# Stacks Reading List vs Shelved

Stacks Reading List and Shelved both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of Shelved's written reviews are positive against 66% of Stacks Reading List's. Shelved also leads on update cadence (every 11 days vs every 6 weeks). Stacks Reading List's advantage is ratings volume (230 vs 6) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 17.6). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

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

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Stacks Reading List against 4.7 for Shelved. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Stacks Reading List has 230 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 66% of Stacks Reading List's written reviews are positive against 100% of Shelved's.

Stacks Reading List ships an update every 6 weeks, Shelved every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Stacks Reading List | Shelved |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (230 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/stacks-reading-list/id734184669/reviews) | **[4.7 (6 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelved-book-catalogue/id6464169521/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **230** | 6 |
| Positive reviews | 66.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | **Every 11 days** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 2 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 17.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Stephen Morris](https://appshunter.io/developer/486582860) | [No Translation Layer LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1705015522) |

## What reviewers say

### Stacks Reading List

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/stacks-reading-list/id734184669)

Easily track books you want to read and those you've enjoyed. Scan barcodes to add titles and find links to purchase them from major online retailers.

**Highlights:** Track books to read, Track enjoyed books, Barcode scanning, Add books to list, Link to purchase books

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and intuitive design
- 👍 Easy to use
- 👍 Great for tracking reading lists
- 👍 Minimalist aesthetic
- 👍 No ads

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes
- 🐛 Glitching issues
- 🐛 Difficulty scanning ISBN
- 🐛 Missing book covers
- 🐛 Inability to manually add books

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when adding books
- Scanning ISBN not working
- App quits unexpectedly
- Search function not working
- Unable to add new books

**Requested features**

- Add DNF section
- Customize book order
- Link to Apple account for sync
- Create folders for organization
- Send lists to others


### Shelved

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelved-book-catalogue/id6464169521)

Organize your entire reading life with this simple book cataloguing app. Track what you're reading, build wishlists, log completed books with ratings, and tag titles for easy retrieval. Features barcode scanning and a clean interface.

**Highlights:** Track reading progress, Build reading wishlists, Log completed books with ratings, Organize books by tags, Barcode ISBN scanning, Sort books by various criteria, Clean and intuitive interface

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Stacks Reading List free?

Stacks Reading List is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Shelved free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Stacks Reading List or Shelved?

Shelved is rated higher. Stacks Reading List averages 4.6 out of 5 from 230 ratings, while Shelved averages 4.7 from 6 ratings.

### Do Stacks Reading List or Shelved have ads?

Neither Stacks Reading List nor Shelved shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Stacks Reading List or Shelved?

Stacks Reading List ships an update every 6 weeks, and Shelved every 11 days. Most recently, Stacks Reading List was updated on October 22, 2026 and Shelved on October 30, 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.*
