MBook vs Actually Read
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MBook
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You finish a business book and keep three ideas. Two months later, one. MBook catches those ideas while you read, then turns them into a deck you can review in five minutes or listen to on the way to work. Bring your own book. Reading is free, with no limits. HOW IT WORKS 1. Add a book you own. EPUB, PDF or FB2. 2. Read it in the app. Reading stays free on every plan. 3. Turn it into cards when you are ready. MBook pulls out the concepts, tactics and frameworks worth acting on. READ ANY BOOK YOU OWN A clean reader with chapters, saved position and type that stays out of the way. No catalogue, no rented titles, no subscription to a library. Your files stay yours. CARDS BUILT FOR ACTION Eight card types: Concept, Insight, Strategy, Tactic, Framework, Quote, Summary, Metaphor. Tactics tell you what to do on Monday. Frameworks hand you a lens for the next decision. Quotes preserve the author's exact words for when you cite them. LISTEN ON THE MOVE Hear your deck read aloud during a commute, a walk or a workout. Five voices to choose from. The book you never had time to open becomes the drive to the office. CARDS IN 180+ LANGUAGES Read the original in English and get your cards in your own language. Or flip it, and study the language while you read. KEEP WHAT MATTERS Save the cards that land. Group them into collections by project or theme. Share one as an image when it deserves an audience. WORKS OFFLINE Books, cards and audio you have already loaded open with no signal. Flights and subways included. PRIVACY YOU CAN VERIFY No account. No email, no password, no phone number. MBook knows you by a random ID your device generates. No ads. No usage tracking. Your books never train AI models, and one tap in the app erases everything you have stored with us. PLANS Free: read as many books as you like, and build card decks from 3 of them. MBook Pro: card decks from 10 books a month, plus audio narration. Billed monthly or yearly. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription renews each period unless you cancel at least 24 hours before it ends. Manage or cancel it in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Service: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSBI6rTiNXMQ5H9GM-SdBP2uhwK0p-NHdQIca5WlzYgYXxeLAKga97xalpCrMCWhvnYm6xyo_YxBxjy/pub Privacy Policy: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vQGZJEUxU4uca9djjXC3hJ8ga5Rft0g-HbZwBoK4A70TegtLWd4HQHQ2yzILJYpNeRYWc-PwHVoXZt3/pub
Actually Read
Enhance your reading experience by tracking books, blocking distractions with Deep Focus, and utilizing an AI companion for deeper comprehension. Import your own files or discover public domain books to build a consistent reading habit.
- Track reading progress
- Deep Focus distraction blocking
- Import EPUBs and PDFs
- AI-powered book companion
- Summaries and recaps
- On-device AI processing
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Actually Read helps you track your books, protect your reading time, and actually read—whether you’re reading an EPUB, a PDF, or a physical book. • Focus on the book you chose. Start a reading session, set a timer, and use Deep Focus to block the apps, categories, and websites you choose with Screen Time. • See your reading add up. Track books and focus sessions, create custom reading lists, review your reading history, and return to a calm, customizable reading space built around your current book. • Read your way. Import EPUBs and PDFs, discover free public-domain books, search within books, save bookmarks, highlight passages, and pick up where you left off. • Ask better questions with grounded AI. Actually Read uses retrieval-based AI to help you engage with a book, not replace it with an AI digest. Ask about a theme, scene, or passage, get a Story So Far recap, or request a chapter summary when you’re ready. • Stay grounded in the text. Actually Read retrieves relevant passages from your book and uses them as context for each answer. Responses prioritize cited supporting passages you can open directly in the reader and can respect your reading progress to help avoid spoilers. • Keep your content close. Book indexing, embeddings, and retrieval happen on-device. On devices with Apple Intelligence enabled, on-device AI can answer questions without sending your questions or book content to the cloud. • Choose Advanced AI when you want it. Only your question and the relevant excerpts retrieved to answer it are sent to the cloud—never the full book. Actually Read is for reading with more attention, more context, and fewer distractions. Some features require compatible hardware, Apple Intelligence, Screen Time permission, or an internet connection. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Actually Read at every 3 days against MBook's monthly. Actually Read also leads on chart position (#125 vs unranked). MBook's advantage is iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.2). 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
Both are free to download. MBook sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Actually Read sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
MBook ships an update monthly, Actually Read every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MBook | Actually Read |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 4.9 (38 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 38 — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | — | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | #125 — better |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 26.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 21 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Mindhalla Inc. | Prism32 LLC |
In-app purchases
MBook
- Synapps Starter – Monthly$4.991 Month
- Synapps Pro — Monthly$9.991 Month
- Synapps Unlimited — Monthly$14.991 Month
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- Synapps Starter — Yearly$35.991 Year
- Synapps Pro — Yearly$71.991 Year
- Synapps Unlimited — Yearly$107.991 Year
Actually Read
- Actually Read Plus3 Days trial$9.991 Month









