# Bookshelf vs Librarian BookShelf

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Librarian BookShelf at none against Bookshelf's 4. Librarian BookShelf also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.5). Bookshelf's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs monthly). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Bookshelf sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Librarian BookShelf asks for nothing beyond the download.

Bookshelf ships an update every 2 weeks, Librarian BookShelf monthly. Both last shipped on November 8, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Bookshelf | Librarian BookShelf |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (39 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bookshelf-reading-tracker/id6654913138/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **39** | — |
| Positive reviews | 87.5% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Size | 171 MB | 35 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.5 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Tiago Almeida](https://appshunter.io/developer/1764252329) | [Namocode](https://appshunter.io/developer/1739296841) |

## What reviewers say

### Bookshelf

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bookshelf-reading-tracker/id6654913138)

Organize your entire reading life, tracking physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks. Set reading goals, log sessions, save quotes, and visualize your progress with detailed statistics and a reading habits heat map. Discover new books and connect with friends.

**Highlights:** Smart book organization with custom shelves, Reading timer and session tracking, Save quotes and notes with OCR, Flexible reading goals and progress tracking, Detailed statistics and insights, Reading habits heat map, Monthly and yearly recaps, Purchase and borrowing logs

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium Features | $2.99 | per month |
| Premium Features | $29.99 | per year |
| Lifetime (promo) | $99.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime | $199.99 | one-time |


### Librarian BookShelf

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/librarian-bookshelf/id6657987456)

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Bookshelf free?

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

### Is Librarian BookShelf free?

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

### Do Bookshelf or Librarian BookShelf have ads?

Librarian BookShelf shows ads; Bookshelf does not.

### Which is updated more often, Bookshelf or Librarian BookShelf?

Bookshelf ships an update every 2 weeks, and Librarian BookShelf monthly. Most recently, Bookshelf was updated on November 8, 2026 and Librarian BookShelf on November 8, 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.*