Comparison

Bookends vs BioEM 2026

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read full description

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/

About

BioEM 2026

Read full description

BioEM 2026 is the world's premier conference on bioelectromagnetics, bringing together leading researchers, practitioners, and students in the fields of biology, medicine, and electromagnetic technology. This mobile app will serve as your personal guide throughout the event, giving you access to: – the full scientific program and sessions – speaker details – venue and city information – real-time updates and notifications With the app, you can easily build your own agenda, search sessions by topic or presenter, and stay connected throughout the conference week in Cairns. This application provides following features: * Access to up to date agenda (sessions, speeches, speakers) * Easy access to conference's key information (venue, accommodation, sponsors etc.) * Conference's venue maps * Offline functionality. Application does not required active Internet connection * Conference news (delivered via Twitter)

Screenshots

Bookends4 screens
BioEM 20261 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: BioEM 2026 at none against Bookends's 2. BioEM 2026 also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.6). Bookends's advantage is device support. On price 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. Bookends sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year. BioEM 2026 asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Bookends versus BioEM 2026: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBookendsBioEM 2026
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (398 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews76.4% of reviews—
Number of ratings398 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months—
AdsNo—
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — better—
Requires iOS18.613.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size114 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSonny Software, LLCPoznan Supercomputing and Networking Center

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

BioEM 2026

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Bookends

Subscriptions1
  • Premium3 Months trial$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Standard$14.99
None

BioEM 2026

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Bookends free?
Bookends is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is BioEM 2026 free?
BioEM 2026 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

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