Book discovery
The platform builds recommendations based on analyses of users' reading habits. Users also receive an evaluation of books they have read, broken down by mood, pace, length, genre, and rating. On the Storygraph website, users can add books to their personal bookshelves, rate and review books, see what their friends are reading, see statistics on their reading habits, and receive suggestions for future reading choices. Once users have added friends to their profile, they will see their friends' shelves and reviews. Users can rate books on a scale of one to five stars (with half- and quarter-stars also allowed), class them according to mood and pacing, and leave a written review. Users may also list their favorite books and maintain lists of books they have read, are currently reading, or want to read. A follower model enables members to follow and get updates about the activity of others on the site. User profiles can be made public, set to members-only, or kept private.
Reading challenges
Users can set reading goals for the year according to number of pages or hours spent reading. Users can also join community challenges focusing on books from various genres or books from around the world. Recent research in literacy studies shows that such challenges encourage participants to read more in their free time.[14]
Reader statistics
Storygraph also offers an annual "Reading Wrap-up" report in which a user can review their reading history from the prior year, summarizing statistics including the number of pages read; the number of books read; and the user's average book length and preferred genres.
The paid membership, "The Storygraph Plus", costs $50 a year as of 2023 and provides additional statistics and recommendations, the ability to vote and comment on upcoming features via the Storygraph roadmap website, and priority support.[1]
Community and Giveaways
Readers can organize Buddy Reads, Readalongs, and Book clubs, which can be set to public or private. Buddy Reads allows the user to create a closed book club in which they can asynchronously discuss a book with friends as they read. During a Buddy Read, users leave comments and the page numbers they’re referring to, all of which remain hidden until the other readers hit the same point of the book. At that point, the comments are revealed and the user can respond. Readalongs are discussion forums, where the user can join a community book club and leave comments in different threads, such as for a specific chapter or an individual character. Book clubs allow members to set meetings, voting polls for books, and create Buddy Reads and Readalongs.[1]
The Storygraph also hosts book giveaways by authors, where users can enter and be randomly selected for a free book.[4]
Comparison to Goodreads
The StoryGraph positions itself as "a fully-featured Amazon-free alternative to Goodreads".[15] Both sites allow readers to add books to their reading list, log and review books, and set reading challenges. As compared to Goodreads, The StoryGraph focuses more on giving users access to their analytics, rather than on social interaction. For example The StoryGraph users only gained the ability to like reviews in February 2026 and still cannot comment on reviews.[16][17] Unlike Goodreads, The StoryGraph offers the option to give books half or quarter star ratings.[18]
