Comparison

BookShelves eBook Reader vs Cinder Reader

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

Head to head
About

BookShelves eBook Reader

This app allows you to read EPUB, PDF, and comic books with access to over 1.5 million free public domain books. Organize your library, customize your reading experience with multiple themes and fonts, and sync your progress across devices.

Highlights
  • 1.5 million+ free books
  • EPUB, PDF, and comic reader
  • Customizable themes and fonts
  • iCloud sync across devices
  • Smart library management
  • Highlighting and note-taking
  • Export highlights
Features
Read full description

BookShelves is an EPUB, PDF, and comic book reader with a built-in catalog of 1.5 million free books. Discover public domain classics, organize your digital library, and sync seamlessly across iPhone, iPad, and Mac with iCloud (Pro). WHAT READERS SAY "Phenomenal book reading and management app, 'just works'." "My everlasting search for the perfect ePub reader might be coming to an end." "Among the best and actively developed." DISCOVER 1.5 MILLION+ FREE BOOKS • 1.5 million+ classic works — Pride and Prejudice, Moby Dick, more • 1,100+ premium editions from Standard Ebooks • Internet Archive — millions of historical texts and rare books • 1,200+ Spanish classics from the Biblioteca Nacional de España • 16,000+ Japanese classics from Aozora Bunko • Browse OPDS catalogs from external libraries and servers One tap to download. No account required. POWERFUL READING EXPERIENCE • Paginated or continuous scroll — read your way • 10 themes including Sepia, Dark Academia, Night Sky, and more • 10 bundled fonts including OpenDyslexic for accessible reading • Adjustable line spacing, margins, text justification, and font weight • Highlight in 5 colors and add notes to any passage • Export highlights to Markdown, JSON, or CSV • Dictionary look-up with language detection • Full-text search across chapters • Nested table of contents navigation • Bookmarks (iCloud sync with Pro) • Vertical text (tategaki) for Japanese and CJK books • Right-to-left reading for Arabic, Hebrew, and CJK texts • Full keyboard and trackpad support • Multi-window reading on Mac COMIC BOOKS AND MANGA • CBZ, CBR, and CB7 format support • Two-page spreads for landscape reading • Right-to-left mode for manga with reversed tap zones and swipes • Auto-detected from metadata or toggled manually SEAMLESS ICLOUD SYNC (Pro) • Books and cover images • Reading progress and current page • Shelves, tags, and ratings • Highlights, notes, and bookmarks • Reader preferences (font, theme, layout) Start reading on your iPhone, continue on your iPad, finish on your Mac. SMART LIBRARY MANAGEMENT • Edit metadata -- title, author, series, publisher, ISBN, and cover image • Automatic metadata and cover art fetching • System shelves: All Books, Recently Added, Reading, Finished, Favorites • Custom shelves for any collection • Color-coded tags for categorization • Search and filter by title, author, or tag • Grid and list views • 5-star ratings • Drag-and-drop import, Files app sharing, or OPDS catalogs • EPUB repair — auto-fixes broken navigation and missing metadata • Import from Calibre libraries with best-format selection FORMAT SUPPORT • EPUB — professional rendering with beautiful typography • PDF — native viewer with smooth scrolling and search • CBZ / CBR / CB7 — comic book archives • FB2 — FictionBook 2 format (auto-converts to EPUB) • MOBI / AZW3 / KF8 / KEPUB — auto-converts to EPUB for reading • TXT / Markdown — plain text and Markdown files (auto-converts to EPUB) MAC EXTRAS • Calibre wireless sync — connect KOReader or other devices over Wi-Fi • OPDS server — share your library on your local network PRIVACY FIRST • Your data stays on your devices • No personal data collected • No ads — clean, distraction-free reading • iCloud keeps your library private and secure FREE AND PRO Free: 10 books with all reading features. Pro unlocks unlimited books, iCloud sync, email to Kindle/Kobo/reMarkable, highlight export, and OPDS server. Pro is available as a one-time purchase or subscription (monthly/annual, select regions). Subscriptions auto-renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage subscriptions in Apple ID account settings. Privacy Policy: https://getbookshelves.app/privacy/ Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Terms of Service: https://getbookshelves.app/terms/ All books from discovery sources are public domain or openly licensed.

About

Cinder Reader

A modern, ad-free app for reading ebooks, comics, manga, and PDFs. Organize your personal library, import files from various sources, and customize your reading experience with flexible tools and appearance settings.

Highlights
  • Read ebooks, comics, manga, and PDFs
  • Import and manage personal library
  • Connect to content sources
  • Customize reader appearance
  • Track reading progress
  • Create highlights and notes
  • Organize with folders and filters
Features
Read full description

Cinder is a modern, ad-free reading app for ebooks, comics, manga, PDFs, web novels, and more. Build a library that fits the way you read. Import your own files, connect your preferred catalogs and personal content sources, organize everything in one place, and enjoy a clean, customizable reading experience across multiple formats. Features Read ebooks, comics, manga, and PDFs in one app Import your own files and manage your personal library Add and browse compatible catalogs and personal content sources Customize fonts, themes, spacing, alignment, and reader appearance Track reading progress and pick up where you left off Create highlights and notes Organize books with folders, filters, and library tools Discover new titles with built-in discovery features Sync with your Hardcover account to track reading progress and discover new books Designed for phones, tablets, and larger screens Built for readers Cinder focuses on a polished, distraction-light reading experience with flexible library management and deep reader customization. Whether you’re reading novels, graphic novels, manga, or documents, Cinder gives you one place to keep everything organized. Privacy-first by design Your library and reading setup stay centered around your own content, your own sources, and your own reading workflow.

Screenshots

BookShelves eBook Reader4 screens
Cinder Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Cinder Reader at 5.0 against BookShelves eBook Reader's 3.9. Cinder Reader also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 66%). BookShelves eBook Reader's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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. BookShelves eBook Reader sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Cinder Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Cinder Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 15 and 8 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of BookShelves eBook Reader's written reviews are positive against 100% of Cinder Reader's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BookShelves eBook Reader ships an update weekly, Cinder Reader every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
BookShelves eBook Reader versus Cinder Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBookShelves eBook ReaderCinder Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (15 ratings)5.0 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.6% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings15 — better8
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.416.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size56 MB73 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperCPE Verm. GmbHJESSE LAMAR MARTIN

Customer experience

BookShelves eBook Reader

All ratings15 ratings
Positive60.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive65.6%
Neutral12.5%
Negative21.9%

Cinder Reader

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

BookShelves eBook Reader

One-time4
  • Small Tip$2.99
  • Medium Tip$3.99
  • Large Tip$8.99
Show 1 more
  • Unlock Pro$9.99
1 purchases

Cinder Reader

One-time1
  • Cinder Pro Lifetime$8.99

Questions

Is BookShelves eBook Reader free?
BookShelves eBook Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Cinder Reader free?
Cinder Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, BookShelves eBook Reader or Cinder Reader?
Cinder Reader is rated higher. BookShelves eBook Reader averages 3.9 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while Cinder Reader averages 5.0 from 8 ratings.
Do BookShelves eBook Reader or Cinder Reader have ads?
Neither BookShelves eBook Reader nor Cinder Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BookShelves eBook Reader or Cinder Reader?
BookShelves eBook Reader ships an update weekly, and Cinder Reader every 3 weeks. Most recently, BookShelves eBook Reader was updated on October 14, 2026 and Cinder Reader on October 8, 2026.

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