews are positive against 70% of Gutenberg | eBook Reader's.

Learn with Forward Chess ships an update fortnightly, Gutenberg | eBook Reader every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Learn with Forward Chess | Gutenberg | eBook Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (334 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/learn-with-forward-chess/id543005909/reviews)** | [4.5 (745 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gutenberg-ebook-reader/id1289618861/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 334 | **745** |
| Positive reviews | **74.8% of reviews** | 69.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 6 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | **#206** |
| Size | 188 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Forward Chess, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/543005912) | [Webron Software LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/1071126548) |

## What reviewers say

### Learn with Forward Chess

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/learn-with-forward-chess/id543005909)

This app is an interactive reader for chess books, allowing users to play through chess lines directly within the book. It offers a vast in-app store with over 100 chess eBooks and a growing collection of opening theory periodicals via subscription.

**Highlights:** Interactive chess book reader, Play through chess lines, In-app chess eBook store, Subscription for opening theory, Tactics training

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (70)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| True Lies in Chess | Free | one-time |
| CHESS INSIGHT 01/2026 | $2.99 | one-time |
| Simple Attacking Plans | $9.99 | one-time |
| Simple Chess | $10.99 | one-time |
| The Power of Pawns | $12.99 | one-time |
| My System: FastTrack Edition | $12.99 | one-time |
| Play the Mackenzie! | $12.99 | one-time |
| 1001 Ways to Checkmate | $12.99 | one-time |
| My System | $13.99 | one-time |
| The World's Most Instructive Amateur Game Book | $14.99 | one-time |
| Openings for Amateurs | $14.99 | one-time |
| Modern Chess Strategy | $14.99 | one-time |
| Techniques of Positional Play: 45 Practical Methods | $15.99 | one-time |
| American Dream | $16.99 | one-time |
| Zurich Chess Tournament, 1953 | $16.99 | one-time |
| Chess Endgame Calculation 1 | $16.99 | one-time |
| Chess Strategy for Club Players | $16.99 | one-time |
| 100 Endgames You Must Know | $17.99 | one-time |
| Capablanca the Great Minimalist 1 | $17.99 | one-time |
| Attacking Chess for Club Players | $17.99 | one-time |
| Openings for Amateurs - Vol. 3 | $17.99 | one-time |
| Capablancas Best Chess Endings | $17.99 | one-time |
| The Most Instructive Games | $17.99 | one-time |
| Improve Your Chess Pattern Recognition | $17.99 | one-time |
| Steps to Giant Improvement | $19.99 | one-time |
| Perpetual Chess Improvement | $19.99 | one-time |
| Playing 1.e4 e5 - A Classical Repertoire | $19.99 | one-time |
| Amateur to IM | $19.99 | one-time |
| The Complete Manual of Positional Chess | $19.99 | one-time |
| Chess Tactics from Scratch | $19.99 | one-time |
| COR: The London System | $19.99 | one-time |
| Attacking the English/Reti | $19.99 | one-time |
| COR: Accelerated Dragon | $19.99 | one-time |
| Mastering Chess Exchanges | $19.99 | one-time |
| Study on Your Own Workbook 3 | $19.99 | one-time |
| OR: Strategic Play with 1 e4 | $19.99 | one-time |
| Playing 1.d4 d5 | $19.99 | one-time |
| Reimagining 1.e4 | $19.99 | one-time |
| Beating the QG – Indian Style! | $19.99 | one-time |
| Endgame Studies You Must Know | $19.99 | one-time |
| Pawn Endgames | $19.99 | one-time |
| 100 Tactical Patterns | $19.99 | one-time |
| 100 Tactical Patterns Workbook | $19.99 | one-time |
| Drill Your Chess Strategy! | $19.99 | one-time |
| Thinking Inside the Box - Grandmaster Preparation | $19.99 | one-time |
| Chess Imbalances - a GM Guide | $21.99 | one-time |
| The Modernized Colle-Zukertort | $21.99 | one-time |
| Ding Liren's Best Games | $22.99 | one-time |
| Winning Chess Middlegames 2 | $22.99 | one-time |
| Dream Moves | $22.99 | one-time |
| Rock Solid Chess: Volume 3 | $22.99 | one-time |
| Positional Decision Making in Chess | $23.99 | one-time |
| Pump Up Your Rating | $23.99 | one-time |
| Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide | $23.99 | one-time |
| The Woodpecker Method | $23.99 | one-time |
| Mastering Chess Defence | $23.99 | one-time |
| Associative Thinking | $23.99 | one-time |
| The Philosopher&the Housewife | $23.99 | one-time |
| The Real Paul Morphy | $23.99 | one-time |
| 50 Mistakes You Should Know | $23.99 | one-time |
| The Woodpecker Method 2 | $23.99 | one-time |
| Chess Informant 158 | $24.99 | one-time |
| A Killer Guide to Attacking Chess | $25.99 | one-time |
| School of Future Champions 1 | $25.99 | one-time |
| Chess Informant 161 | $26.99 | one-time |
| Vasily Smyslov: Volume II | $27.99 | one-time |
| Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual | $27.99 | one-time |
| Akiba Rubinstein (UCC Series) | $29.99 | one-time |
| Pushing Horizons | $29.99 | one-time |
| OR for Black after 1...e6 | $29.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app for chess-book lovers
- 🚀 Easy to follow or analyze moves with the implemented chessboard
- 👍 Simple and effective interface
- 👍 Great to use on mobile device
- 👍 Larger board and text than Chessable

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Books are a little expensive for digital purchases
- 🐛 App crashes or freezes occasionally
- 🐛 Loses user's place when reopening the app
- 🐛 Buggy when navigating between libraries and books
- 🐛 Analysis engine sometimes doesn't recognize castling possibilities

**Reported bugs**

- Login issues when changing devices
- Books not properly filing into libraries
- App crashing when trying to add books to libraries
- Losing current position when switching between full screen and normal view
- Inconsistent behavior when navigating through a book

**Requested features**

- Allow users to upload their own book PDFs
- Implement spaced repetition learning program within books
- Improve search and filtering options in the book store
- Add more language support beyond English books
- Provide better syncing of purchases across devices


### Gutenberg | eBook Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gutenberg-ebook-reader/id1289618861)

**Currently charting:** #206 Top Free · Book (US App Store)

Access a vast library of public domain e-books and audiobooks from around the world. Explore tens of thousands of titles across numerous languages and categories, including classics and popular works.

**Highlights:** Vast public domain e-book library, Extensive audiobook collection, Thousands of titles available, Multiple languages supported, Categorized book selection, Top 50 e-books listed

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Subscription | $1.99 | per month |
| Weekly Subscription | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Weekly Subscription | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Yearly Subscription | $24.99 | per year |
| Premium | $39.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime Premium | $39.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 📚 Extensive collection of classic literature
- 💰 Free access to thousands of books
- 👍 Easy to use interface
- 📖 Page-turning feature mimics physical books
- 🌙 Night mode for comfortable reading

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Search function is unreliable and confusing
- 📱 Poor book organization and browsing
- 💔 Missing many books found on Project Gutenberg website
- 📺 Excessive and intrusive advertisements
- ⚙️ Limited customization options for book format

**Reported bugs**

- Search returns no results or irrelevant results
- Books listed on Project Gutenberg not appearing in app
- App fails to download certain books
- Reading progress not saved between sessions
- Continuous scroll instead of page-by-page display

**Requested features**

- Improved search functionality with better filtering
- Better book organization and categorization system
- Dictionary/word definition feature
- Improved paragraph spacing and text formatting
- Page-by-page navigation instead of chapter-based


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Learn with Forward Chess free?

Learn with Forward Chess is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Gutenberg | eBook Reader free?

Gutenberg | eBook Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Learn with Forward Chess or Gutenberg | eBook Reader?

Learn with Forward Chess is rated higher. Learn with Forward Chess averages 4.8 out of 5 from 334 ratings, while Gutenberg | eBook Reader averages 4.5 from 745 ratings.

### Do Learn with Forward Chess or Gutenberg | eBook Reader have ads?

Gutenberg | eBook Reader shows ads; Learn with Forward Chess does not.

### Which is updated more often, Learn with Forward Chess or Gutenberg | eBook Reader?

Learn with Forward Chess ships an update fortnightly, and Gutenberg | eBook Reader every 6 weeks. Most recently, Learn with Forward Chess was updated on October 13, 2026 and Gutenberg | eBook Reader on October 15, 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.*