Lately I've fallen off the GoodReads bandwagon. The UI is simply unusable on mobile/desktop for the social/review aspects. I'm looking for something as simple as Letterboxd. Easy UI, review my books, see my friends reviews, and comment, all on a simple feed. Is that too much to ask?
I've been using it for YEARS and I want to love it but it is so difficult to navigate to a review. I can't even find a feed of my own reviews easily, I have to click on my reading list then click on books individually…why is this not all automatically the first thing on your profile? Disappointing.
If I want to see a friend's reviews I only see 2 of their most recent ones — then where do I click to see everything else they've reviewed? I can see their "read" list, but there is no simple feed option to just scroll reviews. Unbelievable for the leader in this space to not have figured this out.
by UncannyFox
7 Comments
It is Goodreads and it’ll always be Goodreads.
I have a toxic relationship with that app, I hate it so much, it’s so ugly to use and it’s so outdated, but i cannot leave
Story Graph for me. Easy to enter books and great reading data graphs.
I’d love to switch to StoryGraph or Hardcover, but i have been unsuccessful in convincing any of my family to switch with me. In order to have the social aspect of Goodreads, I have to stay on Goodreads, even though it sucks.
I think it’s just the problem that GoodReads has the most users, and because of the network effect no matter how bad the UI is it will always remain top. Especially once you have put all your ratings on the site it also makes it feel awkward to leave.
i’ve been using storygraph since i got back into reading in 2022 and i love it! they update it pretty frequently and i love looking at the graphs
Love Storygraph the most. So many updates, the devs are super interactive with users and receptive to feedback. The stats and data it provides is awesome.
I tried a few of the alternatives – Storygraph among them – and I just stuck with Goodreads.
I can’t say any of the other apps are any better after trying them out.