ShelfBuddy vs ReadXP
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ShelfBuddy
Manage your physical book collection digitally with virtual shelves, wishlists, and reading timelines. Track borrowed books with return reminders and view reading statistics. Easily add books by scanning, searching, or manual entry.
- Virtual shelves and wishlists
- ISBN barcode scanning
- Reading progress tracking
- Borrowed book management
- Customizable notes and genres
- Multilingual interface
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ShelfBuddy is your digital bookshelf: beautiful, calm and built entirely around reading. Keep track of every book and audiobook you own, are reading, have lent out or still want. Your whole library, neatly organized, and your data always stays in your hands. Freshly redesigned in the new "Paper & Ink" look. YOUR LIBRARY, ORGANIZED Manage your books the way you want. Create as many shelves as you like, for example Fantasy, Thrillers or Classics, keep a wishlist of books you still want, and plan what to read next with a reading list. The "Continue reading" card puts your current book right on the home screen. Make the overview your own: drag its sections into your order and hide the ones you don't use. BOOK SERIES AT A GLANCE See for every series which volumes you own and which are still missing. Search for a book series or an author under "Series" and browse every volume in reading order, even before you own one. Add missing volumes to your wishlist or a shelf with one tap and get notified when a new volume is released. YOUR DATA, YOUR CHOICE Your library belongs to you, and you decide where it is stored. Keep everything 100% local on your device for full privacy, or turn on optional cloud sync to back up your books and use them on all your devices. On iPhone and iPad you can sync via iCloud or Google Drive, and nothing leaves your device unless you want it to. You can also export a complete backup of your library at any time, so your books are never tied to one platform. ALSO ON YOUR COMPUTER With ShelfBuddy Premium you can open your library in the browser on your computer too, at app.shelfbuddy.de. Link it to your phone once with a QR code, no account needed. Everything is encrypted on your phone before it syncs, so the server cannot read it. TRACK YOUR READING ShelfBuddy is a reading tracker and reading journal in one. Mark each book as unread, reading or read, add start and finish dates, rate your books and see detailed reading statistics by month and year. Share your personal reading recap as an image. READING SESSIONS WITH A READING TIMER Start a reading session and the built-in reading timer starts automatically. When you're done, simply enter your current page and ShelfBuddy updates your reading progress and reading pace. See how long you've read per book, log past reading time after the fact, and start your next session straight from the home screen, the app icon or a widget. INSIGHTS: GET TO KNOW YOUR READING HABITS ShelfBuddy turns your reading sessions into a picture of how you read. A reading calendar shows which days you read and how much. See the time of day and the weekdays you read most, which genres get most of your reading time, your personal records, and how you read each book, devoured in a weekend or savoured in small steps. A short written summary puts your reading year into words. Insights are part of ShelfBuddy Premium. YOUR READING JOURNAL AND BOOK COLLECTION Record every book you've read and make reading a habit. Manage your entire book collection, keep a reading journal, and stay on track with reading goals and a reading challenge. ADD BOOKS IN SECONDS Scan the ISBN barcode, search millions of books, or add books by hand. Imports from Goodreads, StoryGraph, Reado and other apps are supported. AUTHORS AND LENDING Follow your favorite authors and get notified about new titles. The lending feature remembers who has which book, with a reminder to get it back. ALL YOURS Dark mode, selectable accent colors and available in four languages.
ReadXP
Transform reading into an engaging RPG experience. Log books, earn XP, unlock achievements, and build a personalized digital library. Enjoy detailed stats and offline functionality for a private reading journey.
- Gamified reading experience with XP and leveling
- Extensive book logging with custom shelves
- Unlockable badges, streaks, and quests
- Detailed reading statistics and data visualization
- Offline functionality and local data storage
- Optional RPG elements with virtual currency
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ReadXP turns the quiet habit of reading into a cozy reading tracker and RPG you'll actually keep up with. Log your books, watch your character gain XP, unlock badges, climb career tiers, and build a beautiful book tracker library you're proud of - all offline, all yours. Whether you're a casual reader wanting a gentle reading log encouragement or a voracious bookworm who likes seeing the detailed numbers behind the habit, ReadXP is the ultimate book log that gives your books a second life on the shelf you carry in your pocket. A BOOK TRACKER THAT'S YOURS Complete Book Log: Keep track of every book you've ever read - finished, reading, or on the shelf for later. Three custom shelf views: wooden spines, cover art, or a clean, minimal list. Shelf themes that match your RPG class (Paladin, Scholar, Wanderer, and more). Choose your avatar - your personalized reading log, your unique aesthetic. Fast search, genre filters, and custom shelves for your specific reading projects. READING IS THE GAME Every page you log earns you XP and levels up your character. Level up through career tiers with real titles - from Apprentice to Saint. Pick a character class with unique XP perks and reading abilities. Customize your profile avatar, card color, and portrait. Unlock Ancient Chronicle lore chapters as your reading progress grows. BADGES, STREAKS & QUESTS 80+ badges across pages, books, streaks, sessions, and overall performance. Daily quests that rotate - hit your page goal, log a morning session, add a note. Streak shield protects a missed day when life gets in the way of your reading. Advanced reading tracker goals for daily pages, weekly books, monthly pages, and yearly books. HONEST, DETAILED STATS Comprehensive reading log stats: Pages read, time logged, average speed, and best sessions. Panoramic weekly / monthly / yearly data views. Genre breakdown chart so you can see what you actually read. Best-session leaderboard calculated from your own reading history. Personal bests, visual reading heatmap, and major milestone markers. RPG ECONOMY WITHOUT THE GRIND Earn Shards directly from reading - never paid for with real money. Spend your hard-earned Shards in the Store on cloaks, weapons, rings, and potions. Common to Mythic rarity tiers, with extra XP bonuses per equipped item. Equipment boosts are modest - the real reward is still the reading itself. YOUR DATA STAYS YOURS Works fully offline after install - a standalone offline book tracker with no account required. Your personal library, logs, and progress live safely on your device. No ads, no social feed, no reading-shaming algorithms. PREMIUM (OPTIONAL) ReadXP is free to use. Premium unlocks the full RPG layer of your reading tracker: Career Path & prestige tiers Class abilities and class-swap Ancient Chronicle lore Mastery Tree skill points Advanced stats and deep goals Available as a monthly or yearly subscription. Cancel anytime. Or you may have the app lifetime for a one-time payment. WHY READXP IS DIFFERENT Most reading apps are either cold spreadsheets or distracting social feeds. ReadXP is neither - it's a single-player reading log wrapped in a warm, hand-drawn RPG universe. It rewards showing up without nagging, celebrates pages without turning your books into a race, and keeps your shelf in a place that feels like a home, not a spreadsheet. Thank you for reading - and for letting ReadXP sit on your home screen. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://buzunkopru.github.io/readxp-privacy/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: ReadXP at none against ShelfBuddy's shown. ShelfBuddy's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 9 days) and ratings volume (5 vs 1). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. ShelfBuddy sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and ReadXP sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for ShelfBuddy against 5.0 for ReadXP. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ShelfBuddy has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
ShelfBuddy ships an update every 2 days, ReadXP every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ShelfBuddy | ReadXP |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (5 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 5 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 days — better | Every 9 days |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 57 MB | 99 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | JAN-HENNING BUNS | BARBAROS UZUNKOPRU |
Customer experience
ShelfBuddy
ReadXP
In-app purchases
ShelfBuddy
- ShelfBuddy Freischaltung$17.99
ReadXP
- ReadXP Premium$2.991 Month
- ReadXP Premium7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- ReadXP Lifetime$59.99







