Comparison

Reading Journey vs Papyrus

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

Papyrus

Features
Read full description

Papyrus turns everything you've read into a warm, real bookshelf — right on your iPhone home screen. A cozy private library you actually want to look at. BRING YOUR LIBRARY HOME Every book you've read, standing on a beautiful shelf you can glance at without opening anything. As you finish books, the newest ones slide to the front — so your home screen quietly tells the story of what you've been reading, all year long. Still fully customizable, move the books around how you want, make changes to the shelf and background. THE WIDGET One of our premium paid features is to add the Papyrus widget in small, medium, or large. Your shelf lives on your home screen, gorgeous and glanceable. If you aren't interested in seeing the books then you can see your reading statistics - how many books and pages you've read this year. IMPORT IN SECONDS Bring your reading history over from Goodreads, StoryGraph, or any CSV in a single tap. Your past library fills your shelf instantly. No problem if you don't have any accounts - you can add books individually from our massive library. THREE WAYS TO SEE YOUR SHELF - Spine view with procedurally illustrated, cover-matched spines - Cover view to show off your front covers - A 3/4 perspective "crate" mode that feels like a real shelf Press and scrub to browse, and drag to reorder your books exactly how you like them. STATS THAT FEEL LIKE A FOLIO, NOT A DASHBOARD See how you rate, your fiction vs. nonfiction split, the decades you read across, and your favorite authors and genres — all rendered in big serif numerals with room to breathe. Look back on your year with Reading Wrapped. YOUR DATA STAYS YOURS Export your whole library any time — as a spreadsheet (CSV/XLSX) or a self-contained offline webpage. Free or Pro, your library is always yours to take with you. FREE TO START Try everything with up to 10 books in your collection — a real, full-fidelity trial, not a locked demo. Your wishlist is always unlimited and free. Upgrade to Pro to remove the collection cap and unlock your full library. Upgrade to Pro to unlock the full experience: - Unlimited collection — shelve every book you've ever read, no cap - Your complete library on every widget size and display mode - Full reading stats and Reading Wrapped across your entire history - Export your whole library any time — CSV, XLSX, or a self-contained offline webpage - No ads, no tracking, and your data is never sold — free or Pro Built by one person who wanted their bookshelf on their home screen. No ads. Your data is not sold. Just a beautiful place to keep the books you love. Bring your library home. Terms of Use (EULA): https://papyrus-b03fd.web.app/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://papyrus-b03fd.web.app/privacy.html

Screenshots

Reading Journey4 screens
Papyrus4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Papyrus at 17.0 against Reading Journey's 26.0. On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Reading Journey sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Papyrus sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Reading Journey versus Papyrus: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterReading JourneyPapyrus
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (375 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews73.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings375 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 10 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS26.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size57 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVinh DinhTyler Nam

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

Papyrus

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$29.991 Year
3 purchases

Papyrus

Subscriptions2
  • Papyrus_monthly$1.991 Month
  • papyrus yearly$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • papyrus lifetime$39.99

Questions

Is Reading Journey free?
Reading Journey is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Papyrus free?
Papyrus is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Reading Journey or Papyrus have ads?
Neither Reading Journey nor Papyrus shows ads.

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