Alternatives
Best Google Books alternatives in 2026
Google Books is search, preview and read books online from Google's catalog. These 9 alternatives come from the same rankings, ordered by editorial score. Connected products carry a small, disclosed lift.
Ranked alternatives
- 1
Goodreads
The largest English-language reader community here, with shelves, ratings and reviews. It runs in a web browser only on this page, and it is closed source.
Best for Reading shelves and reviews from a large community
WebiOSAndroidFree
- 2
Open Library
Is open source. A free, editable catalog with more than 3 million books to read online, plus yearly reading goals and lists. Its code is under AGPL-3.0, though its tracking is simpler than Goodreads.
Best for Free books, an open catalog and a reading goal
WebFree and open sourceOpen source
- 3
Douban Books
Records books you have read, want to read or are reading, with ratings, tags and recommendations. The site is in Chinese and has iPhone and Android apps, so it suits Chinese-language readers.
Best for Chinese-language reading lists and reviews
WebiOSAndroidFree
- 4
Hardcover
A free social tracker with status tracking, half-star ratings, reviews and imports from Goodreads and StoryGraph, plus iOS and Android apps. Goodreads is the larger English-language community, so it remains the better place to find reviews.
Best for Social book tracking with Goodreads imports
WebiOSAndroidFree plan, paid upgrades
- 5
apprun.icu*
Browser apps with live-ranked book lists from Open Library and Google Books, plus private reading trackers that need no account. Its ebooks are paid and separate from the free apps, and its scope is wider than books.
Best for Finding new books and tracking reads in a browser
WebFree plan, paid upgrades
- 6
The StoryGraph
A web reading tracker with statistics, challenges and giveaways. Sign-up needs no payment, but custom charts and stats comparisons sit behind the Plus plan at $49.99 a year, unlike the free shelves on Goodreads.
Best for Detailed reading statistics and charts
WebiOSAndroidFree plan, paid upgrades
- 7
Libib
Catalogs personal book, movie and game collections with barcode scanning and a free Basic plan. It tracks collections rather than reading progress, so it ranks below the reading-first services.
Best for Cataloging a physical book collection
WebiOSAndroidFree plan, paid upgrades
- 8
BookWyrm
A decentralized social network for reading tracking and reviews, built on ActivityPub, so people join independent servers. Its code is public under a license that is not open source, and its community depends on the server you join.
Best for Reading tracking and reviews without one operator
WebFree
- 9
Booklogr
A web reading journal with unlimited book tracking, reviews and social features on the free tier. Pro and Patron plans add statistics and custom lists, and its reader base is much smaller than Goodreads.
Best for Reading logs and reviews on a lighter service
WebFree plan, paid upgrades
About Google Books alternatives
- What is the best alternative to Google Books?
- On listme.name the highest-scored alternative is Goodreads, followed by Open Library. The right choice depends on price, platform and whether you need open source.
- Is there a free alternative to Google Books?
- Yes. Free options include Goodreads, Open Library, Douban Books.
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