Comparison

Book Tracker vs Penny

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

Head to head
About

Book Tracker

Easily track your reading journey with this beautifully designed app. Log books, add start/finish dates, organize your library, and reflect on your reading habits. Add notes, ratings, and custom tags to personalize your experience.

Highlights
  • Track read and currently reading books
  • Organize books into series
  • Add custom tags and notes
  • Rate finished books
  • View reading timeline and history
  • Add books by title or author
Features
Read full description

BookStack – Your Reading Tracker BookStack is a simple and beautifully designed book tracker that helps you build a clear picture of your reading journey. A space for your books — without clutter, distractions, or noise. SIMPLE BOOK TRACKING • Track books you’ve read and are currently reading • Add start and finish dates to build your reading timeline • Keep a clear, structured reading log • Revisit your reading history anytime ORGANIZE YOUR LIBRARY • Browse your books in a smooth, swipeable carousel • Group books into series and track your progress • Follow reading order and never lose your place • Add custom tags (e.g. BookTok, favorites, genres) REFLECT ON YOUR READING • View your books in a timeline • See how your reading evolves over time • Discover patterns in what and when you read • Remember the books that stayed with you NOTES, RATINGS & TAGS • Rate books you’ve finished • Add personal notes and thoughts • Save meaningful insights from your reading • Organize everything your way with tags ADD BOOKS IN SECONDS • Search by title or author • Quickly rebuild your reading history • Simple and fast book adding experience DESIGNED FOR FOCUS • Clean, minimal interface • Smooth animations and gestures • No ads, no distractions • No social pressure PRIVACY FIRST • No account required • No tracking • Your data stays on your device BOOKSTACK PREMIUM Unlock more powerful features: • Add books by scanning ISBN • Unlimited books in your carousel • Advanced reading stats & insights • Custom covers and extended tagging Premium is optional — BookStack works beautifully without it. FOR EVERY READER Whether you read 5 books a year or 50, BookStack helps you remember your reading journey. Start building your reading story today. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Penny

This app helps you build a consistent reading habit by tracking your books, timing your reading sessions, and allowing you to take notes. It offers ambient soundscapes to enhance your reading atmosphere and provides detailed progress statistics. The app prioritizes user privacy and works offline.

Highlights
  • Build and organize your book library
  • Track reading sessions with a timer
  • Ambient soundscapes for atmosphere
  • Take notes and track characters
  • View detailed reading progress stats
  • Syncs with iCloud
  • Offline functionality
Read full description

Penny is a reading tracker for people who want a simple, private place for their books. There is no account to create, no ads and no social feed. Your library, your reading time and your notes stay on your iPhone and sync through your own iCloud. Penny 2.0 is the biggest update since launch, and nearly everything in it started as an email or a review from a reader. PICK YOUR PENNY • Four looks: Classic, Paper, Pond (with a dusk mode for reading at night) and Bloom • Each look has its own app icon, and your widgets change with it • Penny now speaks English, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese. Choose the language in Settings TIME YOUR READING • Start the timer, read, then note the page you stopped on • A short recap after every session with your minutes, pages, streak and week • Your timer on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island • A daily reminder at your reading time, free for everyone A BOOKSHELF ON YOUR HOME SCREEN • The new Bookshelf widget lines up the books you finished, spine by spine, in the colors of their covers • Currently Reading and Reading Summary widgets keep your progress in sight • Every widget is free and dresses up for your look STANDING IN A BOOKSTORE? • Scan the barcode and Penny tells you if the book is already yours, in any edition • Put the books you want to buy on your Wishlist • Open the scanner straight from Control Center with the Scan a book control PREVIOUSLY ON… • Back to a book after a break? Penny shows the page you stopped on, your last note and the characters and terms you saved BUILD YOUR LIBRARY • Search millions of books from Google Books, Apple Books and Open Library, or scan the barcode • Bring your library over from Goodreads or StoryGraph with a CSV import • Shelves for To Read, Reading, Finished and DNF, plus shelves of your own • Half-star ratings, for the books that deserve a 3.5 • Finish a book and Penny throws you a small party KEEP WHAT YOU READ • Notes and quotes, a glossary for places and terms, and a character list for every book • Everything stays with its book, easy to find when you need it SEE YOUR PROGRESS • Reading streaks and a calendar with the cover of every book you read each day • Stats for books, pages and time, monthly trends, genres and your Year in Review SET THE MOOD • 19 ambient sounds, from rain on the window to a medieval tavern, and you can mix them PRIVATE BY DESIGN • No account, no email, no sign-up • No ads, no tracking, no analytics • Syncs between your iPhone and iPad through your private iCloud FREE AND PREMIUM Most of Penny is free: up to 40 books, the timer and session recaps, stats and streaks, the scanner and Bookstore mode, all four looks, every widget, the daily reminder, iCloud sync and 4 ambient sounds. Premium adds unlimited books, notes, terms and characters, Previously on…, the Wishlist, the Lock Screen timer after your first three sessions, all 19 sounds, custom shelves, CSV export and your full session history. Premium is a monthly or yearly subscription, or a one-time lifetime purchase. I made Penny because I wanted a simpler way to keep track of what I read, without accounts or social media. If there's something you'd love to see next, the Send Feedback button in Settings comes straight to me. Terms of Use: https://readwithpenny.online/terms Privacy Policy: https://readwithpenny.online/privacy

Screenshots

Book Tracker4 screens
Penny4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Book Tracker at 6 against Penny's 2. Book Tracker also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence 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. Book Tracker sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Penny sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Penny holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 2 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Book Tracker ships an update every 6 days, Penny every 9 days. Both last shipped on October 25, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Book Tracker versus Penny: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBook TrackerPenny
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (6 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings6 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 6 days — betterEvery 9 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size126 MB39 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJozef GrecClaudiu Valentin Sararu

Customer experience

Book Tracker

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Penny

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Book Tracker

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • BookStack Premium (Lifetime)$59.99
3 purchases

Penny

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Yearly$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$29.99

Questions

Is Book Tracker free?
Book Tracker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Penny free?
Penny is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Book Tracker or Penny?
Penny is rated higher. Book Tracker averages 4.8 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Penny averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Book Tracker or Penny have ads?
Neither Book Tracker nor Penny shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Book Tracker or Penny?
Book Tracker ships an update every 6 days, and Penny every 9 days. Most recently, Book Tracker was updated on October 25, 2026 and Penny on October 25, 2026.

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