Should you mark a book paused or DNF?
Best Book Tracker Apps editors · Data refreshed 3 November 2026 · Editorial assessment
Bottom line.Use paused for a book you fully intend to finish and DNF for one you have decided to stop, even if you might return one day. The StoryGraph has a real Paused status, added in December 2024, that keeps paused time out of your reading-time stats. Goodreads and Hardcover do not publish one, so use a custom shelf or list called "paused" and keep the book's main status as currently reading.
Facts checked 3 November 2026
What is the difference between paused and DNF?
A pause is a break with a plan to return: a library loan ran out, a holiday got in the way, or you switched to a club book for three weeks. DNF, did not finish, is a decision to stop. Many readers use DNF loosely for both, and it costs them later: a paused book filed as DNF drops out of view, and a book that was really abandoned sits in Currently Reading for a year, dragging your stats.
A simple test: if you would be pleased to see the book on your Currently Reading list next month, it is paused. If you would feel guilty, it is DNF.
Which apps have a paused status?
| App | Statuses it publishes | Paused option | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| The StoryGraph | To read, currently reading, read, did not finish, paused | Yes, since 20 December 2024 | Use Paused; add a private journal note on why |
| Goodreads | Want to read, currently reading, read, did not finish (added March 2026) | No | Keep it in Currently Reading and add a custom "paused" shelf |
| Hardcover | Want to read, reading, read, did not finish | Not published | Keep it as Reading and add it to a "paused" list |
| Others | Varies | Not published | Use a tag or shelf named "paused" |
How does StoryGraph's Paused status work?
According to StoryGraph's own changelog, the option appears on any book marked currently reading. Choosing it moves the book to a collapsed section on your Currently Reading page, so your active books stay in front of you. Paused periods are left out when StoryGraph calculates your average reading time, you can backdate a pause, and you can add a private note in your journal entry about why you stopped. When you are ready, you toggle the book back to currently reading.
That stats detail matters. Without a pause, a book you started in March and finished in August looks like a five-month read, and your average time per book balloons.
What happens to your stats either way?
| Choice | Yearly book count | Reading-time stats | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paused (StoryGraph) | Counts when you finish | Paused time excluded | None, if you return |
| Currently reading for months (no pause status) | Counts when you finish | Book looks very slow | Skews average days per book |
| DNF | Depends on the app and settings | Pages read may count | Easy to forget the book exists |
Goodreads uses the date you mark a DNF book as read to decide whether it counts toward that year's Reading Challenge, so check the date if you care about the count. Our note on using a DNF shelf covers each app's handling.
How do you make a paused book easy to come back to?
The status is the easy part. The hard part is starting again three weeks later with no idea who anyone is. Before you pause:
- Update your progress to the exact page.
- Write a pick-up note: the first words of the paragraph where you stopped, and one line on what was happening. Our pick-up note template has five lines.
- Note who was on stage, if the book has a big cast.
When you return, read your note, then the last two pages before your place. For a long gap or a crowded cast, a recap that stops at your page helps: Magic Bookmark gives a recap and cast list up to the page you photograph (or the last phrase you heard in an audiobook), for its supported titles on iPhone. Our guide to restarting a book without rereading it walks through longer breaks, and Reading With ADHD has methods for coming back to an abandoned book if attention, not time, is what interrupts you.
When should a pause become a DNF?
Set yourself a review date when you pause, for example the end of the month. If you have not opened the book by then and do not want to, change it to DNF and move on. Our guide on when to DNF a book lists the rules readers use.
Questions
Q1Does StoryGraph have a paused status?
Yes. Since 20 December 2024 you can mark a currently reading book as paused. It moves to a collapsed section, and paused time is excluded from your average reading time.
Q2Does Goodreads have a paused shelf?
Not as a built-in status. Keep the book on Currently Reading and add a custom shelf such as "paused".
Q3Does a paused book count toward my reading goal?
Only when you finish it, in the same way as any other book.
Q4Is it better to DNF or pause a book I might finish next year?
If you have no plan to return soon, mark it DNF. You can move it back to currently reading whenever you pick it up again.