Comparison

BookWyrm vs Project Gutenberg eBook Reader

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

Head to head
About

BookWyrm

Read full description

Ever come across something you don't know while reading a book? BookWyrm is your reading companion, helping you understand unfamiliar words, keep track of characters, and stay immersed in the story. Designed for people who love reading, BookWyrm lets you point your camera at a word on the page and instantly get a translation in your language, plus a full definition. You can also create characters, add your own notes and relationships, and quickly find them again as you continue reading. BookWyrm currently supports English books. Support for additional book languages is being explored. HOW IT WORKS • Open the scanner while reading • Point at a word or a character's name • Get an instant translation and definition for words • Recognise characters you've already added and show information about them • Save words and characters as you read KEEP TRACK OF YOUR CHARACTERS Characters can be easy to forget, especially in books with large casts. Add characters as you encounter them and write your own notes about who they are, where they live, what they do, or anything else you want to remember. Create relationships between characters to keep track of who knows whom, who is related, and how they fit into the story. And because the information comes from you, BookWyrm won't spoil the story by telling you something you haven't discovered yet. BUILD YOUR WORD BANK Save unfamiliar words as you encounter them. Your personal word bank is organized by book, so you can revisit words from the stories you've read and see your vocabulary grow over time. FEATURES • Smart word scanner — just point and hold steady • Character recognition — recognise characters you've added to your book • Character notes — add your own information as you read • Character relationships — keep track of connections between characters • Instant translation to your preferred language • Full dictionary definitions • Listen to pronunciation • Personal word bank organized by book • Track multiple books at once PERFECT FOR • People who read English books • Readers who want to stay immersed in their stories • Anyone who wants to keep track of characters and relationships • Readers who don't want to interrupt their reading flow BOOKWYRM GOLD — UNLIMITED READING AND LEARNING Upgrade to BookWyrm Gold for unlimited scanning, unlimited saved words, unlimited characters, and unlimited books. Available as a monthly subscription, yearly subscription, or one-time lifetime purchase. Download BookWyrm and never get lost in a book again. --- Dictionary definitions are provided by Free Dictionary API using data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0). Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Project Gutenberg eBook Reader

Access a vast library of over 75,000 public domain classic books. Read them offline, search by title or author, and enjoy features like adjustable text, themes, and bookmarks. Listen to audiobooks with synchronized text highlighting.

Highlights
  • 75,000+ classic books
  • Offline reading
  • Read-along audiobooks
  • Customizable reader themes
  • Search and browse library
  • Bookmarks and highlights
Features
Read full description

Gutenberg puts one of the largest libraries ever assembled in your pocket. Over 75,000 public-domain classics — every novel, essay, play and poem that time has released — ready to read, to search, and to carry with you offline. And the ones you love most, you can hear read aloud, with the words lighting up on the page as the narrator speaks. No account. No clutter. Just the whole library, beautifully made. READ EVERYTHING • 75,000+ complete books from Project Gutenberg — fiction, history, philosophy, poetry, drama and more. • A clean, typeset reader that feels like paper, with a real page-curl turn or smooth vertical scrolling — your choice. • Light, sepia and dark themes; adjustable typeface, text size and margins. • Highlight passages, keep bookmarks, and jump anywhere with a full table of contents. • Every book downloads for offline reading — on a plane, on the subway, anywhere. LISTEN, IN SYNC • A growing collection of read-along audiobooks: classics narrated aloud, aligned to the page. • Words highlight as they're read, so you can read and listen at the same time — or just close your eyes and listen. • Background playback, lock-screen controls, adjustable speed, and skip-forward / skip-back. • Pick up exactly where you left off, whether you were reading or listening. FIND ANYTHING • Search 75,000+ titles by book or by author in an instant. • Browse by subject — Literature, History, Science, Poetry and dozens more — each thousands of books deep. • Sort by most downloaded, recently added, title, or reading ease. • Explore curated shelves, popular authors, and picks based on what you're reading. BUILT FOR READERS • Warm, considered design that gets out of the way of the words. • Set the app to Light, Dark, or follow your system. • Fast, offline-first, and respectful of your attention. GUTENBERG PREMIUM Gutenberg Premium removes ads and lifts all limits so you can open every book and every audiobook without interruption. • Premium is offered as a Weekly or Yearly auto-renewable subscription, or a one-time Lifetime unlock. • Prices are shown in the app and may vary by region. • Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. • A subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. • You can manage or cancel your subscription anytime in your App Store account settings. • Any unused portion of a trial period, where offered, is forfeited when you purchase a subscription. All books are sourced from Project Gutenberg and are in the public domain. Gutenberg is an independent reader and is not affiliated with the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Privacy Policy: https://burakkose.me/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

BookWyrm4 screens
Project Gutenberg eBook Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: BookWyrm at none against Project Gutenberg eBook Reader's shown. Project Gutenberg eBook Reader's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs fortnightly) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.0). On price, 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. BookWyrm sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Project Gutenberg eBook Reader sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BookWyrm ships an update fortnightly, Project Gutenberg eBook Reader every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on September 18, 2026 and September 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
BookWyrm versus Project Gutenberg eBook Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBookWyrmProject Gutenberg eBook Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 3 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRene HeijndijkBurak Kose

In-app purchases

3 purchases

BookWyrm

Subscriptions2
  • BookWyrm Gold Monthly$1.991 Month
  • BookWyrm Gold Yearly$17.991 Year
One-time1
  • BookWyrm Gold Lifetime$49.99
3 purchases

Project Gutenberg eBook Reader

Subscriptions2
  • Weekly Subscription$4.997 Days
  • Yearly Subscription$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Access$29.99

Questions

Is BookWyrm free?
BookWyrm is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Project Gutenberg eBook Reader free?
Project Gutenberg eBook Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do BookWyrm or Project Gutenberg eBook Reader have ads?
Project Gutenberg eBook Reader shows ads; BookWyrm does not.
Which is updated more often, BookWyrm or Project Gutenberg eBook Reader?
BookWyrm ships an update fortnightly, and Project Gutenberg eBook Reader every 3 days. Most recently, BookWyrm was updated on September 18, 2026 and Project Gutenberg eBook Reader on September 14, 2026.

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