Comparison

Vellum Reader vs PageTone

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

Head to head
About

Vellum Reader

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Vellum is a minimalistic and elegant book reader designed for readers who appreciate a classy, distraction-free reading experience on iPhone and iPad. Your Personal Library Import your favorite books and documents with ease. Vellum supports PDF, EPUB, TXT, and RTF files. Smart metadata extraction automatically pulls titles, authors, and cover images from your PDFs. Organize Your Way • Create custom collections to group your reading • Mark favorites for quick access • Search and sort your library effortlessly • Track your reading progress across all documents A Beautiful Reading Experience • Choose from 8 elegant fonts including Georgia, Palatino, and Baskerville • 4 page themes: Light, Sepia, Dark, and Black (OLED) • Adjustable font size, line spacing, margins, and text alignment • Tap edges to turn pages or swipe naturally Thoughtful Features • Search Public Domains like "Project Gutenberg" and "StandardEbooks" for thousands of classics to import to your library • Automatic progress saving — pick up right where you left off • Bookmarks to mark important pages • Keep Screen Awake mode for uninterrupted reading • Visual progress bar and page numbers • Continue Reading section for quick access to current books • Utilize the AI recommendation feature to get book suggestions based on the current works in your library Five Beautiful App Themes Personalize Vellum with Sepia, Midnight, Ocean, Forest, or Lavender accent themes. Privacy First Vellum respects your privacy completely. All your books and reading data stay on your device. No accounts required. No data collection. Just you and your books. Download Vellum and rediscover the joy of reading.

About

PageTone

Features
Read full description

Every book has a world. PageTone helps you step into it. Create a personalised reading atmosphere inspired by the story, setting, genre, or mood you are exploring. Describe what you are reading, and PageTone prepares a layered soundscape designed to accompany the moment without taking attention away from the page. BUILD YOUR READING ROOM Start with a title or a simple description of the atmosphere you want. A quiet library during a storm. A mysterious forest at night. A warm room beside a fireplace. PageTone transforms that idea into a reading room made from complementary ambient sounds. MIX EVERY LAYER Each atmosphere can combine up to four sound layers, including rain, wind, forest ambience, fireplace, turning pages, and quiet room tone. Inside the mixer, you can: • Adjust the volume of each sound • Mute or restore individual layers • Fine-tune the balance of the room • Reset the original atmosphere • Shape the soundscape while you read READ AT YOUR OWN RHYTHM Set an optional starting page and page goal for your session, or simply read without tracking anything. PageTone keeps reading goals intentionally lightweight. There are no streaks, scores, competitive rankings, or productivity pressure. RETURN TO YOUR LATEST ROOM Your most recent reading room remains available, so you can quickly return to the atmosphere you were using and continue your session. MADE FOR QUIET MOMENTS PageTone combines an editorial interface, paper-inspired visuals, illustrated environments, and subtle animation to create a calm space around your book. The experience is designed for readers who enjoy ambience, focus, ritual, and the feeling of entering a story. FEATURES • Personalised reading atmospheres • Layered ambient soundscapes • Up to four simultaneous sound layers • Individual volume and mute controls • Optional page goals • Resume your latest reading room • Background audio support • App Shortcuts integration • No account required PageTone does not search book catalogues, scan covers, stream music, or require social activity. It is a private reading companion built around your book, your room, and your pace.

Screenshots

Vellum Reader4 screens
PageTone3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Vellum Reader at 17.0 against PageTone's 26.0. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS

CostPrice Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Ads Ā· Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard1 real difference Ā· 4 level
Vellum Reader versus PageTone: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVellum ReaderPageTone
PriceFreeFree
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSUZETTE RENEE COPLEY DE SCHRYVERLuisa Cecilia da Silva Pinto

In-app purchases

None

Vellum Reader

No in-app purchases

None

PageTone

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Vellum Reader free?
Vellum Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is PageTone free?
PageTone is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Vellum Reader or PageTone have ads?
Neither Vellum Reader nor PageTone shows ads.

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