What "free" should mean for a reading tracker
A reading tracker is a long-game tool. You want the one you will still open in two years, which means the cost has to make sense over the long haul, not just on day one. Before you settle on an app, check three things:
- Is there a per-book cap? Some free tiers limit how many books you can track at once.
- Is the streak or habit feature free? This is the part that keeps you coming back, and it is often the first thing locked.
- Are the stats free? A blurred or locked stats tab is the classic freemium tell.
With that checklist in mind, here are the apps worth knowing.
Goodreads: free, huge catalogue, Amazon-owned
Goodreads is the best-known reading app and it is genuinely free. You get a vast book database, reviews, ratings, shelves, and a yearly reading challenge. If your main goal is cataloguing what you have read and seeing what friends think, it is hard to beat on price.
The trade-offs are well documented: the interface feels dated, it is owned by Amazon, and it is built around social cataloguing rather than building a daily habit. There is no real streak system. If those things matter to you, our free Goodreads alternative page covers the comparison in detail.
StoryGraph: free core, optional Plus
StoryGraph is a popular independent app with a free tier that is genuinely useful. You get mood and pace tracking, reading stats, and a clean way to log books, all without paying. It has earned a loyal following among readers who like data about their reading.
StoryGraph also offers a paid Plus tier that adds features like more detailed challenge tools and buddy reads. The important point for this list: the core tracking and stats are free, and the paid tier is an optional upgrade rather than a wall in front of the basics.
Bookmory: free core, paid Premium for backup and stats
Bookmory is a minimalist tracker that many readers love for its calm, uncluttered design. It works offline, respects your privacy, and focuses on logging your reading without a social feed. For readers who want something quiet and private, it is a strong free pick.
Where it stops short is motivation. Bookmory is a clean log rather than a habit engine, so if you want streaks, recovery, and goal pacing to keep you going, you may find yourself wanting more structure than it offers. Its core tracking is free, but cloud backup and the more advanced analytics sit behind a Bookmory premium subscription.
Bookly: free tier, paid Premium for the habit features
Bookly is a polished reading-time tracker with a real focus on building a habit. The thing to know is that it is freemium. It is free to download and includes a limited free tier, but its habit-building features, unlimited books, and detailed stats are part of Bookly Premium, a paid subscription.
That is a fair business model, and Bookly is a well-made app. But if your goal is a free habit tracker, this is exactly the kind of paywall this guide is here to flag. The parts that keep you reading are the parts you pay for.
Leaf: a genuinely free reading habit tracker
Leaf is built for the reader who wants the habit, not the bill. It is a reading tracker for iOS and Android that is free to use, with no subscription required and no per-book cap. The full habit loop is free: a daily reading streak, daily page or finish-by-date goals, reading stats, and a milestone tree that grows as you read. Leaf Pro is an optional upgrade for cloud sync, multi-device, and an ad-free experience.
The feature that sets Leaf apart is streak recovery. Most streak apps reset to zero the moment you miss a day, and that single reset is where a lot of reading habits quietly die. Leaf lets you backdate a session, so if you read last night but forgot to log it, you can record it for the right day and keep your streak intact. It is bookkeeping, not cheating, and it is unique to Leaf.
Leaf is also offline and private. Your books, sessions, and streaks live on your device, and you do not need an account to start. If you want to back up or switch phones, import and export keep your history portable.
Get Leaf free
Build a reading streak you can actually keep, with no subscription required on the habit-building features.
Free reading tracker apps at a glance
| App | Truly free? | Streak | Streak recovery | Offline / no account | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | Yes | No | No | Limited | Cataloguing, reviews |
| StoryGraph | Free core + paid Plus | No | No | Limited | Stats, mood tracking |
| Bookmory | Free core + paid Premium | Light | No | Yes | Quiet, private logging |
| Bookly | Free tier + paid Premium | Premium | No | Limited | Reading-time habit (paid) |
| Leaf | Free to use, optional Leaf Pro | Yes | Yes | Yes | Building a daily habit free |
How to choose the right one for you
If you want a social library and reviews, start with Goodreads. If you love data and mood tracking, StoryGraph's free tier is excellent. If you want a quiet, private log, Bookmory is lovely. If you are happy to pay for a reading-time habit, Bookly is polished.
But if your goal is a daily reading habit that costs nothing to maintain, with a streak that survives a busy week, Leaf is the honest answer. You can see the full picture on our reading tracker app page, then download it in about two minutes.