Your personal library, shared with friends
Add your books, connect with friends, and lend your favourites — all in one place.
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Business & EconomicsAvailableEverything you need for your personal library
Built for book lovers who share.
Add your library
Catalogue every book you own. Search by title or author and build your personal shelf.
AI book scanning
Take a photo of any cover. AI reads it and fills in title, author, category, language and description automatically.
Lend to friends
Offer books to friends directly from your shelf. Track who has what and when it was lent.
Friends' bookshelves
Browse what your friends are reading. See their full library in one combined view.
Book categories
Organise your library by genre. Filter by Fiction, History, Science, Politics and 17 more categories.
Multiple languages
Books in any language. Descriptions are generated in the book's own language.
Public profile
Share your shelf with a personal link at bookshelf.name/username. Control exactly what others can see.
Installable on mobile
Add to your iPhone or Android home screen. Your library is always in your pocket.
Friend requests
Connect with people you trust. Send, accept or decline friend requests.
Loan tracking
See all books you've lent and borrowed. Mark returns with one tap.
Notifications
Get notified when someone sends a friend request, accepts yours, or adds a new book.
Subscription plans
Free 14-day trial. Then $1/month or $10/year. Cancel any time.
How it works
From your first book to your first loan — everything in a few taps
Build your library
- 1
Create your account
Free 14-day trial, no credit card needed
- 2
Add your books
Type the title and let AI fill in the details, or scan the cover with your camera
- 3
Organise by category
Fiction, History, Philosophy and 19 more genres
- 4
Share your shelf
Set a username and share bookshelf.name/yourname with anyone
Lend & borrow with friends
- 1
Add friends
Search by name or invite by email
- 2
Browse their shelves
See every book your friends own in one place
- 3
Request to borrow
Choose how many days you need, add a message
- 4
Coordinate the handoff
Lender confirms giving, borrower confirms receiving — countdown starts
- 5
Return smoothly
Get reminders before due date, request extensions if needed, both sides confirm the return
Buy & sell with friends
- 1
Mark books for sale
Set your price and choose to sell only or lend & sell
- 2
Friends see your listing
Books for sale show a price badge on your shelf
- 3
Send a buy request
Add a message and negotiate directly via in-app chat
- 4
Transfer the book
Seller confirms the sale, book moves automatically to the buyer's shelf
Use it like a native app
No App Store needed. Install BookShelf directly from your browser in seconds.
iPhone & iPad
- 1Open bookshelf.name in Safari
- 2Tap the Share button (box with arrow ↑) at the bottom
- 3Scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen"
- 4Tap "Add" in the top right corner
Safari only — does not work in Chrome or Firefox on iOS
Android
- 1Open bookshelf.name in Chrome
- 2Tap the three-dot menu (⋮) in the top right corner
- 3Tap "Add to Home screen"
- 4Tap "Add" to confirm
Works in Chrome, Edge, and most Android browsers
Once installed, BookShelf works just like a native app — full screen, fast, and always available from your home screen.
Simple pricing
Start free. Upgrade when you're ready.
Why do we charge?
BookShelf is built and maintained by a small team. Your subscription covers the AI that scans book covers and generates daily reading insights, plus hosting, email delivery, and everything that keeps the platform running. No ads. No data selling. Just a fair price for a tool we use ourselves.
- ✓ Up to 10 books
- ✓ Friends & lending
- ✓ Full lending workflow
- ✓ Public profile page
- ✓ PWA mobile app
- ✓ Email notifications
Less than a coffee a month
- ✓ Unlimited books
- ✓ Everything in free
- ✓ AI book scanning
- ✓ Read with AI
- ✓ Priority support
One lunch. One year of BookShelf.
- ✓ Unlimited books
- ✓ Everything in free
- ✓ AI book scanning
- ✓ Read with AI
- ✓ Priority support
Payments processed securely by Stripe. Cancel any time.
Frequently asked questions
What is BookShelf?+
BookShelf is a free web app and Progressive Web App for cataloguing your personal book library and sharing books with friends. You can add the books you own, lend and borrow with friends, buy and sell, and track your reading.
Is BookShelf free?+
Yes. BookShelf is free forever for up to 10 books. For an unlimited library it is $1/month or $10/year, with no ads and no data selling.
Can I lend books to friends?+
Yes. You can lend books to friends and track the whole lending workflow — request, approval, handoff, due dates, extensions, and return — all inside the app.
Is there a mobile app for BookShelf?+
BookShelf is a Progressive Web App you can install on iPhone and Android straight from your browser. It works like a native app, supports offline use, and needs no app store.
What languages does BookShelf support?+
BookShelf is available in English, Romanian, and Russian. It detects your language automatically and you can switch at any time.
How do I add books to my library?+
You can add books three ways: photograph the cover and let AI fill in the details, scan the ISBN, or type the title and author manually.
About BookShelf
BookShelf is a book library app for people who own physical books. It lets you catalogue your home library, lend and borrow books with friends, buy and sell between friends, and track your reading. BookShelf is independently built, launched in 2025, hosted on Vercel, and available worldwide at bookshelf.name as a web app and an installable Progressive Web App for iOS and Android.