Comparison

Reading Journey vs BookOwl

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

Head to head
About

Reading Journey

Easily log your reading sessions, track your emotions, and discover your reading habits. Share your reading journey with visually appealing graphics and import your existing libraries. This app makes tracking books enjoyable, not a chore.

Highlights
  • Log reading sessions with photos
  • Track reading emotions and reactions
  • Quick book import via scanning
  • DNF (Did Not Finish) book tracking
  • Import from Goodreads and Storygraph
  • Goodreads library synchronization
Features
Read full description

Book tracking should feel like fun, not like homework. It’s a chance to explore, escape, and connect with stories. With Reading Journey, you can log your sessions, track your reactions, and discover who you are as a reader. Why you’ll love it: Easy & Fun Reading Logs: Snap a pic of your reading sessions.Record your pages and emotions. Share the Feels: Track your reactions as you read — we’ll turn it into a graphic worth sharing. Quick import: Scan books to quickly upload them to your TBR. DNF Graveyard: Bury the books you didn’t finish—they still count for something! No Streaks, No Stress: Show up for your books however you want. Import your library from GoodReads or Storygraph. GoodReads Sync: Automatically fetch and synchronize new books from GoodReads Terms of Service: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://readingjourney.co/privacy

About

BookOwl

Organize your reading life with this free companion app. Build your personal library, track your progress, and customize your profile. Import data from other services and scan books instantly. Enjoy personalized recommendations and share your reading insights.

Highlights
  • Barcode scanner for instant book addition
  • Import from Goodreads, StoryGraph, Audible, Libby
  • Customizable profile with aurora colors
  • Half and quarter-star rating system
  • Custom shelves and curated book lists
  • Reading progress tracking
  • Yearly reading goals and streaks
Features
Read full description

Your reading life, delightfully organized. BookOwl is a free reading companion for people who love books. Build your personal library, track what you're reading, and make the app feel like yours, all without ads, clutter, or data harvesting. Available on iOS and at bookowlapp.com. NEW: THE SIT TAB The Sit tab gives reading sessions a home. Start a sit, set a timer, and read. BookOwl keeps you company. Capture a mood, a scene, or a pinned moment mid-read without losing your place (speak it instead of typing, if you like). When you close the book, a wrap-up card logs how far you got and how the sit felt. A COMPLETELY REDESIGNED LIBRARY: Your library now opens like a magazine. A masthead greets you with the books you're reading now, The Lead carousel keeps your current reads one swipe away, and your shelves sit beneath. Pinch to zoom from big covers down to a compact index. The new Contents view puts shelves, filters, and sorting in one place, with breadcrumb chips showing what's active. YOUR THOUGHTS, ORGANIZED BY BOOK: Everything you capture lands where you'll find it again: pinned passages on the book's page, your moods across the book's arc, even why you set a book down. Make the capture chips your own with custom moods and scenes. Your written thoughts stay private, always. TRACK PROGRESS WITHOUT THE FUSS: Update your page, your status, and your reading dates in one place with the new progress editor. Edit or delete any past read. Your history stays accurate and syncs everywhere. MAKE IT YOURS WITH 12 THEMES: Every theme hand-tuned, from the warm sepia of Quiet Warmth to the banker's-lamp green of Reading Room, all meeting accessibility contrast standards. YOUR PROFILE, YOUR WAY: Five tabbed sections: Overview, Collections, Reviews, Stats, and Personal. Choose which reading stats sit front and center. Pick your aurora colors. Arrange your sections. PRIVACY THAT MAKES SENSE: One toggle. Three options: Public, Friends Only, or Private. Visitors see a friendly banner explaining what's shared. IMPORT FROM ANYWHERE: Switching from another app? Import your full reading history from Goodreads, StoryGraph, Audible (via OCR), or Libby. Your ratings, shelves, and reading dates all come with you. Export to CSV or JSON anytime. Your data belongs to you. SCAN BOOKS IN SECONDS: Point your camera at any barcode. BookOwl identifies it instantly and adds it to your library. Stack of books at a used bookstore? Scan them all in one session. ORGANIZE YOUR WAY: Custom shelves and curated lists for any purpose: "Beach Reads," "Book Club," "Lent to Friends." FIND YOUR NEXT READ: Personalized recommendations, author pages, series with reading order, and a catalog of millions of books. USE IT ANYWHERE: Web app at bookowlapp.com with the same profile and achievements. Your data syncs across devices. BUILT FOR READERS, NOT ADVERTISERS: No ads. No engagement tricks. No data selling. Just a calm, thoughtful space for your reading life, built by a reader, for readers. • Sit tab: timed reading sessions with a wrap-up card • Capture moods, scenes, and pinned moments mid-read • Voice capture: speak your thoughts without stopping • Redesigned Library: The Lead carousel and pinch-to-zoom shelves • Barcode scanner: add books in seconds • Import from Goodreads, StoryGraph, Audible, or Libby • Export your library to CSV or JSON • Progress editor: pages, status, and dates in one place • Edit or delete past reads anytime • 12 hand-tuned themes and alternate app icons • Customizable profile with aurora colors and hero stats • Half-star and quarter-star ratings • Custom shelves, collections, and curated book lists • Yearly reading goals and streaks • Year in Review: shareable reading personality cards • Series tracking with reading order • Privacy controls: Public, Friends Only, or Private • Social features: follow friends, reviews, profiles Whether you read 5 books a year or 50, BookOwl helps you remember every one. Whooo's ready to get started?

Screenshots

Reading Journey4 screens
BookOwl4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: BookOwl at none against Reading Journey's 2. BookOwl also leads on review sentiment (92% vs 74%) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). Reading Journey's advantage is ratings volume (303 vs 41). On price, update cadence, ads 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. Reading Journey sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. BookOwl asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

BookOwl holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Reading Journey has 303 ratings behind it against 41, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Reading Journey's written reviews are positive against 92% of BookOwl's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Reading Journey ships an update fortnightly, BookOwl every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Reading Journey versus BookOwl: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterReading JourneyBookOwl
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (303 ratings)4.9 (41 ratings) — better
Positive reviews74.0% of reviews92.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings303 — better41
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 11 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS26.018.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size48 MB50 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVinh DinhPhil Getzen

Customer experience

Reading Journey

All ratings303 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral3.6%
Negative3.3%
Written reviews50 reviews
Positive74.0%
Neutral16.0%
Negative10.0%

BookOwl

All ratings41 ratings
Positive95.1%
Neutral4.9%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive92.3%
Neutral7.7%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Reading Journey

Reported bugs

1 issue
  • Occasional bugs and glitches reported

Requested features

3 requests
  • Option to edit book page counts
  • Additional star rating options (0.25, 0.75)
  • Ability to follow other users

BookOwl

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Reading Journey

Subscriptions2
  • Reading Journey Plus$4.991 Month
  • Reading Journey Plus7 Days trial$29.901 Year
None

BookOwl

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Reading Journey free?
Reading Journey is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is BookOwl free?
BookOwl is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Reading Journey or BookOwl?
BookOwl is rated higher. Reading Journey averages 4.7 out of 5 from 303 ratings, while BookOwl averages 4.9 from 41 ratings.
Do Reading Journey or BookOwl have ads?
Neither Reading Journey nor BookOwl shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Reading Journey or BookOwl?
Reading Journey ships an update fortnightly, and BookOwl every 11 days. Most recently, Reading Journey was updated on September 21, 2026 and BookOwl on September 3, 2026.

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