Comparison

TBR Book Jar vs Seekquel

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

Head to head
About

TBR Book Jar

This app helps you decide what to read next with over 190 prompts and a customizable digital bookshelf. Track your reading progress, view stats, and personalize your virtual library.

Highlights
  • 190+ reading prompts
  • Customizable digital bookshelf
  • Page progress tracking
  • Reading timer and speed tracking
  • Reading stats and goals
  • Goodreads import
  • Dark mode support
Features
Read full description

Can't decide what to read next? Reach into the jar. TBR Book Jar is the reading app BookTok has been waiting for — a digital TBR jar, a gorgeous customizable bookshelf, an AI book buddy, audiobook magic… and now the biggest thing we've ever shipped: a built-in community of readers. Book clubs, forums, a used-book marketplace, and your shelf synced to the web. Built by a reader who was tired of staring at the TBR pile — now with company. NEW — TBRTALK, YOUR READING COMMUNITY · Book clubs with their own themed rooms — join one or start your own · Forums for every bookish conversation, plus direct messages · A used-book marketplace: list your finished copies, browse everyone else's — buyers and sellers arrange everything directly · Wishlist a book and get alerted when someone lists a used copy · Every book gets its own page: reviews, ratings, clubs reading it, copies for sale · Your library and wishlist sync with tbrtalk.com — your shelf, on the web NEW — YOUR HOME DASHBOARD Pick up right where you left off: a continue-reading carousel, streaks and goals at a glance, quick doors to everything. AUDIOBOOK MODE Your paperbacks just learned to talk. Snap photos of any pages — they're transcribed and read aloud with karaoke-style highlighting that follows along. Studio Voices sound remarkably human and run entirely on your iPhone: downloaded once, private, offline. Have a DRM-free EPUB? Drop it in and listen to the whole book. THE JAR 190+ creative prompts across 17 categories. Tap to pick and let fate decide — or hit Mystery Book to pull randomly from your own shelf. DISCOVER An endless deck of book suggestions dealt from the genres you actually love. Swipe right to wishlist, left to pass — it quietly learns your taste. YOUR BOOKSHELVES Not a list — real bookshelves. Books stand as spines or face-out covers on wooden shelves, sized to their true cover shape. Stack them into piles, drag to rearrange, decorate with wallpapers, stickers and animated GIFs. Unlimited shelves, smart shelves that fill themselves, and a Wishlist shelf for the books you want next. BOOK BUDDY — YOUR AI READING COMPANION Give it a name, then ask for recommendations, chat about books, describe a vibe or "books like ___" — grounded in real, current titles and tuned to what's on your shelf. READING TIMER & FOCUS SCENES The timer is free for every reader. Go Pro and read beside a crackling campfire, rain on the window, ocean waves — seven looping nature scenes plus ambient sound. ADD BOOKS IN SECONDS Search millions of titles with auto-filled covers and summaries · scan a barcode or snap the cover · import your whole Goodreads library via CSV. TRACK & CELEBRATE Page progress, reading speed, ratings and reviews, streaks, a yearly goal ring, genre charts and an activity heatmap. FREE The whole community · 10 books on your shelf · unlimited wishlist · 30 prompts · reading tracker & timer · a daily taste of Book Buddy and page scanning PRO — Monthly, Yearly or Lifetime (start with a 14-day free trial) · Unlimited books & shelves · full Audiobook Mode · All 190+ prompts + custom prompts · Unlimited Book Buddy, Discover deck & smart wishlist · Stats, focus scenes & sounds, goals & reminders · Goodreads import · every wallpaper, theme & decoration Your TBR pile just got fun — and it brought friends. Reach in and start picking. Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled 24 hours before the period ends. Manage in App Store settings. Privacy: https://damobo.com/tbrbookjar/privacy Terms: https://apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Support: support@damobo.com

About

Seekquel

This app helps you track your reading habits and library with customizable features. Log progress, manage your collection, and discover new books based on your preferences. It offers detailed statistics and community features, all while respecting your privacy.

Highlights
  • Customizable home screen with over 30 cards
  • Detailed library tracking (Want to Read, Reading, Read)
  • Progress logging by page, percent, or time
  • Import from Goodreads, StoryGraph, Hardcover
  • E-reader sync (Kindle, Kobo, PocketBook)
  • Personalized book recommendations
  • Reading habit building tools (timer, goals, challenges)
Features
Read full description

Seekquel is a book tracker you set up yourself. There is a lot in it and none of it is compulsory: build your home screen from the parts you use, switch off the rest, and keep the community on its own tab. Plenty of readers run it as a plain reading log and never touch anything else. SET UP THE HOME SCREEN • More than thirty cards: currently reading, daily goals, your streak, recommendations, your reading calendar and more • Drag them into the order you want and switch off the ones you never use • Arrange your stats page and public profile the same way • 21 themes, from Dark Academia to Cottagecore, and more than twenty app icons • Home screen widgets, adjustable text size, reduced motion and reduced transparency DECIDE WHO SEES WHAT • Public, followers only, or private, then set each part of your profile on its own • Show your reviews but hide your stats, or turn a whole profile tab off • Choose who can message you and approve followers before they see anything • No ads, no data selling, and analytics you can decline • Export everything you have added, whenever you want TRACK YOUR LIBRARY • Add books by title, author, ISBN, or barcode scan • Want to Read, Reading, Paused, Read, and Did Not Finish • Log progress by page, percent, or time listened, in the edition you actually own • Custom shelves, shelves that fill themselves from rules you set, tags, and notes • Track what you own, what you borrowed, and what you lent out • Coming from elsewhere? Import from Goodreads, StoryGraph, or Hardcover, with your shelves, ratings and reviews SYNC YOUR E-READER • KOReader on Kindle, Kobo, PocketBook or Android sends your place, reading time, highlights and finished books • Readest and Xteink pocket readers connect too • Calibre keeps shelves, ratings, reviews and reading dates in step in both directions DISCOVER YOUR NEXT READ • A taste profile built from your genres, moods, themes and pacing • Browse by mood, trope and pace, not just broad genres • Pick For Me: a few quick questions, one considered recommendation • Shelve a book before it is published and hear the day it comes out • See the films and series a book was turned into • Mood, pace and content notes gathered from real reader reviews BUILD A READING HABIT • A reading timer, with ambient sounds like rain or a fireplace • Daily page or minute targets, and a streak with freeze days built in • Yearly goals and custom challenges, on your own or shared with friends • A monthly reading bingo card, and badges from Bronze to Platinum SEE YOUR READING • Books, pages, hours, streaks and genres at a glance • A Monthly Wrapped recap of the month just gone • Share cards for a finished book, a month or your whole year • With Pro: build your own charts, compare one period against another, and see reading heatmaps, pacing and mood trends THE COMMUNITY, ON ITS OWN TAB • Nothing social reaches your home screen unless you put it there • Rate books with stars, plus writing, plot, characters, atmosphere and impact • Follow readers, build shareable lists, and recommend books directly • Buddy reads with milestones and chat, and book clubs • Ask the community for a book and shelve their suggestions in one tap • Fix catalog mistakes yourself and build your reputation as a contributor Free on iPhone, Android and the web. Pro adds more themes, custom charts, deeper stats and higher limits. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://seekquel.app/privacy

Screenshots

TBR Book Jar4 screens
Seekquel4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Seekquel at 17 against TBR Book Jar's 5. Seekquel also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.6). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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. TBR Book Jar sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and Seekquel sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for TBR Book Jar against 4.9 for Seekquel. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5 and 17 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TBR Book Jar ships an update every 4 days, Seekquel every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
TBR Book Jar versus Seekquel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTBR Book JarSeekquel
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (5 ratings) — better4.9 (17 ratings)
Positive reviews—90.9% of reviews
Number of ratings517 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size118 MB83 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristopher MayberryMohamed Sabri Ben Chaabane

Customer experience

TBR Book Jar

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Seekquel

All ratings17 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive90.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative9.1%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

TBR Book Jar

Subscriptions3
  • Pro Monthly (One-Time Offer)$3.991 Month
  • TBR Book Jar Pro Monthly$4.991 Month
  • TBR Book Jar Pro Annual14 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • TBR Book Jar Pro Lifetime$69.99
3 purchases

Seekquel

Subscriptions2
  • Seekquel Pro (Monthly)14 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Seekquel Pro Yearly14 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Seekquel Pro Lifetime$119.99

Questions

Is TBR Book Jar free?
TBR Book Jar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Seekquel free?
Seekquel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, TBR Book Jar or Seekquel?
TBR Book Jar is rated higher. TBR Book Jar averages 5.0 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while Seekquel averages 4.9 from 17 ratings.
Do TBR Book Jar or Seekquel have ads?
Neither TBR Book Jar nor Seekquel shows ads.
Which is updated more often, TBR Book Jar or Seekquel?
TBR Book Jar ships an update every 4 days, and Seekquel every 3 days. Most recently, TBR Book Jar was updated on November 5, 2026 and Seekquel on November 13, 2026.

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