Comparison

Commonplace vs Simplreads

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

Head to head
About

Commonplace

Log books, magazines, and short fiction, track your reading progress, and capture notes. Visualize your reading year with stats and a timeline. Your library is private and syncs via iCloud.

Highlights
  • Log books, magazines, and short fiction
  • Track reading progress (To Read, Started, Finished)
  • Record start/finish dates and ratings
  • Capture notes before, during, and after reading
  • Yearly reading statistics and timeline
  • Private iCloud sync, no account needed
Features
Read full description

Commonplace is a personal reading tracker for books, science fiction/fantasy magazines, and short fiction. Log what you're reading, keep notes as you go, and look back on your reading year. BOOKS • Add books instantly by search, or share a link from Safari, Libby, or any bookstore page. • Track your pile: To Read, Started, Finished, Did Not Finish. • Record start and finish dates, rate books, and tag them print, audio, or digital. • Track the books you re-read. Commonplace can count and log multiple readings. MAGAZINES & SHORT FICTION • Import issues from Clarkesworld, Uncanny Magazine, Lightspeed, Strange Horizons, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies. • Track every story you read with its own rating and notes. • Add stories by hand or from an EPUB. NOTES • Capture thoughts during each phase of reading: before, during, and after. Commonplace will tag and sort them. • Search and filter notes across your whole library, and export them all as Markdown. YOUR READING YEAR • Yearly stats: books, stories, pages, ratings, and month-by-month charts. • A Reading Timeline that lays your whole year out visually. YOURS, PRIVATELY • No account. No ads. No tracking. Your library lives on your device and syncs privately through your own iCloud. • Import your history from Goodreads or Libby CSV exports; back up everything to JSON anytime. • Optionally connect micro.blog to share your bookshelves. Commonplace is for readers who want to remember what they read and how they felt about it.

About

Simplreads

Organize your personal library with this minimal reading app. Track your reading progress, write reviews, save notes, and create playlists of books to read. Keep a clear record of your reading journey.

Highlights
  • Personal library building
  • Reading progress tracking
  • Write short reviews
  • Save longer notes
  • Group books into playlists
  • Track reading status
Features
Read full description

Simplreads is a minimal reading app for building your personal library and keeping your reading process organized. Add books, track progress, write short reviews, save longer notes, and group books into playlists for future reading and sharing with friends. Use Simplreads to keep a clear record of what you want to read, what you are reading now, and what you have finished.

Screenshots

Commonplace4 screens
Simplreads4 screens

Verdict

The call

Commonplace and Simplreads are too close to call on the numbers: across 8 compared parameters — price, rating, ratings volume and ads among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Commonplace against 5.0 for Simplreads. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 1 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Commonplace versus Simplreads: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCommonplaceSimplreads
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size23 MB4 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTim LockridgeVasilii Andreev

Customer experience

Commonplace

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Simplreads

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Commonplace

No in-app purchases

None

Simplreads

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Commonplace free?
Commonplace is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Simplreads free?
Simplreads is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Commonplace or Simplreads?
Commonplace and Simplreads are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 2 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do Commonplace or Simplreads have ads?
Neither Commonplace nor Simplreads shows ads.

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