Comparison

Reading Journal vs Shelfd

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

Head to head
About

Reading Journal

Features
Read full description

Read the whole series. In order. Without losing your place. BookBinge is built for one thing: following a book series from the first page of book one to the last page of the finale — even when the next book is a year away. WHY SERIES READERS USE IT You finished book three eighteen months ago. Book four just landed. Who was the sister? What happened at the lighthouse? BookBinge remembers so you don't have to. EVERY SERIES, ALREADY IN ORDER Almost 300 series and more than 2,000 books, in proper reading order with covers. No building lists by hand. Pick your series and your shelf builds itself. KNOW WHAT'S NEXT, AND WHEN Every series shows the next book and its release date. Tap "Remind me" and we'll tell you the day it's out. CATCH UP BEFORE THE NEXT BOOK Ask for the story so far and get exactly that — everything up to the last book you finished, and not one word beyond it. Recaps are written by AI from checked plot summaries, so there are no accidental spoilers for what you haven't read yet. A MAP FOR EVERY SERIES Each series becomes a journey in its own world. Fantasy is an antique atlas sealed in wax. Romantasy is moonlit love letters. Detective is a case file on a desk. Sci-Fi is a transmission log in deep space. Horror is a candlelit evidence board. Watching a long series fill in is the whole point. A STREAK YOU CAN ACTUALLY KEEP Nobody finishes a book a day. So the streak counts days you read — a few pages is enough. One tap logs it. Miss a night after a good week and an earned grace day covers you. HONOURS WORTH EARNING Bronze, Silver and Gold reader tiers, a badge for each world, and yearly goals for books and series. ALSO INSIDE • Home Screen widget with your streak and current book • Shareable cards when you finish a series • Page-by-page progress inside your current book • Search every series, or request one we're missing BOOKBINGE PRO Free keeps three series active at once, with one recap. Pro removes the limit and unlocks unlimited recaps, release-day alerts for every series you follow, and full reading stats. Subscriptions renew automatically unless turned off at least 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel any time in your App Store account settings. Privacy Policy: https://bookbinge.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://bookbinge.app/terms

About

Shelfd

Organize your reading life with a charming book tracker. Log what you're reading, discover your next book with a spin of a wheel, and visualize your reading habits with personalized stats and achievements. Enjoy a cozy, ad-free experience with optional premium features for advanced tracking.

Highlights
  • Track current, finished, and to-be-read books
  • Spin a wheel to pick your next read
  • Organize books by genre with custom colors
  • Set reading goals and view yearly stats
  • Earn achievements narrated by an Archivist
  • Import libraries from other apps (CSV)
  • Backup and restore your library
Features
Read full description

A warm, unhurried home for your reading life. Shelfd keeps a quiet record of everything you've read and everything still waiting — without turning your hobby into a job. No leaderboards. No guilt for the week you didn't finish anything. HOWEVER YOU READ IT Paper, ebook, or audiobook — track them side by side on the same shelf. Audiobooks count down in hours and minutes remaining, the way your listening app shows them, so there's no maths to do when you log your progress. YOUR SHELF, ACTUALLY SHELVED Finished books stand as real spines, coloured from their own covers. Browse them as a shelf or a list, and build your own collections for classics, comfort rereads, or whatever you're hoarding this month. SPIN THE WHEEL Too many books, not enough decisions. Load up your TBR, give it a spin, and let fate choose your next read. A GOAL WORTH HITTING Set a books-per-year target and watch the arrow move toward the bullseye. Miss it and nothing bad happens. Hit it and something rather nice does. THE SHAPE OF YOUR TASTE See which genres you actually gravitate to, how you read — paper, screen, or headphones — and the quiet trends across your year. ACHIEVEMENTS, STAMPED Every finished book earns a mark from the Archivist, who keeps your records in impeccable order and is quietly more invested than he lets on. BRING YOUR LIBRARY Coming from Goodreads or StoryGraph? Import your whole history from a single file and pick up where you left off. Back up your shelf whenever you like — your library is yours, and it stays on your device. SCAN AND GO Point the camera at a barcode and the book is on your shelf, page count and cover included. SHELFD PREMIUM Read up to three books at once, unlock the Ratings Card with half-stars and emoji vibes for how a book actually felt, get the deeper genre breakdown, and build unlimited shelves and lists. "Keep reading. That's all I ask." — The Archivist SHELFD PREMIUM — SUBSCRIPTION TERMS Shelfd Premium is available as a monthly or annual auto-renewing subscription, or as a one-time Founders Group purchase. A 7-day free trial is included with the subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel your subscription in your Apple Account settings after purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial is forfeited when you purchase a subscription. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://joinshelfd.com/privacy.html

Screenshots

Reading Journal4 screens
Shelfd4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Shelfd at daily against Reading Journal's every 3 weeks. Reading Journal's advantage is iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.2). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Reading Journal sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Shelfd sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Reading Journal ships an update every 3 weeks, Shelfd daily. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Reading Journal versus Shelfd: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterReading JournalShelfd
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—4 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Freemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.2
Further details — not scored
Size36 MB16 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperRazvan PopaZachary Selburg

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Reading Journal

Subscriptions3
  • Pro Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Pro Weekly$3.997 Days
  • Pro Yearly3 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • BookBinge Pro$29.99
3 purchases

Shelfd

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Premium Annual7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Shelfd Founders Group$59.99

Questions

Is Reading Journal free?
Reading Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Shelfd free?
Shelfd is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Reading Journal or Shelfd have ads?
Neither Reading Journal nor Shelfd shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Reading Journal or Shelfd?
Reading Journal ships an update every 3 weeks, and Shelfd daily. Most recently, Reading Journal was updated on October 20, 2026 and Shelfd on October 24, 2026.

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