Comparison
A Goodreads alternative built for your reading notes
Booktation is an app for your library and, above all, for your reading notes: snap the page, speak or type, and each note stays on its page with how it made you feel. You bring your Goodreads library with the file you download from there, free, in a few minutes.
By Booktation · updated 2 October 2026
Goodreads, StoryGraph, Anobii and Booktation compared
They are four different services, and each does something well. Here is how they stand today, for what matters to a reader.
| Goodreads | StoryGraph | Anobii | Booktation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Language | Mostly English | English | Mostly Italian | English and Italian |
| Price | Free | Free, with an optional subscription | Free | Free, with an optional PRO plan |
| What it does best | The largest community: reviews, ratings, the yearly reading challenge | Statistics and recommendations by mood and pace | A community of Italian readers, with reviews, lists and groups | Reading notes on the page, with emotions, and private book clubs |
Who each one suits best
- Goodreads, if you want the largest catalogue and community, reviews from millions of readers and the yearly reading challenge. It has belonged to Amazon since 2013 and shows the highlights of Kindle books bought there.
- StoryGraph, if you like statistics and want recommendations by mood and pace.
- Anobii, if you are looking for a community of Italian readers to swap reviews and lists with.
- Booktation, if what you want most is to keep your reading notes: on the right page, with what you felt, easy to find and connect. Your notes stay private until you decide otherwise.
You can also use them together: Booktation does not ask you to leave any other service.
What Booktation does that a list of books doesn’t
- Notes on the page. Snap the page and Booktation finds your pencil, pen or highlighter marks; if there are none, you tap the sentences to keep. Or say the sentence, or type it. We never keep the photo: only the text.
- Emotions. For each note you choose how it made you feel. On a book’s page you see how it made its readers feel: no names, from at least 5 readers, and nothing beyond your page.
- Ideas that talk to each other. Notes from different books find each other and become themes. Reading recommendations start from there, each with its reason.
- The book club. Private, by invitation with a link, free for those who join: the book chosen by vote, milestones, notes shown to the club only up to each member’s page.
How to bring your library from Goodreads
- On the Goodreads website (on a computer: the app can’t do it), open My Books, then Import and export among the tools on the left, and click Export Library.
- When the file is ready, “Your export from…” appears with the date: click it and download the CSV file.
- Create your Booktation account, free.
- In your Profile open Import books and notes and pick the file. Before you confirm, you see how many books are coming in.
- Your books come in with their status (read, reading, to read), dates and your rating from 1 to 5, which only you see.
- Your Goodreads private notes, if you want them: they are usually reminders, so you choose.
- Reviews don’t: on Booktation reviews are public, and we never publish anything on your behalf.
- Abandoned books don’t come in: Booktation has no “abandoned” status.
From StoryGraph it works the same way: in Manage Account, under Manage Your Data, choose Export StoryGraph Library, then upload the file. From Kindle your highlights come too: there is a guide to exporting them. Importing is free, on every plan.
What it costs
The Free plan never expires: unlimited books and written notes, 10 voice or photo notes a month, emotions, connections and recommendations, book clubs, import and export. PRO costs €4.99 a month or €39 a year, with a 14-day trial: 300 voice or photo notes a month and your library from photos of the spines. All the details are on the home page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Booktation available in English?
Yes, in English and Italian: the app, the pages and the emails. You choose the language.
Do I have to close my Goodreads account?
No. Booktation only reads the file you download from Goodreads: your account there stays as it is.
Can I import the file a second time?
Yes. Books you already have are not doubled and identical notes are not repeated: only what is missing comes in.
Who sees my notes and ratings?
Only you, until you choose to show a note. If you like, you show some notes to your book club, and only its members see them, or you make a copy of a note visible to the readers of the same book; you can take them back whenever you like.
Can I take my notes with me?
Yes, whenever you like, on the Free plan too: you export them in a file you open with Word, Obsidian or Notion.