Bookends vs Write/Sprint
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bookends
Manage your research references and PDFs on your mobile device. Search online databases, import metadata, annotate PDFs, and organize your library. Offers basic functionality for free with optional one-time purchase and yearly subscription for advanced features like cloud sync and unlimited imports.
- Search online reference databases
- Import metadata and PDFs
- PDF annotation and markup
- Barcode scanning for references
- Cloud sync across devices
- Share online libraries
- Create multiple libraries
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Bookends is the reference management app you've been looking for. The basic version offers: • Search online sites directly (arXiv, Google Books, Google Scholar, JSTOR, the Library of Congress, PubMed, PubMed Central, and Semantic Scholar) or use the built-in browser (EZProxy-compliant) to download reference metadata and PDFs (access privileges required). Searches can return a maximum of 20 references, and only 50 references can be stored in your personal database. • Use unique identifiers such as DOI, PMID, ISBN, or arXiv id to autofill references. • View the text of PDF annotations in a note stream, and create your own with our powerful PDF markup engine. • Barcode scanning, one per day. • And many more features designed to help you discover, organize, and use reference information. Standard, one-time purchase ($14.99): • No limit on searches or importing. Premium, yearly subscription ($14.99). Requires a Standard purchase. • Cloud sync with all your iOS devices and Bookends for Mac (separate purchase). • Share online libraries with colleagues. • Scan documents with Mellel Mobile*. • Create multiple libraries. • Unlimited barcode scanning. • Extract PDF annotations with deep links to annotations and text. • Convenient UI to add PDF notes to the library. • Automate your actions with Shortcuts. * iPad-only. Requires a Mellel Mobile Premium subscription. Subscription is for one year and has an auto-renew option. The subscription can be managed in iOS -> Settings > [your name] > Subscriptions. A subscription will renew if it isn't canceled at least 24 hours before the renewal date. If the subscription is not renewed, Premium will be disabled but Standard will continue to work. Terms of Service: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Write/Sprint
This app helps you track your writing progress with timed sprints. It allows you to set your sprint duration, record the number of words written, and share your achievements. Your writing data remains private with no logins required.
- Set custom sprint times
- Track words written per sprint
- Share writing progress
- No login required
- Private data storage
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Write/Sprint is a writing sprint timer app that allows you to set your sprint time, track the words you wrote, and share your progress. Write/Sprint never has access to any of your sprint data. No logins required. EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Bookends at 76% against Write/Sprint's 33%. Bookends also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.9) and ratings volume (398 vs 7). Write/Sprint's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.6). 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
Both are free to download. Bookends sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year and Write/Sprint sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Bookends holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bookends has 398 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Bookends's written reviews are positive against 33% of Write/Sprint's.
Bookends ships an update every 2 months, Write/Sprint every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bookends | Write/Sprint |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (398 ratings) — better | 3.9 (7 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 76.4% of reviews — better | 33.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 398 — better | 7 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 7 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 114 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Sonny Software, LLC | Justin Hunter |
Customer experience
Bookends
Write/Sprint
Bugs and requests
Bookends
Reported bugs
3 issues- Incompatibility with iCloud Optimized Storage
- Unreliable sync between desktop and mobile versions
- Occasional data loss or corruption
Requested features
4 requests- Nested folders and tags for better organization
- Automatic PDF metadata extraction
- Improved search and filtering capabilities
- Seamless integration with third-party services
Write/Sprint
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Bookends
- Premium3 Months trial$14.991 Year
- Standard$14.99
Write/Sprint
- Hemingway Monthly$1.991 Month
- Hemingway Yearly$19.991 Year
Questions
Is Bookends free?
Is Write/Sprint free?
Which has better reviews, Bookends or Write/Sprint?
Do Bookends or Write/Sprint have ads?
Which is updated more often, Bookends or Write/Sprint?
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