Lesson 6 of 9 · Buying
Trying a reading app before you commit: a two-week trial plan
How to find out if a tracker suits you before you move your whole library or pay for a tier.
Best Book Tracker Apps editors · 2 September 2026 · 3 min read
Eight of the nine apps we rank have a free core app or a free starting tier, and Magic Bookmark is free to download, so you can try before you pay. Back up your current library first, import it into the new app, log two weeks of real reading, test the one feature you are switching for, and only then decide whether to move for good or pay for a tier.
Contents
Why back up first?
An import copies data into a new app; it does not move it. Before you try anything, export your current library so you have a copy you control. Goodreads exports your library as a CSV file, The StoryGraph emails you a link to a CSV export when you request one in settings, and BookBuddy exports CSV, PDF or HTML. If the trial does not work out, nothing is lost.
How do you import for a trial?
Use the quickest route the new app offers. Literal can read a public Goodreads profile directly, with no file. Fable offers an in-app Goodreads sign-in or a CSV import. The StoryGraph imports your Goodreads currently-reading, read, to-read and did-not-finish shelves and turns other custom shelves into tags. After the import, open ten books at random and check the status, the dates and your rating. Friends lists, comments and challenge history rarely come across, so do not judge the app on those.
What should you do in the two weeks?
- Days 1 to 3: add every book you start by barcode or search, and time how long it takes.
- Days 1 to 14: update progress after every reading session, in the unit you prefer, pages or percent.
- Week 1: set a goal and look at the stats screen after a few sessions. Note what is free and what sits behind the paid tier.
- Week 2: test the one feature you are switching for, such as a buddy read, a club, a session timer or an export.
- Day 14: export from the new app, if it offers an export, to make sure you can leave as easily as you arrived.
Do you need the paid tier to judge the app?
Usually not. The free tiers of the trackers we rank cover logging and shelves. Paid tiers add depth: Fable Plus adds weekly, monthly and multiple goals, and StoryGraph Plus, Hardcover Supporter, Bookly Pro and Basmo Premium each add their own extras. If the feature you want is paid, pay for one month where a monthly price exists rather than a year up front. StoryGraph Plus, Hardcover Supporter and Basmo Premium each list $4.99 a month, Bookly lists one month of Pro for $4.99, and Fable Plus is $5.99 a month. Literal's membership is sold yearly, and BookBuddy Pro is a one-time $9.99.
How do you decide at the end?
- Keep it if logging was quick enough that you actually did it after every session.
- Keep it if the feature you switched for worked with your real books and your real friends.
- Drop it if you found yourself going back to the old app to check things.
- Either way, keep the export from day one and the export from day 14.
Some readers end up with two apps on purpose: a tracker for the log and a companion for one job. A place-keeping app like Magic Bookmark sits next to a tracker rather than replacing it. The calculator shows what the paid tiers would cost if you keep one.