Comparison

Strands Fiction vs Tomely

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

Head to head
About

Strands Fiction

Collaborate on interactive stories where readers vote on plot choices, shaping the narrative. Authors can write serialized chapters that evolve based on community decisions, creating a shared adventure.

Highlights
  • Collaborative story writing
  • Reader-driven plot choices
  • Serialized chapter updates
  • Community voting system
  • Author-reader interaction
Read full description

Strands is where stories come alive through community collaboration. Authors write gripping chapters that end with pivotal choices, and readers vote together to decide what happens next. Every story becomes a shared adventure shaped by its audience. For Authors: Write serialized stories that evolve with your readers' input. Create compelling chapters that end with meaningful choices, then watch your community debate and vote on the direction. Build suspense with cliffhangers, develop rich characters, and let your audience help guide the narrative journey. See real-time voting results and craft your next chapter based on what your readers chose. For Readers: Your vote shapes the story. Read captivating serialized fiction where you're not just a passive reader but an active participant. When chapters end with crucial decisions, cast your vote alongside other readers to determine the protagonist's fate. Watch stories unfold in unexpected ways as the community collectively writes the future. Join discussions, debate choices with fellow readers, and see your preferred path potentially become canon.

About

Tomely

Features
Read full description

The beautiful, fast reading tracker for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. No AI, no feed. Just your books. BRING YOUR LIBRARY, FREE Import your Goodreads or StoryGraph export (CSV) in about a minute. Shelves, ratings and dates come with you. Anything we can’t match lands in “To review”, so nothing is lost. Import is free, forever. ADD A BOOK IN TWO SECONDS Scan the ISBN barcode or search by title. Covers and details are saved on your device. LOG A SESSION IN ONE TAP Start the timer, note your page, done. Add past sessions and fix dates anytime. A STREAK, NOT A GAME A yearly goal with your pace, the days you read and a streak. No gems, no coins, no guilt. STATS YOU’LL ACTUALLY LOOK AT Books and pages per month, minutes per session, the days you read, your top genre. SNAP THE PAGE, KEEP THE LINE Take a photo and drag your finger over the lines you want. Text is recognized on your iPhone or iPad and only copies what’s on the page. Search your quotes by book and, with Plus, tag them your way. YOUR MONTH IN BOOKS A monthly card with your books, pages and hours, ready to share in your stories. SHELVES YOUR WAY Reading, Want to read, Read and Did not finish, plus your own shelves. With Plus, reading challenges too. APPLE WATCH Start, pause and end a reading session from your wrist, then set the page you stopped on with the Digital Crown. Your streak sits on your watch face as a complication. Sessions are free, on the Watch too. MADE FOR EVERY SCREEN A sidebar and two columns on iPad, your book and your timer side by side on iPhone Duo, and the timer on your Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island with a Live Activity. NO AI. NO FEED. YOURS. No generative AI anywhere: no summaries, no recommendations, no AI art. No social network. Your library stays on your device, and export is always free. Book searches go to Open Library and Google Books, with no account and nothing that identifies you. FREE, FOREVER • Unlimited books and reading sessions • Streak and yearly goal • Goodreads and StoryGraph import, and export • Your monthly card, ready to share • Up to 10 photo quotes • Timer Live Activity and widgets • The Apple Watch app TOMELY PLUS • Full stats for every year since you started • All card styles, without the footer • Unlimited photo quotes and tags • Challenges, shelf themes and app icons SUBSCRIPTION Tomely Plus is available as a yearly subscription with a 7-day free trial ($39.99/year after the trial), a monthly subscription ($5.99/month, no trial) or a one-time Lifetime purchase ($89.99). Prices are in US dollars and may vary by country. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm the purchase, or when the free trial ends. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. If you allow notifications, we remind you 2 days before your trial ends. Manage or cancel anytime in your Apple Account settings, or in Tomely: Settings › Tomely Plus. Book data and covers from Open Library and Google Books. Goodreads and StoryGraph are trademarks of their owners; Tomely is not affiliated with them. Terms of Use: https://readtomely.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://readtomely.app/privacy Questions: hello@readtomely.app

Screenshots

Strands Fiction4 screens
Tomely4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Strands Fiction at none against Tomely's 4. Strands Fiction also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence 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. Tomely sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Strands Fiction asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Strands Fiction ships an update every 2 days, Tomely daily. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
Strands Fiction versus Tomely: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStrands FictionTomely
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 daysDaily — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size33 MB79 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperStrands Fiction, Inc.Santiago Gonzalez Fernandez

In-app purchases

None

Strands Fiction

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Tomely

Subscriptions3
  • Tomely Plus · Monthly$5.991 Month
  • Tomely Plus · Yearly7 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Tomely Plus · Yearly7 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Tomely Plus · Lifetime$89.99

Questions

Is Strands Fiction free?
Strands Fiction is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Tomely free?
Tomely is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Strands Fiction or Tomely have ads?
Tomely shows ads; Strands Fiction does not.
Which is updated more often, Strands Fiction or Tomely?
Strands Fiction ships an update every 2 days, and Tomely daily. Most recently, Strands Fiction was updated on October 30, 2026 and Tomely on November 6, 2026.

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