Comparison

expt vs ShelfMark

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

Head to head
About

expt

Features
Read full description

expt is a beautiful, distraction-free reader for all your local files. Import EPUBs, PDFs, comics, text files, and more — everything opens in a clean, focused reading experience designed for deep reading. **Read Everything** • EPUB books with chapter navigation and search • PDF documents with native rendering • CBZ and CBR comic archives with page-turn viewer • Plain text, Markdown, CSV, code files, and HTML • ZIP archives with image grid browser **Designed for Reading** • Six reader themes: Light, Sepia, Dark, Solarized, Nord, Ink • Adjustable font, size, line height, and margins • Distraction-free mode hides all chrome • Reading progress tracked automatically **Organize Your Library** • Create series to group related files in reading order • Label and filter files by type, status, or custom tags • Search across your entire library by title or author • Track reading streaks and daily stats **Built for Apple** • Native iOS design with dark and light mode • iPad support with adaptive layouts • iCloud sync for reading positions across devices • Text-to-speech with language detection **Your Files, Your Device** • 100% local — no cloud storage, no accounts, no tracking • Import via Files app, Share Sheet, or drag and drop • Files stay on your device in the app sandbox

About

ShelfMark

Features
Read full description

A quiet reading tracker for people who love books more than apps. ShelfMark keeps your reading life in one calm, paper-warm place. Log the page you are on, keep a streak alive, and save the lines worth keeping. No account, no feed, no noise. MADE FOR READERS - Three shelves: to be read, reading, and finished. Move a book with a tap. - Quick page updates with percent complete, pages a day, and time left at your current pace. - A daily page goal beside your grace-day reading streak. - Search your library, filter by genre, and sort by recency, title, author, or progress. - A quote wall with the book, page number, and an optional photo of the page. - A yearly reading goal and Wrapped view with pages, streaks, genres, fastest reads, and monthly activity. - A private Home and Lock Screen widget for your current book, pages today, goal, and streak. - A complete local backup, additive restore, and Delete All My Data control. FREE AND LIFETIME ShelfMark is free for up to 3 books and 5 saved quotes. Reading progress, streaks, daily and yearly goals, search, backup, restore, deletion, and the widget stay useful without paying. A single Lifetime purchase unlocks unlimited books and quotes, the 30-day Reading Pulse, finish-date pace plans, full Wrapped statistics, and the one-page Reading Year PDF. It is a one-time purchase, not a subscription. Existing records always remain readable and editable. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your reading library stays locally on your iPhone or iPad. No account, no analytics, and no tracking. Widget content uses Apple's private on-device App Group storage and is marked privacy sensitive.

Screenshots

expt4 screens
ShelfMark4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: expt at none against ShelfMark's 1. expt also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS

CostPrice Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Ads Ā· Monetization

Both are free to download. ShelfMark sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. expt asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard2 real differences Ā· 4 level
expt versus ShelfMark: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterexptShelfMark
PriceFreeFree
Update frequency—Weekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size45 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperArthur ParkInnovaLabWorks

In-app purchases

None

expt

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

ShelfMark

One-time1
  • ShelfMark Lifetime$12.99

Questions

Is expt free?
expt is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ShelfMark free?
ShelfMark is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do expt or ShelfMark have ads?
Neither expt nor ShelfMark shows ads.

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