Best Book Summary Apps on Android and iOS
Let’s start with my favorite of the bunch.
1. Blinkist
Blinkist provides a summary for more than 5,000+ non-fiction books in categories like psychology, career, productivity, management, technology, health, economics, parenting, religion, money, politics, etc. Blinkist calls these book summaries as blinks that can be around 15 minutes and usually available in both text and audio formats. The free version Blinkist is ad-free and provides a free blink or book summary every day of a random book in the above-mentioned categories. To get unlimited blinks and read the summary of any book from the catalog, you need to opt for a subscription that costs $16/month or $100/year. With the subscription, you also get additional features like Evernote sync to highlight and save and Shortcasts which are premium podcasts on selected topics. Additionally, the app also allows you to buy audiobooks making it a one-stop destination for summaries and audiobooks. Pros
Clean UI Simple and crisp writing 7 day free trial 1 free blink in the free version Kindle support
Cons
Expensive premium planOnly supports non-fiction books like most book summary apps Audiobooks are expensive for non-premium members
Download Blinkist on Android and iOS
2. 12 Mins
The app is famous for providing near 12 mins of summaries for over 2,500+ non-fiction books that it has in its catalog. The summaries are available in both text and audio format. Apart from the regular book titles, 12 Mins also has its own 12 mins originals on random topics, places, famous people, and writers. Just like Blinkist, 12 Mins has a premium plan that costs $89/year. You do get a 3-day free trial and free summary every day of a random book in the free version. The real advantage of this book summary app is the additional features it offers. You can add the book to your reading list and mark it as read. There is support for playlists which are a collection of books under one topic. Think of it as a folder. For instance, you can select a playlist like finance, focus, or procrastinating. A good way to find new and interesting books. Pros
Free summary every day Kindle support Library Playlists or folders
Cons
3-day trial is less than competitionClumsy interfaceSmall collection of book summaries
Download 12 Mins and Android and iOS
3. Shortform
Shortform is a new book summary app released recently. Though we do not know the exact number of books in their library, Shortform team says they publish more than 5 summaries per week and also take suggestions from subscribers to add new books to their shortlist. Shortform stands out because of detailed summaries. Instead of providing small 10 – 15 min summaries, it provides summaries that can take up to an hour to read sometimes. It’s like consuming a mini version of the book. So if you feel 15 mins of reading isn’t in-depth enough, then you should definitely check out Shortform which goes deeper than other book summaries apps on the list. These summaries also provide additional analysis if needed and info and quotes from other books that are relevant. This makes reading these summaries a unique experience. And there are discussion communities, quizzes, and other interactive exercises. The free version only allows you to read the beginning of the summary. Premium subscription costs $24/month and $192/year. Pros
Detailed and in-depth summaries Clean layout Kindle and Evernote support Ability to suggest books for summaries Interactive exercises and quizzes
Cons
Costly subscriptionFree trial lasts only 3 days
Download Shortform on Android and iOS
4. StoryShots
While previous book summary apps needed a premium plan to use the app properly, StoryShots is the best app on the list if you are looking for a free option. If you are fine with ads, StoryShots provides its huge catalog of book summaries for free. You can easily opt-out of these ads with a one-time purchase of $8.99. The premium version includes Kindle support and unlocks infographics. All the summaries are available on YouTube for free. The premium plan also unlocks a longer video explanation of the book (long video shot) plus additional content, again in video format. Pros
Free ad-supported book summaries Lifetime subscription option Infographics Kindle support Take notes, highlight text, create PDF
Cons
Summaries are directly from the book with out much info from readers endAudio version is just a TTS voice generated by the system
Download StoryShots on Android and iOS
5. Instaread
This is basically like other apps on the list with 15 min long summaries in text and audio formats. Needs a premium of $8.99/month and $95/year to access all book summaries. You also get a free summary of a random book every day with the app. But the app stands out by providing cards. Instead of reading a book, you open the cards section and get insights from different books as random facts and quotes. These cards are short, straight to point, and feel like scrolling through social media content. You can also like and share these cards. Additionally, you can filter cards by topics that interest you. The best part is that this feature is completely free and you can swipe as many cards as you like to read. Pros
Cards offer new way to readFree book summary every day 7 day free trial Key takeaways which are shorter than summary
Cons
Slow UINo kindle support
Download Instaread on Android and iOS
6. Headway
The advantage of this app is recommendations, challenges, and curated content. It takes more than 10 mins to just set up the app with topics you want to read, books that you find interesting, etc. Challenges are nothing a but list of books that you need to read in a set number of days. Good trick to form a reading habit. Also, book summaries are longer than normal with chapters inside them. You also get stories that are quotes and random info from other books. Like other book summary apps, Headway is a paid app with a monthly subscription of $9.99/month. You get a free trial of 7 days which you need to cancel at least 24 hours before the plan ends. Also, you get a free book summary every day just like other apps. Pros
Challenges7-day free trial Curated recommendations of books and challengesFree book summary every day Stories
Cons
App can feel overwelming with the featuresNeed to cancel the subscription 24 hours before plan ends to stop charging
Download Headway on Android and iOS
7. getAbstract
This is an app with the biggest library with more than 22,000 book summaries. All summaries are available in both text and audio format. After the 3-day trial ends, you need to pay a premium of $99/year for a subscription. No free book summaries are provided after the trial ends. Pros
Vast library of 22,000+ book summaries 7 to 20 minute long book summaries Human sounding voices to listen the summaries
Cons
Only 3 day-free trial available No free book summaries like other apps
Download getAbstract on Android and iOS
Summary for Book Summary Apps
Except for StoryShots, most book summary apps follow a subscription model. They all give a free book summary of a random book every day. For longer in-depth summaries, prefer Shortform. For short and crisp summaries, go for Blinkist app. Instaread has cards making it easier to read. Headway has challenges to help form a habit. We recommend using the trial version before subscribing to one or two book summary apps.
