# ShelfPlayer vs Librox

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Librox at none against ShelfPlayer's 4. Librox also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 4 weeks). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. ShelfPlayer sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Librox asks for nothing beyond the download.

ShelfPlayer ships an update every 4 weeks, Librox weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | ShelfPlayer | Librox |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[3.8 (134 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelfplayer-audio-book-shelf/id6475221163/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **134** | — |
| Positive reviews | 55.2% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Size | 62 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **17.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [AI Tools Apps SRL](https://appshunter.io/developer/1854689122) | [Section 9 Labs LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1607183283) |

## What reviewers say

### ShelfPlayer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelfplayer-audio-book-shelf/id6475221163)

This app provides a native iOS experience for managing and listening to audiobooks and podcasts from your self-hosted Audiobookshelf library. It offers robust playback controls, offline access, and seamless integration with the Apple ecosystem.

**Highlights:** Unified audiobook and podcast management, Multi-server support, Flexible authentication options, Global and library search, Playback queues and chapter navigation, Configurable playback speed and skip intervals, Offline mode and automatic downloads

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly premium | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| Weekly premium | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| Yearly premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Yearly premium | $29.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Runs on all Apple platforms
- 👍 Provides better UI experience
- 💡 Potential for great features
- 🚀 Smooth playback
- 👍 Beautiful and intuitive UI

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Critical bugs preventing usage
- 🐛 Constantly losing book progress
- 🐛 Crashes and instability issues
- 🐛 Offline mode not working
- 🐛 Slow startup and loading times

**Reported bugs**

- Unable to present all books from an author
- Keeps resetting book progress
- Offline mode broken, can't play downloaded books
- Crashes after recent update
- Widgets not updating with last played book

**Requested features**

- Option to load fully downloaded books without server handshake
- Ability to filter library view to only downloaded books
- Add support for ebooks and PDF files
- Customizable playback speed options beyond 2x
- Implement a static reading queue/playlist


### Librox

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/librox/id6796746657)

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is ShelfPlayer free?

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

### Is Librox free?

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

### Do ShelfPlayer or Librox have ads?

ShelfPlayer shows ads; Librox does not.

### Which is updated more often, ShelfPlayer or Librox?

ShelfPlayer ships an update every 4 weeks, and Librox weekly. Most recently, ShelfPlayer was updated on October 19, 2026 and Librox on October 4, 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.*