Comparison

leaf vs Moonread

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

Head to head
About

leaf

This app offers a natural reading experience with customizable scroll options and an integrated read-aloud feature. Access a vast library of free classics or import your own documents. Enjoy a distraction-free environment with no ads or intrusive elements.

Highlights
  • Natural vertical scroll and page curl
  • Read-aloud narration with line highlighting
  • Access to 70,000+ free classic books
  • Import EPUB, PDF, and Markdown files
  • Customizable themes, fonts, and spacing
  • Organized library with shelves and filters
  • Ad-free and distraction-free reading experience
Features
Read full description

Scroll naturally. Read deeply. leaf is a reading app built for your phone. Read on your own, or let leaf read to you. Read with a natural vertical scroll, or turn pages with a page curl when you want a more traditional feel. leaf flows through your book the way your thumb already moves. When your attention keeps sliding off the page, tap play. leaf sets a gentle pace and lights up each line as you go. Turn on the voice and it reads the page aloud while you follow along, or lock your phone and keep listening. Narration uses the voices built into your iPhone, so it's free and unlimited, works offline, and your books never leave your phone. Browse and download over 70,000 free books from Project Gutenberg and Standard Ebooks: classic literature, philosophy, fiction, and more. Import your own EPUB, PDF, and Markdown files too. No reading streaks. No goals. No ads. No noise. Just you and the book. READ ALONG AND NARRATION - Tap play and leaf sets the pace, lighting each line as you read - Turn on the voice and leaf reads the page aloud as the highlight follows - Free and unlimited: no hours to count, no account to make - Runs on your iPhone, works offline, and never uploads your books - Keeps reading with the screen locked. Pause, play, or skip back 15 seconds from the lock screen or your headphones - Picks a voice in your book's language. Apple's Enhanced and Premium voices are a free download and sound the most natural - Change the speed any time, pause with a tap, or step back a sentence - Works with every reading flow - Also works for PDFs READER - Three reading flows: Page Curl, Slide, or Continuous scroll - Vertical or horizontal page turns - Light, Dark, System, and E-Ink themes - Bookmarks, highlights, and notes - Multi-paragraph highlighting and sharing - Search within any book - Typefaces including Classic, Modern, Lexend, and Atkinson Hyperlegible - Adjust font size, spacing, and text density - Set a reading intention for each book - An exportable Reading Journal is created automatically when you highlight text or write a note PDFs - Read PDFs with the same reading flows as books - Pages follow your theme automatically, in light or dark - Columns are detected and shown one at a time, so the text is bigger and you never scroll sideways to read a line LIBRARY - Organise books into shelves, grouped into sections you can collapse - Filter by shelf, intention, or reading status - Sort by title, author, last opened, or shelf - View books as Grid or List - Search your entire library - Drop supported book files into the leaf folder and they'll appear in your library automatically - Use iCloud to share books between devices - Continue reading from your current book with the Home Screen widget FREE BOOKS - Browse and download from Project Gutenberg and Standard Ebooks - Over 70,000 free classic and public domain titles - The Call of the Wild is included, so you can start reading straight away - Import your own EPUB, PDF, and Markdown files - Supports multiple file and folder import LEAF PRO - Six more themes: Sepia, Ivory, Mist, Forest, Midnight, and Amber Night - Design up to six custom themes of your own - Three more typefaces (Literata, Spectral, and Merriweather) or import your own - Line, paragraph, and letter spacing - Sync your library across devices - Sync reading progress, highlights, notes, bookmarks, shelves, and Reading Journal entries Privacy Policy: https://readleaf.co/legal Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Moonread

Enjoy a comfortable reading experience with customizable text, spacing, and textures. Seamlessly manage your library, sync progress across devices, and utilize AI features optionally. Your reading data remains private and stored locally or on iCloud.

Highlights
  • Customizable text, spacing, and textures
  • iCloud sync for progress and bookmarks
  • Optional AI integration for passage discussion
  • Content search and bookmarks
  • Reading statistics
  • Widget and Siri integration
Features
Read full description

Moonread is a TXT reader built for comfortable, uninterrupted reading. Add your own text files, adjust font size, line spacing, colors and paper texture, and read with page turns or continuous scrolling. • Large files open while they load, and you return to where you left off • Common encodings are detected automatically; if text looks wrong, change the encoding in Reading Settings and it follows you to your other devices • Your shelves are real folders on this device or in iCloud; Moonread never rewrites your books • Contents, full-text search, bookmarks, highlights and notes • Light and dark color themes, plus Rice Paper, Kraft Paper, Fine Linen and Grain textures • Reading adapts to one or two pages on iPad and foldables; contents, search and settings open in system sheets without reflowing the text • Pick up on another device: progress, bookmarks and notes sync through iCloud, and you're told when another device has read further • Continue Reading widget, Control Center, Shortcuts and Siri take you straight back to your book; find books on your shelf from system Search • Reading statistics: how long and what you read each day • Data Management: back up and restore reading records and palettes when you switch devices AI is optional and can be turned off in Settings with one switch; reading works fine without it. To discuss a passage, connect an AI service you choose. Moonread asks before anything is first shared, then sends your question and related content to that service; its access, pricing and privacy terms are set by the provider. No ads, no account, and no servers of our own: your books and reading records are stored on your devices and in your iCloud. Content is sent to an AI service only when you choose to use AI, as described above. Moonread has no bookstore. Reading is free; Settings include completely optional tips that unlock nothing. Payments are handled by Apple.

Screenshots

leaf4 screens
Moonread4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Moonread at 5.0 against leaf's 3.8. Moonread also leads on monetization model (free vs freemium) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 9 days). leaf's advantage is ratings volume (6 vs 1). 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. leaf sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Moonread sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Moonread holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: leaf has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

leaf ships an update every 9 days, Moonread every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
leaf versus Moonread: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterleafMoonread
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (6 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews33.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings6 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 9 daysEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.6 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size85 MB48 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperAbraham Jesri炜杰 苏

Customer experience

leaf

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative66.7%

Moonread

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

In-app purchases

2 purchases

leaf

Subscriptions2
  • Leaf Pro7 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Leaf Pro7 Days trial$12.991 Year
4 purchases

Moonread

One-time4
  • A Star$0.29
  • A Cup of Tea$0.99
  • A Late-Night Snack$2.99
Show 1 more
  • A Book$6.99

Questions

Is leaf free?
leaf is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Moonread free?
Moonread is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, leaf or Moonread?
Moonread is rated higher. leaf averages 3.8 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Moonread averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do leaf or Moonread have ads?
Neither leaf nor Moonread shows ads.
Which is updated more often, leaf or Moonread?
leaf ships an update every 9 days, and Moonread every 2 days. Most recently, leaf was updated on October 31, 2026 and Moonread on November 1, 2026.

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