Comparison

Tempo vs Reed

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

Head to head
About

Tempo

This app presents text one word at a time, helping you maintain focus and progress through reading material. It offers adjustable pacing, rewind capabilities, and a distraction-free reading environment. Save your content locally and track your reading habits.

Highlights
  • RSVP reading mode
  • Adjustable reading pace (WPM)
  • Pause, rewind, and review text
  • Import text and supported files
  • Local reading library
  • Reading progress tracking
  • Customizable themes and typography
Features
Read full description

Tempo is a calm focus reader for people who want to keep moving through books, notes, articles, and study material without losing their place. The reader uses RSVP reading: it shows text one word at a time, with simple controls for pace, pause, rewind, and review. Instead of filling the screen with distractions, Tempo keeps the current word centered and gives you just enough context to continue confidently. Use Tempo to: * Paste text or import supported files * Read one word at a time in a focused RSVP view * Adjust your words-per-minute pace * Pause, rewind, and jump back into context * Save reading material in your local library * Track reading sessions, progress, stats, and streaks * Choose themes and typography that feel comfortable * Unlock unlimited local reading with a one-time purchase Tempo is built for focused reading, not fake productivity. It does not promise magic speed gains or replace careful reading. It gives you a calmer way to move through text, stay engaged, and finish more of what you start. Your reading material stays local by default in this release. Tempo is designed for content you own, created, or otherwise have the right to read.

About

Reed

Features
Read full description

Reed is a calm, focused reader for the books and documents you already own. Open plain text, Markdown, and EPUB files and read them beautifully. • Open your own .txt, Markdown (.md), and EPUB files • Clean, typographic reading with light, sepia, and night themes • Adjustable font, size, margins, and page-turn style • Reading progress, bookmarks, and in-book search • Read aloud with text-to-speech • Reading stats and streaks • iCloud sync keeps your library and progress across all your devices • Smart text-encoding detection for older files No account required. Your library stays on your device and in your personal iCloud. Reed is free with ads — remove them anytime with a one-time purchase.

Screenshots

Tempo4 screens
Reed4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Tempo at none against Reed's 1. Tempo also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). On price 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. Reed sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Tempo asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
Tempo versus Reed: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTempoReed
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 days
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size60 MB15 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJosh HoffmanOh Hyeon Kwon

In-app purchases

None

Tempo

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Reed

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$2.99

Questions

Is Tempo free?
Tempo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Reed free?
Reed is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Tempo or Reed have ads?
Reed shows ads; Tempo does not.

Other comparisons