Fan Reader vs ArchFic
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Fan Reader
This app offers a streamlined reading experience for web fiction, removing forum clutter to present stories in a clean, book-like format. It allows users to organize their favorite web serials, track reading progress, and search for new content across various platforms.
- Removes forum clutter for focused reading
- Organizes web fiction stories on a personal shelf
- Displays cover art, synopsis, and chapter lists
- Searchable story database
- Adjustable font size and themes
- Automatic progress saving
- Clean chapter navigation
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Fan Reader is a clean reading app for web fiction fans. If you read stories on SpaceBattles, Sufficient Velocity, Archive of Our Own, Royal Road, FanFiction.Net, or Wildbow's serials, Fan Reader strips away the forum clutter and gives you a focused, book-like reading experience. WHAT IT DOES - Unified library — Add stories from SB, SV, Royal Road, AO3, and FFN to one bookshelf - Beautiful reading — Dark, Light, and Eye Care themes with adjustable font, size, and line spacing - Smart search — Find stories across SB, SV, RR, and AO3 with one search, or browse AO3's full catalog with filters - Full FFN support — Paste any FanFiction.Net URL for a clean, ad-free reading experience on the platform's worst-designed mobile site - Chapter navigation — Quick chapter list, next/prev buttons, reading progress tracking - Paste any URL — Drop a story link from any supported platform and start reading instantly - Chapter preloading — Faster page turns on all platforms - No account required — Everything stored locally on your device Fan Reader doesn't store or cache story content on any server. Stories load directly from their original platforms through your device.
ArchFic
Read and listen to fanfiction from Archive of Our Own offline. Translate stories with AI, get update alerts for followed authors and fics, and organize your library. Sync your progress and settings across devices.
- Offline reading of AO3 fanfiction
- AI-powered on-device translation
- Text-to-speech for hands-free listening
- New chapter and author update alerts
- Download and save fics permanently
- Sync library and settings across devices
- Customizable reading themes and fonts
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Read AO3 fanfiction offline — translate and listen anywhere. ArchFic is a fan-made fanfiction reader for Archive of Our Own (AO3). Read fanfiction offline, translate any fic on your device with AI, and listen hands-free with text-to-speech. Get alerted the moment the fics you follow update — the AO3 reader built for the way fans actually read. CONTINUE WHERE YOU LEFT OFF ArchFic remembers your chapter and exact scroll position across every work, so you can jump straight back in from a personalized Continue Reading list. Everything you've opened recently stays in your reading history. FOLLOW AUTHORS & GET NEW-CHAPTER ALERTS Follow your favorite AO3 authors from their profile. New Chapter Alerts notify you the moment a work you follow posts a new chapter, and New Work Alerts tell you when an author publishes something brand-new. The Updates feed gathers every recent update in one tab. NEVER LOSE A FIC AGAIN Download works for offline reading and keep them even if a fic is later deleted, orphaned, or locked on AO3. Save fanfiction to your Library and sort it into Collections you name yourself — Slow Burns, To Read, anything you like. Your AO3 bookmarks, recent reads, and offline downloads all live in one place. SEARCH THE FULL AO3 CATALOG Search works, authors, bookmarks, and tags from Archive of Our Own, or browse by genre: Anime & Manga, Books & Literature, Movies, TV Shows, and Video Games. Filter by rating, word count, completion status, date updated, relationships, and more to find exactly the fanfiction you want. READ ON YOUR TERMS Choose your font, adjust size and line height, and pick from four comfortable themes — White, Sepia, Dark, and Black — made for hours of reading. TRANSLATE AS YOU READ On-device AI translation lets you translate any fic into your language as you read. It works fully offline after a one-time model download, with no per-chapter fees — read fanfiction in any language. LISTEN HANDS-FREE Text-to-speech reads any chapter aloud, like an audiobook for fanfiction. Adjust the speed and voice, then follow along while commuting, cooking, or relaxing. SIGN IN TO SYNC ACROSS DEVICES Sign in to back up your library, collections, follows, and settings to the cloud, then switch phones or reinstall and pick up exactly where you left off. Connect your AO3 account to import your AO3 bookmarks and subscriptions automatically. Metadata only — your fanwork content is never uploaded or stored on our servers. Whether you're binge-reading a slow-burn epic offline on a flight, keeping up with every new chapter from the authors you follow, or just want a faster AO3 reader than the mobile browser, ArchFic is the fanfiction reader made for fans of Archive of Our Own — and archives of our own alike. Built by a fan, for fans who want a better mobile fanfiction reader. ArchFic is an unofficial, fan-made app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Archive of Our Own (AO3) or the Organization for Transformative Works. ArchFic accesses publicly available content from AO3 and does not host, store, or redistribute any fanfiction; if you sign in, our servers store only your account metadata (library, follows, settings), never fanwork content. Fanfiction content remains the property of their respective authors. Use is subject to AO3's Terms of Service (archiveofourown.org/tos).
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: ArchFic at 5.0 against Fan Reader's 3.8. ArchFic also leads on iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). Fan Reader's advantage is ratings volume (6 vs 2). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ArchFic holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 2 respectively.
Fan Reader ships an update every 3 weeks, ArchFic fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Fan Reader | ArchFic |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.8 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 80.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.5 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 109 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | 成文 郑 | Duong Hang |
Customer experience
Fan Reader
ArchFic
In-app purchases
Fan Reader
No in-app purchases
ArchFic
No in-app purchases








