# Bound vs Dear Reader

The clearest difference is ads: Bound at none against Dear Reader's shown. On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Bound ships an update every 5 days, Dear Reader every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Bound | Dear Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bound-your-books-your-time/id6761732672/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **2** | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 days** | Every 9 days |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 12 MB | 51 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 18.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [David Fore](https://appshunter.io/developer/1027149859) | [Moonsun Yang](https://appshunter.io/developer/6779434903) |

## What reviewers say

### Bound

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bound-your-books-your-time/id6761732672)

This app helps book lovers track their reading habits with beautiful timers, organized bookshelves, and insightful statistics. Capture your thoughts in a journal, unlock achievements, and sync your progress across devices with cloud support and dark mode.

**Highlights:** Reading session timers, Organized digital bookshelf, In-app reading journal, Reading statistics and insights, Goal setting and progress tracking, Cloud sync across devices, Dark mode support

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Dear Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dear-reader-reading-journal/id6779434901)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Bound free?

Bound is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Dear Reader free?

Dear Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Bound or Dear Reader have ads?

Dear Reader shows ads; Bound does not.

### Which is updated more often, Bound or Dear Reader?

Bound ships an update every 5 days, and Dear Reader every 9 days. Most recently, Bound was updated on October 12, 2026 and Dear Reader on October 19, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*