Rankings · Scores 0 to 10 · Weights published
Smart bookmark app rankings 2026: seven apps scored
The question
Which app does the best job as a smart bookmark: saving your exact place in the book you are reading, and helping you remember the story when you come back to it, in print, ebook or audiobook?
The weights for this question and why we chose them are on How we rate.
Magic Bookmark ranks first at 7.10 out of 10, Bookly second at 6.90 and The StoryGraph third at 6.40. The ranking rewards saving your exact place (30%) and story recall (20%) most; formats, any-book support, platforms, price and privacy count 10% each.
By The Margin Desk · Smart Bookmark Compare · Published 2026-10-08 · Updated 2026-10-13
Desk research from public App Store and Google Play listings and the app makers' own pages. Vendor facts read September 2026, updated 2026-10-11. Editorial assessment; we did not test the apps hands-on.
How do the seven apps rank?
| Rank | App | Best for | Score | Price line |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Magic Bookmark | Picking a print book or audiobook back up after a break | 7.10 / 10 | Free to download. Bookmark Credits: 1 for $4.99, 5 for $19.99, 10 for $34.99, 50 for $69.99. One credit per book; credits never expire; no subscription |
| 2 | Bookly | Timed sessions across print, ebook and audiobook | 6.90 / 10 | Free to start; the Google Play listing says it contains ads. Bookly Pro on the App Store: Monthly Pro $4.99, Yearly Pro $29.99, "Bookly Pro" $79.99 (the listing gives no term), plus discounted and family options |
| 3 | The StoryGraph | Kobo e-reader owners and readers who want a full tracker | 6.40 / 10 | Free core app. StoryGraph Plus: $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year (US App Store) |
| 4 | Literal | Saving highlights for free, with no ads | 6.20 / 10 | Free, no in-app purchases on the App Store. Optional membership: Plus $40 a year, Supporter $80 a year |
| 5 | Basmo | Keeping a reading journal with highlights | 6.10 / 10 | Free to start. Basmo PRO: $4.99 billed monthly or $39.99 billed annually, after a free 7-day trial (US App Store) |
| 6 | Fable | Reading with a club | 5.60 / 10 | Free core app. Fable Plus: $5.99 a month or $49.99 a year |
| 7 | Goodreads | Logging books where your friends already are | 5.40 / 10 | Free, no subscription |
| App | Exact place 30% | Recall 20% | Formats 10% | Any book 10% | Platforms 10% | Price 10% | Privacy 10% | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Magic Bookmark | 10 highest in set | 10 highest in set | 7 | 3 lowest in set | 2 lowest in set | 5 lowest in set | 4 | 7.10 highest in set |
| Bookly | 7 | 7 | 9 highest in set | 8 | 9 | 5 lowest in set | 3 lowest in set | 6.90 |
| The StoryGraph | 5 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 highest in set | 8 | 6 | 6.40 |
| Literal | 3 lowest in set | 7 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 10 highest in set | 8 highest in set | 6.20 |
| Basmo | 5 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 5 lowest in set | 3 lowest in set | 6.10 |
| Fable | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 10 highest in set | 6 | 4 | 5.60 |
| Goodreads | 4 | 2 lowest in set | 5 lowest in set | 10 highest in set | 10 highest in set | 9 | 4 | 5.40 lowest in set |
A filled saffron square marks the highest score in a column; a hollow square marks the lowest. Tied cells are all marked.
Magic Bookmark ranks 1 of 7. It is highest in set on exact place and story recall and lowest or tied lowest on works with any book, phones and platforms and price. At least one app scores higher than it on print, ebook and audiobook, works with any book, phones and platforms, price and privacy.
How do the scores look on the shelf?
Show the shelf as a table
| App | Score | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Magic Bookmark | 7.10 | 1 |
| Bookly | 6.90 | 2 |
| The StoryGraph | 6.40 | 3 |
| Literal | 6.20 | 4 |
| Basmo | 6.10 | 5 |
| Fable | 5.60 | 6 |
| Goodreads | 5.40 | 7 |
Where does each app score well?
Tab length is the criterion score, in criteria order. A saffron tab means highest in set.
Which head-to-head comparisons are available?
- Basmo or Bookly?
- Basmo or Fable?
- Basmo or Goodreads?
- Basmo or Literal?
- Basmo or Magic Bookmark?
- Basmo or The StoryGraph?
- Bookly or Fable?
- Bookly or Goodreads?
- Bookly or Literal?
- Bookly or Magic Bookmark?
- Bookly or The StoryGraph?
- Fable or Goodreads?
- Fable or Literal?
- Fable or Magic Bookmark?
- Fable or The StoryGraph?
- Goodreads or Literal?
- Goodreads or Magic Bookmark?
- Goodreads or The StoryGraph?
- Literal or Magic Bookmark?
- Literal or The StoryGraph?
- Magic Bookmark or The StoryGraph?
Which apps did we leave out or review without a score?
- Outside this question
Hardcover: Tracks want to read, reading, read and did-not-finish, with lists, tags and a public API, but its pages describe no progress or place-keeping features, so it does not answer this question.
Source: Hardcover website · Read 27 Sep 2026
- Outside this question
BookBuddy: Catalogues the copies you own, where each one lives and who has borrowed it, which is a different job from keeping your place inside a book.
Source: BookBuddy, US App Store · Read 27 Sep 2026
We include an app when its own pages describe a way to save or record your place in a book you are reading, or to capture what you read.
Goodreads and Magic Bookmark do different jobs: Goodreads keeps your shelves, reviews and Reading Challenge; Magic Bookmark keeps your exact place inside the book you are reading, so many readers can use both.
Reviewed, not scored
Amazon Kindle app: Recaps and Story So Far (reviewed, not scored): Amazon says Story So Far gives spoiler-free recaps up to where you stopped reading, and Recaps refresh the last book you read in a series. Both cover best-selling English-language Kindle ebooks you bought or borrowed, for U.S. customers on Kindle devices and the Kindle iOS app. Amazon creates the recaps, and authors cannot opt out or edit them. They work only inside Kindle ebooks, not print books or audiobooks, and our sources do not cover every criterion, so Kindle is listed without a score.
Source: About Amazon: Kindle Recaps and Story So Far · Read 11 Oct 2026
Source: Amazon help: Kindle Recaps · Read 11 Oct 2026
Source: Kindle Direct Publishing help: Recaps · Read 11 Oct 2026
Audible clips and bookmarks: In the Audible app on iPhone and Android, +Clip saves the last 30 seconds as a clip you can trim and add a note to, and every clip also adds a bookmark. Go to Bookmark resumes playback from that exact position, and the browser Cloud Player can add bookmarks too. It keeps your place inside Audible audiobooks only, with no print or ebook side and no recap, and our sources do not cover every criterion, so Audible is listed without a score.
Source: Audible help: clips and bookmarks · Read 11 Oct 2026
Frequently asked questions
Why does Magic Bookmark rank first if it loses five criteria?
Because this ranking weights the two jobs in the question most: saving your exact place and helping you remember the story. Magic Bookmark scores highest in set on both. It scores lower than other apps on print, ebook and audiobook, working with any book, platforms, price and privacy, and those rows are shown in the table.
Can I change the weights?
Yes. The pick-up calculator re-ranks the apps for your phone, formats, breaks between sessions, budget and privacy preferences, and prints the formula it uses.
Are these book tracker rankings?
No. Trackers are judged on logging, stats, goals and clubs. This site asks a narrower question: which app gets you back into the book you are reading now.