# Learn with Forward Chess vs Gutenberg Reader + Many Books

The clearest difference is rating: Learn with Forward Chess at 4.8 against Gutenberg Reader + Many Books's 3.6. Learn with Forward Chess also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (75% vs 45%). Gutenberg Reader + Many Books's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 71). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Learn with Forward Chess sells 69 one-off in-app purchases. Gutenberg Reader + Many Books asks for nothing beyond the download.

Learn with Forward Chess holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 334 and 116 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Learn with Forward Chess's written reviews are positive against 45% of Gutenberg Reader + Many Books's.

Learn with Forward Chess ships an update fortnightly, Gutenberg Reader + Many Books every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Learn with Forward Chess | Gutenberg Reader + Many Books |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (334 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/learn-with-forward-chess/id543005909/reviews)** | [3.6 (116 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gutenberg-reader-plus-many-books/id1294103623/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **334** | 116 |
| Positive reviews | **74.8% of reviews** | 44.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 188 MB | 20 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 13.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Forward Chess, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/543005912) | [Haven Tran](https://appshunter.io/developer/1291655261) |

## 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 (69)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| True Lies in Chess | Free | 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 Reader + Many Books

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gutenberg-reader-plus-many-books/id1294103623)

Access over 100,000 free public domain eBooks from Project Gutenberg. Enjoy a customizable reading experience with features like text-to-speech, auto-scrolling, and note-taking. Download books for offline reading on any device.

**Highlights:** Unlimited eBook downloads, Customizable reading experience, Text-to-Speech (TTS) mode, Auto-scrolling mode, Bookmark, highlight, and notes, Offline reading

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Learn with Forward Chess free?

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

### Is Gutenberg Reader + Many Books free?

Gutenberg Reader + Many Books is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Learn with Forward Chess or Gutenberg Reader + Many Books?

Learn with Forward Chess is rated higher. Learn with Forward Chess averages 4.8 out of 5 from 334 ratings, while Gutenberg Reader + Many Books averages 3.6 from 116 ratings.

### Do Learn with Forward Chess or Gutenberg Reader + Many Books have ads?

Gutenberg Reader + Many Books shows ads; Learn with Forward Chess does not.

### Which is updated more often, Learn with Forward Chess or Gutenberg Reader + Many Books?

Learn with Forward Chess ships an update fortnightly, and Gutenberg Reader + Many Books every 3 weeks. Most recently, Learn with Forward Chess was updated on September 25, 2026 and Gutenberg Reader + Many Books on September 21, 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.*