Comparison

Shelf Scanner. vs Bookshelf Scanner

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Shelf Scanner.

Easily discover the value of books by scanning barcodes or taking photos of entire shelves. Get live pricing data from major online sellers to maximize your profit when selling your books.

Highlights
  • Scan book barcodes for value
  • Photo scan entire bookshelves
  • Live pricing data
  • Sell books for profit
  • Source from major online sellers
Features
Read full description

Find Valuable Books. That's what Shelf Scanner makes it easy to do, our app can: - Scan book barcodes to find their values - Take a photo of a bookshelf and find the value of each book on the shelf - Provide live pricing data on any book you scan With Shelf Scanner you can easy find what your bookshelf, those old books you have laying around, or books from thrift stores, are worth, and sell them for a profit. Unlike other book scanning apps, we provide live pricing data of what your book is worth, sourced from the largest online book sellers and based on current listing prices. This means you get the most money for your books, quick and easy. Download Shelf Scanner today and start turning books into cash. Terms Of Use can be found at: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.termsfeed.com/live/619c315c-27b8-4e47-9aaf-20bad24d5d6e

About

Bookshelf Scanner

Effortlessly scan entire bookshelves to identify valuable books based on your personal preferences. This tool helps you discover hidden gems in second-hand shops and track books you want, love, or have acquired. It integrates with Goodreads and StoryGraph for tailored recommendations.

Highlights
  • Scan entire bookshelves at once
  • Discover hidden gems in second-hand shops
  • Spot books matching your reading taste
  • Track books you want, love, or have grabbed
  • Import from Goodreads or StoryGraph
  • Personalized recommendations
Features
Read full description

Your next great read is hiding on a $2 shelf somewhere. Spines helps you find it. Point your camera at a shelf in a thrift store, used bookstore, garage sale, or library sale. Spines identifies the books in seconds and highlights the ones worth grabbing — including award winners, bestsellers, highly rated books, and titles matched to your personal taste. No more standing in the aisle Googling every title. No more leaving a Pulitzer winner behind because you didn't recognize the author. Spines turns a chaotic bookshelf into a personalized shortlist. HOW IT WORKS 1. Scan — Point your camera at a bookshelf and snap a photo 2. Identify — AI reads the spines and identifies the books automatically 3. Discover — See awards, ratings, and personalized recommendations WHAT SPINES SPOTS • Pulitzer Prize winners and finalists • National Book Award winners • Booker Prize winners and finalists • Women's Prize for Fiction winners • New York Times Bestsellers • Highly rated reader favorites • Books matched to the genres, authors, and publishers you love BUILT FOR BOOK HUNTING • AI Bookshelf Scanner — Identify dozens of books from a single shelf photo • For You — Personalized picks based on your reading taste • Goodreads & StoryGraph Import — Bring your reading history into Spines • Hunt List — Save books you want to find, love, or have already grabbed • Scan History — Revisit shelves you've scanned • Spot Books Nearby — See where interesting books have been spotted • Book Details — Ratings, descriptions, awards, and more PERFECT FOR • Thrift stores and garage sales • Used and antiquarian bookstores • Library book sales • Little Free Libraries and community book exchanges • Browsing a friend's bookshelf • Building your reading list from books you find in the real world FREE TO USE Scan up to 3 shelves per month for free. Upgrade to Premium for unlimited scans, full scan history, award and bestseller signals, Hunt List, Goodreads import, and smarter personalized recommendations — with a 14-day free trial. Your next favorite book is already on a shelf somewhere. Spines helps you find it first. --- Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://spinesapp.com/privacy

Screenshots

Shelf Scanner.2 screens
Bookshelf Scanner4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Shelf Scanner. at 4.5 against Bookshelf Scanner's 3.0. Shelf Scanner. also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (264 vs 2). Bookshelf Scanner's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 7 months) and review sentiment (36% vs 9%). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Shelf Scanner. sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days and Bookshelf Scanner sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Shelf Scanner. holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Shelf Scanner. has 264 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 9% of Shelf Scanner.'s written reviews are positive against 36% of Bookshelf Scanner's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Shelf Scanner. ships an update every 7 months, Bookshelf Scanner every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Shelf Scanner. versus Bookshelf Scanner: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShelf Scanner.Bookshelf Scanner
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (264 ratings) — better3.0 (2 ratings)
Positive reviews9.1% of reviews36.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings264 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 7 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size45 MB79 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGabe RogersTrue Story Limited

Customer experience

Shelf Scanner.

All ratings262 ratings
Positive86.6%
Neutral4.6%
Negative8.8%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive9.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative90.9%

Bookshelf Scanner

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive36.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative63.6%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Shelf Scanner.

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly Pro$4.997 Days
  • Monthly Pro$15.991 Month
  • Annual Pro7 Days trial$48.991 Year
4 purchases

Bookshelf Scanner

Subscriptions4
  • Spines Premium$6.991 Month
  • Spines Hunter$19.991 Month
  • Spines Premium14 Days trial$49.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Spines Hunter$149.991 Year

Questions

Is Shelf Scanner. free?
Shelf Scanner. is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bookshelf Scanner free?
Bookshelf Scanner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Shelf Scanner. or Bookshelf Scanner?
Shelf Scanner. is rated higher. Shelf Scanner. averages 4.5 out of 5 from 264 ratings, while Bookshelf Scanner averages 3.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Shelf Scanner. or Bookshelf Scanner have ads?
Bookshelf Scanner shows ads; Shelf Scanner. does not.
Which is updated more often, Shelf Scanner. or Bookshelf Scanner?
Shelf Scanner. ships an update every 7 months, and Bookshelf Scanner every 5 days. Most recently, Shelf Scanner. was updated on October 27, 2026 and Bookshelf Scanner on October 25, 2026.

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