Comparison

Shelfd vs Booklume

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

Head to head
About

Shelfd

Organize your reading life with a charming book tracker. Log what you're reading, discover your next book with a spin of a wheel, and visualize your reading habits with personalized stats and achievements. Enjoy a cozy, ad-free experience with optional premium features for advanced tracking.

Highlights
  • Track current, finished, and to-be-read books
  • Spin a wheel to pick your next read
  • Organize books by genre with custom colors
  • Set reading goals and view yearly stats
  • Earn achievements narrated by an Archivist
  • Import libraries from other apps (CSV)
  • Backup and restore your library
Features
Read full description

A warm, unhurried home for your reading life. Shelfd keeps a quiet record of everything you've read and everything still waiting — without turning your hobby into a job. No leaderboards. No guilt for the week you didn't finish anything. HOWEVER YOU READ IT Paper, ebook, or audiobook — track them side by side on the same shelf. Audiobooks count down in hours and minutes remaining, the way your listening app shows them, so there's no maths to do when you log your progress. YOUR SHELF, ACTUALLY SHELVED Finished books stand as real spines, coloured from their own covers. Browse them as a shelf or a list, and build your own collections for classics, comfort rereads, or whatever you're hoarding this month. SPIN THE WHEEL Too many books, not enough decisions. Load up your TBR, give it a spin, and let fate choose your next read. A GOAL WORTH HITTING Set a books-per-year target and watch the arrow move toward the bullseye. Miss it and nothing bad happens. Hit it and something rather nice does. THE SHAPE OF YOUR TASTE See which genres you actually gravitate to, how you read — paper, screen, or headphones — and the quiet trends across your year. ACHIEVEMENTS, STAMPED Every finished book earns a mark from the Archivist, who keeps your records in impeccable order and is quietly more invested than he lets on. BRING YOUR LIBRARY Coming from Goodreads or StoryGraph? Import your whole history from a single file and pick up where you left off. Back up your shelf whenever you like — your library is yours, and it stays on your device. SCAN AND GO Point the camera at a barcode and the book is on your shelf, page count and cover included. SHELFD PREMIUM Read up to three books at once, unlock the Ratings Card with half-stars and emoji vibes for how a book actually felt, get the deeper genre breakdown, and build unlimited shelves and lists. "Keep reading. That's all I ask." — The Archivist SHELFD PREMIUM — SUBSCRIPTION TERMS Shelfd Premium is available as a monthly or annual auto-renewing subscription, or as a one-time Founders Group purchase. A 7-day free trial is included with the subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel your subscription in your Apple Account settings after purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial is forfeited when you purchase a subscription. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://joinshelfd.com/privacy.html

About

Booklume

Organize your reading library, track progress, and capture notes from physical books using on-device text recognition. Monitor reading streaks, trends, and yearly goals in a private, ad-free environment.

Highlights
  • Track physical, ebook, and audiobook progress
  • Time reading sessions or log past ones
  • Capture typed notes and scanned highlights
  • Review reading activity and set yearly goals
  • Organize library with Open Library search
  • On-device text recognition
Features
Read full description

Booklume is a calm, private reading companion for people who want to read more and remember what matters. Keep your library organized, update your progress in seconds, time reading sessions, and capture notes from physical books with on-device text recognition. Your home screen keeps the current book close, while Insights turns reading sessions into useful streaks, trends, and yearly-goal progress. Features: Track physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks Record page or percentage progress Time live sessions or log past sessions Save typed notes and scan printed highlights Review weekly and yearly reading activity Set an annual book goal Add reading widgets to your Home Screen Search Open Library or add books manually Your library and notes stay on your device. Booklume does not require an account and does not use advertising or third-party analytics. Booklume Pro includes unlimited highlight scans and full reading history. Subscription purchases renew automatically unless canceled through your Apple Account. A lifetime option may also be available. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Shelfd4 screens
Booklume4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Booklume at 100% against Shelfd's 50%. Booklume also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.2). On price, update cadence, ads 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. Shelfd sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Booklume asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly daily. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Shelfd versus Booklume: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShelfdBooklume
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (4 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4 — better—
Update frequencyDailyDaily
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS26.217.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperZachary SelburgBalaji Sivasakthi

Customer experience

Shelfd

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Booklume

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Shelfd

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Premium Annual7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Shelfd Founders Group$59.99
None

Booklume

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Shelfd free?
Shelfd is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Booklume free?
Booklume is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Shelfd or Booklume have ads?
Neither Shelfd nor Booklume shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Shelfd or Booklume?
Shelfd ships an update daily, and Booklume daily. Most recently, Shelfd was updated on October 9, 2026 and Booklume on October 8, 2026.

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