Comparison

BookDiary vs CustomBooks

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

Head to head
About

BookDiary

A private reading journal to track your books, quotes, and reading habits without requiring an account or social sharing. Log your progress, save memorable passages, and discover new reads all on your device.

Highlights
  • Private reading journal
  • Save quotes from pages
  • Reading progress tracking
  • Digital book shelf
  • Reading calendar
  • Personal reading awards
  • Draw from TBR pile
Read full description

A private reading journal for readers who’d rather not share. Snap a page to save the line that stayed with you, watch your reading days quietly fill a calendar, and keep every book on a shelf that’s yours alone. No accounts. No social feed. ◆ FEATURES Five tabs: Shelf, Reading, To Read, Quotes and Records Read from a photo: snap a page and the text becomes your quote. Snap the cover to fill in title and author. Text recognition runs on your device. Reading calendar: days you added a book, logged a page, or saved a quote are marked Monthly wrap: books finished, pages, reading days and a line from the month, on one card A line for today: one of your saved quotes as a notification at the time you choose (optional) First reads and rereads logged separately, so you can see how a book changes with you Quote cards: save or share a passage as a washi-paper image Reading progress: log today’s page and watch the bar fill Personal reading awards: book of the year, most moving, most reread and more Draw a book: can’t decide what’s next? Draw one from your TBR pile Beautiful covers without photos: nine genres, each with its own washi-paper design. Using a photo? Pinch and drag to fit it to the frame. ◆ WHO IT’S FOR Readers who want to read without other people’s ratings Commonplace-book keepers moving from paper to phone Rereaders who return to favorite books over the years Anyone with a tall TBR pile Lovers of dark academia and quiet design People who avoid apps that require an account ◆ PRIVACY No account required Your books, quotes and notes are stored on your device only and never sent to a server Photo text recognition happens on-device No barcode lookups or external book services No tracking, no analytics on your reading To introduce our other apps, the app may load public App Store information (app names and icons). Your records are never sent. ◆ PRICING, PLAINLY BookDiary is free to use. The free version includes: Up to 50 books Up to 3 quotes per book and 3 photos per reading log 2 personal award categories Up to 5 entries per My Data category 5 photo text scans Washi quote cards in square format Reading calendar for the current month; monthly wrap viewable in the app The Sumi shelf theme in cover view Introductions to our other apps

About

CustomBooks

Features
Read full description

CustomBookS Take control of your ebook library. A beautiful library shouldn't be ruined by inconsistent covers, incorrect titles, or messy metadata. CustomBookS is designed to help you organize and personalize your EPUB collection with a simple, privacy-focused editing experience. Features Edit EPUB Metadata Change book titles Edit author names Update descriptions Replace book covers Wireless Local Transfer No cables required No cloud uploads Import and export ebooks directly over your local network Build a Cleaner Library Fix incorrect metadata Replace low-quality or inconsistent covers Create a more organized library in Kindle, Apple Books, and other reading apps Simple, Fast, and Private No ads All processing happens locally Designed for ebook lovers and collectors Whether you're a Kindle user, an avid reader, or someone who wants a cleaner and more beautiful ebook collection, CustomBookS gives you full control over your library.

Screenshots

BookDiary4 screens
CustomBooks3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CustomBooks at none against BookDiary's 1. On price, update cadence, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
BookDiary versus CustomBooks: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBookDiaryCustomBooks
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developertorankirite永隆 郝

In-app purchases

1 purchases

BookDiary

One-time1
  • Premium$3.99
None

CustomBooks

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BookDiary free?
BookDiary is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CustomBooks free?
CustomBooks is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do BookDiary or CustomBooks have ads?
Neither BookDiary nor CustomBooks shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BookDiary or CustomBooks?
BookDiary ships an update every 2 weeks, and CustomBooks every 2 weeks. Most recently, BookDiary was updated on October 25, 2026 and CustomBooks on October 28, 2026.

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