Chicago Public Library vs LiterallyForBooks
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Chicago Public Library
Manage your library account, search the catalog, and discover new titles. Track borrowed items, place holds, and find events. Use your digital library card for in-person checkouts.
- Manage checked out items
- Place holds on materials
- Renew borrowed items
- Search library catalog
- Track reading history
- Browse new titles
- Find library events
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Which branch has the book I want? What's available now from my For Later shelf? When are my DVDs due? Use CPL's app to manage your account and find new titles. Features: - See what you have checked out - Place holds - Renew materials - Search the CPL catalog - Keep track of what you've read and would like to read - Browse new and on order titles - Find upcoming events at your preferred location - View hours, locations and contact information - Use the app to show your library card when checking out materials in person - Scan the barcode of a book, DVD or CD to search for it in CPL's catalog
LiterallyForBooks
This app helps you track your reading progress, manage your book lists, and connect with other readers. Organize your library, set reading goals, and discover new books through social features and book clubs.
- Track reading progress
- Multiple goal formats
- Half-star review scale
- Keyword labeling
- Prioritize want-to-read list
- Book club feeds
- Spoiler-protected posts
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Book tracking: Track your book progress, multiple formats of goals, half star review scale, label books with keywords, prioritize want to read list with priority. Social: Suggest or request books, generic posts, spoiler protected posters, book clubs with their own feeds and tracking Profiles: Create an about me, favorite genres, profile photos, top 10 of all time, recent favorites, and see your LiterAllies lists and goals Privacy Policy: https://www.literallyforbooks.com/privacy-policy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: LiterallyForBooks at 5.0 against Chicago Public Library's 3.5. LiterallyForBooks also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 months). Chicago Public Library's advantage is ratings volume (64 vs 2) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.4). 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
LiterallyForBooks holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chicago Public Library has 64 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Chicago Public Library ships an update every 2 months, LiterallyForBooks every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Chicago Public Library | LiterallyForBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.5 (64 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 31.9% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 64 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 26.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 22 MB | 33 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | City of Chicago | Matthew Dornbos |
Customer experience
Chicago Public Library
LiterallyForBooks
Bugs and requests
Chicago Public Library
Reported bugs
27 issues- App is CONSTANTLY having issues
- Logs me out and I can’t get back in
- Often miss holds due to no notifications
- Repeatedly logged out, or can’t log in at all
- Not opening since 4/2/2024
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- Logs me out constantly
- Takes me out of the browser and I have to go through all the steps to get back
- Confusing downloading a held ebook
- Logs me out a lot
- Cannot log in, doesn't load, can't search books
- App asking for username, not accepting card ID
- Cannot create an account, error messages
- App logs you out if you switch to another app
- App doesn’t seem to have been updated to accommodate the iPhone 12 mini
- Borrowing ebooks or audiobooks requires multiple apps to synchronize
- App does not have availability by branch location
- App does not alert you when items are due, overdue or holds available
- App shows book is available but without a location
- On order and new releases are no longer available
- Clunky on iPad, awkward in portrait view
- Slow to respond on iPad
- Cannot locate feature showing exact location of a desired book
- No iPhone X screen size update
- Crashes every time I attempt to open “for later”
- App will not refine search
- Accept and deny buttons reversed
- Crashes every time I try to login
Requested features
14 requests- Add notifications for holds
- Add library card to Apple Wallet
- Improve audiobook browser experience
- Provide direct download links for ebooks
- Display library alerts prominently
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- Allow users to create usernames
- Update app for iPhone 12 mini
- Improve ebook/audiobook synchronization
- Add page counts for books
- Add pass to Apple Wallet
- Add Passport version of CPL Library Card
- Allow reserving computers via app
- Add notifications for book due dates
- Improve interface/design of app
LiterallyForBooks
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Chicago Public Library
No in-app purchases
LiterallyForBooks
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Chicago Public Library free?
Is LiterallyForBooks free?
Which has better reviews, Chicago Public Library or LiterallyForBooks?
Do Chicago Public Library or LiterallyForBooks have ads?
Which is updated more often, Chicago Public Library or LiterallyForBooks?
Other comparisons
