Comparison

Trace vs Archives Fanfic Reader

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

Head to head
About

Trace

This app helps you track your fanfiction reading progress and organize your favorite stories. It allows you to save works, add notes, and categorize them for easy retrieval. Keep a private record of what you've read, loved, or dropped across supported archives.

Highlights
  • Track reading progress
  • Organize fanfiction by status
  • Add private notes and tags
  • Search and filter by fandom
  • Integrates with AO3 and FanFiction.net
  • Create reading collections
Features
Read full description

Have I read this one? Which chapter did I get to? Did I drop it, or just catch up? Did I like it? Trace remembers, so you don't have to. Read on AO3 and FanFiction.net as you always do, in Safari on your iPhone. Trace keeps every fic you open, and exactly where you stopped. STATUS AT A GLANCE Browse AO3 and FanFiction.net as usual. Trace marks the fics you've already read, finished, paused or dropped, right on the list, with your chapter. One tap on Add to Trace saves the ones you haven't started. AUTOMATIC TRACKING Open a fic and Trace follows along as you read: Chapter 31 of 40, there on the page and in your Library. Pick up again from Trace, or straight from the page. A PERSONALISED LIBRARY Every fic you've opened in one place: reading, saved, caught up, paused, finished or dropped. Filter it, search it, and see what you read each day. Rate a fic, leave yourself a note, add private tags. CLOSE THOSE TABS Import all your open AO3 and FanFiction.net tabs in one go. Trace keeps the stories, with the chapter you're on, so the tabs can finally close. STORY UPDATES Get new chapters from your AO3 subscriptions as notifications on your iPhone, and see what's new in one place. You set it up once: verify your email in Trace, then forward AO3's update emails to Trace with a Gmail filter, made in Gmail on a computer. Titles stay off your Lock Screen unless you turn them on. Story updates works with AO3 subscription emails; FanFiction.net isn't supported yet. COLLECTIONS Gather the fics you love, rank them, add notes, and send a link. STATS AND RECAP See your words, chapters, finishes and longest reading run, with a Recap each month. ON YOUR HOME SCREEN Add the widget to see what you're reading and jump back in. FREE AND UNLIMITED Trace is free for up to 100 stories, then a small monthly or yearly subscription (2.99/m or 25/year in most regions) unlocks unlimited space. All features are included in free except for advanced stats since fewer than 100 stories can't make use of them. STORIES STAY WHERE THEY BELONG You always read on AO3 or FanFiction.net, so authors keep their hits and kudos. The Safari extension only asks for access to AO3 and FanFiction.net, and it stays off their sign-in pages. I'll never ask for your AO3 or FanFiction.net password. I don't sell your reading or show you ads. READ AO3 EPUBS? Check out Trace Reader, another app I've made. It's an accessible offline reader built around AO3 EPUBS that can connect to your trace account to sync both your online and offline reading. Trace is made by one person. If something isn't right, or you have an idea, I'd love to hear from you! Many of Trace's features are the result of feedback from its users. Trace is an unofficial companion. It isn't affiliated with AO3 or FanFiction.net. Trace Unlimited is an auto-renewing subscription billed through your Apple Account. Manage or cancel it in Settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.tracefiction.com/privacy

About

Archives Fanfic Reader

A fanfiction reader that allows you to discover, organize, and customize your reading experience. Save favorites, track progress, and explore stories from around the internet. Offers a clean interface for immersive reading.

Highlights
  • Discover fanfiction stories
  • Organize reading lists and favorites
  • Track reading progress
  • Customize reader themes and fonts
  • Browse full-work comments
  • Search by works, tags, authors, and fandoms
Features
Read full description

Archives is a calm, native fanfiction reader built for people who live in stories. Find fics, save your favorites, organize your library, and settle into a cleaner reading experience on iPhone. Use Archives to: • Read fan fiction stories from around the world and internet • Search works, tags, people, fandoms, and authors • Explore fandoms and open author profiles • Save stories to Reading list, Currently reading, Read, Favorites, and custom folders • Resume exactly where you left off with reading progress • Customize the reader with themes, fonts, line height, tint, and preferred language • Browse full-work comments and jump between overview, chapters, and discussion Archives does not host fanfiction. It is independently built and is not affiliated with any story platform. A premium subscription is needed to access certain features such as: - unlimited audio mode - offline downloads - custom themes — Terms of Service: https://harmless-alibi-eda.notion.site/archives-tos Privacy Policy: https://harmless-alibi-eda.notion.site/archives-privacy-policy Contact: support@readarchives.com

Screenshots

Trace4 screens
Archives Fanfic Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Archives Fanfic Reader at 5.0 against Trace's 4.3. Archives Fanfic Reader also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). Trace's advantage is ratings volume (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Trace sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Archives Fanfic Reader sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Archives Fanfic Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 1 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Trace versus Archives Fanfic Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTraceArchives Fanfic Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (3 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size41 MB73 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperZACHARY SAMUEL LAMBERTMeow Meow Labs

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Trace

Subscriptions2
  • Trace Unlimited Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Trace Unlimited Yearly$24.991 Year
4 purchases

Archives Fanfic Reader

Subscriptions4
  • Weekly Subscription to Archives$4.997 Days
  • Monthly Subscription to Archives$9.991 Month
  • Annual Subscription to Archives$29.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Annual Subscription to Archives$39.991 Year

Questions

Is Trace free?
Trace is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Archives Fanfic Reader free?
Archives Fanfic Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Trace or Archives Fanfic Reader?
Archives Fanfic Reader is rated higher. Trace averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Archives Fanfic Reader averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Trace or Archives Fanfic Reader have ads?
Neither Trace nor Archives Fanfic Reader shows ads.

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