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Book tracker app FAQ: common questions answered
Best Book Tracker Apps editors · Data refreshed 14 October 2026 · Editorial assessment
Short answers to the questions readers ask most about book tracker apps, grouped in four themes: the basics, buying and pricing, each of the nine apps we rank, and how our scores work. Each answer links to the page that goes deeper.
Contents
What are book tracker apps?
What does a book tracker app do?
It keeps a log of what you read: books you want to read, are reading, have read or did not finish, with dates, progress and ratings. Most also add goals, stats and a way to follow friends or join clubs.
What is the difference between a shelf, a status and a tag?
A status says where a book is in your reading, such as want to read or read. Shelves and tags are your own labels, for a club, a mood or a year. Apps treat custom shelves differently when you import, so pick one system and stay with it.
Can a tracker log print books, ebooks and audiobooks together?
Yes. Log the edition you are reading and use pages for print and percent for ebooks and audiobooks. Kobo now syncs ebook progress to The StoryGraph on its own.
What does DNF mean?
Did not finish: a status for a book you started and stopped. Goodreads added a DNF shelf in March 2026, and The StoryGraph and Hardcover already had one.
Do any reading apps track automatically?
Partly. Since June 29, 2026, reading on a Kobo e-reader or app updates your StoryGraph progress and marks finished books as read. Kindle readers can import lists into Fable and highlights into Basmo, and print books still need a manual update, a timer or a photo of the page.
Is keeping your place the same as tracking progress?
No. Progress is a number for your stats. Your place is where the story was when you stopped. Session notes, timers and place-keeping apps like Magic Bookmark help with the second.
What do book tracker apps cost?
Are book tracker apps free?
Eight of the nine apps we rank have a free core app or a free starting tier. Goodreads has no paid tier at all, and Literal's membership is optional. Magic Bookmark is free to download but charges per book.
Which paid tiers cost the most and the least?
On the US App Store, StoryGraph Plus and Hardcover Supporter cost $49.99 a year, Fable Plus $49.99 a year or $5.99 a month, Basmo Premium $39.99 a year and Bookly Pro $29.99 for a year. Literal's membership starts at $40 a year, and BookBuddy Pro is a one-time $9.99.
Is there a book tracker with no subscription?
Yes. Goodreads is free with no paid tier, BookBuddy Pro is a one-time $9.99 purchase, and Magic Bookmark sells per-book credits that never expire instead of a subscription.
Should I pay monthly or yearly?
Try the free tier first, then pay for one month if a monthly price exists, so you can check the paid features before committing to a year. StoryGraph Plus, Hardcover Supporter and Basmo Premium list $4.99 a month, Bookly lists one month of Pro for $4.99, and Fable Plus is $5.99 a month.
Which book tracker is best for privacy?
On our privacy criterion, Hardcover and BookBuddy score highest (9 each). Hardcover's App Store label links no data to you, and BookBuddy keeps your library on your device. Basmo scores lowest (3).
Can I leave an app and take my history with me?
Usually. Goodreads, The StoryGraph and BookBuddy publish exports, and Hardcover and Literal publish APIs. Friends lists, comments and challenge history rarely come across, so keep a CSV copy of your library.
How do the nine apps compare?
Which book tracker app is best?
We do not score or rank trackers against each other. The StoryGraph has the deepest stats of any app here, a free core app and a Goodreads import; Literal is free and ad-free; Goodreads has the biggest community; BookBuddy catalogues the books you own. The tracker facts page lists each one side by side, with no scores.
Is StoryGraph better than Goodreads?
It depends on the job. The StoryGraph publishes deeper stats, a CSV export and a lighter privacy label; Goodreads has the bigger community and no paid tier. For getting back into a book without spoilers, The StoryGraph scores 6.30 and Goodreads 5.35.
Is Literal still good for book clubs?
Literal's clubs are free and existing clubs still work, but Literal said in May 2026 that it is sunsetting the current version of Clubs. For a new club, look at Fable first. Literal remains a free, ad-free tracker with an easy Goodreads import.
Who is Hardcover for?
Readers who care most about their data. Hardcover's App Store label links no data to you, and it publishes a GraphQL API with OAuth. We found no book clubs published.
Who is BookBuddy for?
Readers cataloguing the books they own. It records where each copy lives and who borrowed it, imports and exports CSV, and runs on iPhone and iPad.
Who is Fable for?
Club readers. Fable's public and private clubs cover books and TV shows, with spoiler-free discussion spaces. Weekly, monthly and multiple goals need Fable Plus at $5.99 a month or $49.99 a year.
Who are Bookly and Basmo for?
Readers who time their sessions. Bookly's timer turns each sitting into pages, time and reading speed; Basmo pairs a session timer with a reading journal and Kindle highlight import. Both App Store labels list identifiers used to track you.
Is Goodreads owned by Amazon?
Yes. Amazon announced its acquisition of Goodreads on March 28, 2013, and the site carries the line 'An Amazon Company'.
Is Magic Bookmark a book tracker?
No. It is a spoiler-free reading companion: it syncs to your exact place in a supported print book from a photo of the page, or in an audiobook from the last phrase you heard. It does not log books or keep stats, so it is not a tracker. We rank it separately in Best apps for getting back into a book without spoilers, where it places 1 of nine at 7.90, and it scores 10 on keeping your place.
Read more: Best apps for getting back into a book without spoilers
How does this site score apps?
How are the scores calculated?
We publish one scored ranking: getting back into a book without spoilers. Each app gets a 0-10 score on five criteria. The total is each score multiplied by its weight, added up and divided by 100. Spoiler safety and getting back into the story carry the most weight (30 each). Trackers are compared on facts, with no scores.
Did you test the apps?
No. The scores are desk research from public app store listings, vendor websites and help pages, checked September 27, 2026. We did not test the apps hands-on or interview the companies.
Can I change the weights?
Yes. The calculator lets you set your own weight for each criterion and re-ranks all nine apps on the five lead criteria from the same criterion scores.
Do any app makers pay to be on this site?
No app maker can pay to change a score, and we do not use affiliate links.
How often is the site updated?
Every price and headline feature is re-checked each quarter. The last full review was September 2026 and the next is due in December 2026. Dated app announcements are listed on our News page.