The Best Bookly Alternatives in 2026

Bookly does a lot of things right. The session timer is smooth, the stats are deep and the finish-time estimates are genuinely clever. But the free tier caps your library at 10 books and almost everything interesting (cloud sync, detailed stats, the reading assistant) sits behind Pro at $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year. If you hit that wall, here is where to go next. Prices checked October 2026.

Why people look for Bookly alternatives

Three complaints come up over and over. The 10-book free limit runs out within a week of real use. The best features are subscription-only in a category where rivals give more away. And Bookly only tracks reading, you cannot actually read in it, so your ebooks still live somewhere else.

1. epup - best free gamified alternative

I live inside this app so consider the source, but the model really is different. Bookly charges you to see your own stats. In epup your stats are the game: minutes read turn into XP, Ink and item drops. Drops feed a virtual pet (17+ species to collect and evolve), become crafting materials and grow an island from a cottage into a town.

It also covers both ways people actually read: a real EPUB and PDF reader for ebooks and a Focus Timer for physical books. The streak calendar doubles as a book tracker, so you keep the charts and get a pet on top. Free on iOS and Android, no ads, no 10-book ceiling.

• Unlimited library, EPUB/PDF reader and physical book timer included
• XP, pets, crafting, island building and guilds instead of paywalled charts
• Free with no ads

2. StoryGraph - best free stats and recommendations

StoryGraph's free tier is the most generous in this list: full stats, reading challenges and the best mood-based recommendations anywhere. Tell it you want something fast-paced, dark and under 300 pages and it delivers. The optional Plus tier ($4.99/mo or $49.99/yr) adds custom charts and deeper filters that casual readers will not miss.

What it does not have is a game loop. It will tell you exactly what your reading year looked like. It will not make tomorrow's session feel like a quest.

3. Goodreads - best free catalog and social feed

Goodreads is the default for a reason: every book ever cataloged, unlimited shelves, the yearly reading challenge and a feed of what your friends are reading. It is Amazon-owned and feels like it: slow, ad-supported and barely updated in years. But if all you need is "did I read it" plus a social layer, it is free and complete.

4. Bookmory - best journaling-first tracker

Bookmory is for readers who want to remember books, not just count them. The calendar stamps each day with the cover of whatever you read and the notes handle quotes, photos and page-level thoughts. Premium is $3.49 a month or $30.99 a year and most of the app works free.

5. Habitica - best for raw motivation

Habitica is an RPG for your whole habit list rather than a book tracker. Checking off reading deals damage to monsters and earns gear, and party quests mean skipping a session hurts your friends. If charts never moved you but boss fights might, it is free and open source on iOS, Android and web.

So which should you pick?

Left Bookly because the free tier ran out: StoryGraph or Goodreads. Left because tracking felt like homework: epup or Habitica. Left because you wanted to remember what you read: Bookmory. And if you want tracking plus an actual library, epup's book tracker is the only one here that also reads your books.

Related: how epup's gamification works • epup as an EPUB reader

Papyrus

The first pet readers meet in epup and the blog's resident bookworm. Writes about reading habits, gamification and the apps that make books hard to put down.