CLEVNET Libraries App vs ShelfBee
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CLEVNET Libraries App
This app provides mobile access to a consortium of Northern Ohio libraries. Users can discover and borrow digital content, search the catalog, place holds, and manage their accounts. It's a convenient way to access library resources on the go.
- Search library catalog
- Borrow digital content
- Place holds
- Check due dates
- Renew titles
- Discover new books, movies, games
Read full descriptionHide full description
Access CLEVNET Libraries from your mobile devices. CLEVNET is a consortium of libraries in Northern Ohio. Find new books, movies, and games, or your old favorites! Download digital content like eBooks, eAudiobooks, magazines, and movies. Quickly search the entire catalog, place holds, check due dates, and renew eligible titles. CLEVNET member libraries include: • Cleveland Public Library • Andover Public Library • Barberton Public Library • Bellevue Public Library • Birchard Public Library • Bristol Public Library • Burton Public Library • Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library • Clyde Public Library • Conneaut Public Library • East Cleveland Public Library • Elyria Public Library • Euclid Public Library • Fairport Harbor Public Library • Geauga County Public Library • Girard Free Library • Harbor-Topky Public Library • Henderson Memorial Public Library • Hubbard Public Library • Hudson Library and Historical Society • Huron Public Library • Kingsville Public Library • Kinsman Public Library • Kirtland Public Library • Lorain Public Library System • Madison Public Library • McKinley Memorial Library • Medina County District Library • Mentor Public Library • Milan-Berlin Public Library • Morley Public Library • Newton Falls Public Library • Norwalk Public Library • Orrville Public Library • Peninsula Library and Historical Society • Perry Public Library • Ritter Public Library • Rock Creek Public Library • Rocky River Public Library • Sandusky Public Library • Shaker Heights Public Library • Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library • Twinsburg Public Library • Wayne County Public Library • Wickliffe Public Library • Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library
ShelfBee
Instantly check ebook and audiobook availability in your local libraries directly from book pages on popular retail and review sites. Save desired titles to a list and get notified when they become available. Includes barcode scanning for quick lookups.
- Check availability on Amazon, Goodreads, B&N, etc.
- See wait times and number of holds
- Filter by ebook or audiobook
- Save books to a Buzz List
- Barcode scanning for book lookups
- Syncs across iPhone, iPad, and Mac
Read full descriptionHide full description
See whether a book is available in your library's Libby/Overdrive collection — without leaving the page you're already on. ShelfBee adds a small button to book pages on Amazon, Goodreads, TheStoryGraph, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Hardcover, and Book of the Month, showing whether that title is available to borrow right now from the libraries you care about, how many people are waiting, and roughly how long a hold would take. A companion app adds barcode scanning and a Buzz List for books you want to check on later. HOW IT WORKS 1. Turn on the ShelfBee extension in Safari. The app walks you through it with a screenshot for every step. 2. Open the bee menu and search for your library by name. Add as many as you like. 3. Browse as usual. When you land on a book page, ShelfBee checks your libraries and shows you what it found. WHAT YOU SEE • Available now — ready to borrow immediately • On hold — with the number of people waiting and an estimated wait • Not available — so you can stop wondering Results are grouped by library and split by format, so you can tell at a glance which of your libraries has the ebook and which has the audiobook. BUZZ LIST & SCANNING Save a title to your Buzz List right from the button on any book page, then check back anytime to see if it's become available. On iPhone and iPad, the app can also scan a book's barcode to look it up on the spot — handy in a bookstore or browsing your own shelves. FEATURES • Works on Amazon (21 storefronts), Goodreads, TheStoryGraph, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Hardcover, and Book of the Month • Add as many libraries as you like — public, county, consortium, or university • Reorder your libraries so the one you borrow from most sits at the top • Filter by ebook or audiobook • Save books to a Buzz List and revisit them anytime • Scan a barcode to look up a book on iPhone and iPad • Your library list and Buzz List sync across iPhone, iPad, and Mac through iCloud • Setup Guide and Troubleshooting built into the app NO ACCOUNT NEEDED No sign-up, no library card, no sign-in — not even for setup. ShelfBee reads public availability data, the same catalog information Libby shows, and never asks who you are. ONE-TIME PURCHASE Buy ShelfBee once and it's yours. No subscription, no in-app purchases, no ads, and nothing to unlock later. PRIVACY ShelfBee collects nothing. Your library choices and Buzz List live on your device and in your own iCloud account. Availability lookups go straight to OverDrive's public API, and scanned or searched books are looked up via Open Library and Google Books for title, author, and cover art — none of it linked to you. There's no ShelfBee server, no analytics, and no tracking of any kind. Questions or ideas: support@shelfbee.app ShelfBee is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by OverDrive, Libby, Amazon, Goodreads, TheStoryGraph, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Hardcover, or Book of the Month.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ShelfBee at 100% against CLEVNET Libraries App's 0%. ShelfBee also leads on rating (5.0 vs 1.3). CLEVNET Libraries App's advantage is price (Free vs $1.99) and ratings volume (88 vs 2). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
CLEVNET Libraries App is free to download; ShelfBee costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ShelfBee holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CLEVNET Libraries App has 88 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of CLEVNET Libraries App's written reviews are positive against 100% of ShelfBee's.
CLEVNET Libraries App ships an update every 4 weeks, ShelfBee fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CLEVNET Libraries App | ShelfBee |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $1.99 |
| Rating | 1.3 (88 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 88 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 56 MB | 7 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cleveland Public Library | SCOTT TIMOTHY DENNIS |
Customer experience
CLEVNET Libraries App
ShelfBee
Bugs and requests
CLEVNET Libraries App
Reported bugs
17 issues- App stuck on loading screen
- App crashes when filtering search results
- App logs out frequently
- Search function returns 'No Results Found' for existing titles
- App freezes or crashes when using filters
Show 12 moreShow fewer
- App doesn't show pickup library when placing holds
- App denies access to account randomly
- App deletes search history when going back
- App crashes on iOS 18
- App freezes on 'Find my library' screen
- App doesn't load past opening screen
- App unable to communicate with library
- App shows 'unable to establish a connection with the library'
- App requires re-authentication frequently
- App shows spinning wheel indefinitely
- App cancels holds accidentally
- Typo in error message ('databse' instead of 'database')
Requested features
9 requests- Bring back the old app
- Fix the search function
- Improve app speed and performance
- Allow saving login information
- Restore self-checkout feature
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Display item location details
- Show number of renewals for items
- Improve search for specific editions/versions
- Fix typo in error message
ShelfBee
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
CLEVNET Libraries App
No in-app purchases
ShelfBee
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is CLEVNET Libraries App free?
Is ShelfBee free?
Which has better reviews, CLEVNET Libraries App or ShelfBee?
Do CLEVNET Libraries App or ShelfBee have ads?
Which is updated more often, CLEVNET Libraries App or ShelfBee?
Other comparisons















