BUCK THE CRITICS
Goodreads Alternatives That Also Track Movies & TV
Searching for a Goodreads alternative usually starts with one of two complaints. Either Goodreads itself is the problem - the design, the spam, the Amazon of it all - or the books-only model is the problem, and you’re tired of keeping your reading in one app, your watchlist in another, and your game backlog in a notes file. This post covers both, honestly, including our own app, flagged clearly, so you can adjust for bias.
Why people leave Goodreads
Goodreads has the biggest book database and the biggest book community on the internet, and it has coasted on both for a decade. The usual exit reasons:
It’s owned by Amazon and it shows. Development has been glacial; the interface hasn’t meaningfully changed since we got 3G.
The community layer is noisy. Review bombing, giveaway spam, and a feed full of people you don’t know.
It only does books. Which is fine, until you realise you’d like your movies, shows and games tracked with the same care - and that no part of your Goodreads history helps you decide what to watch tonight.
The first two complaints have a books-only fix. The needs a different kind of app entirely. Here are both.
1. Buck The Critics - best for tracking books, movies, TV and games in one app
Full disclosure: this is our app. The five minute pitch:
Buck The Critics is an all-in-one media tracker - books, movies, TV and games in one place, reviewed inside a private circle of friends rather than a public feed. Every book has its own page and every author theirs; as you rate your way through an author’s back catalogue you climb five progress tiers, from Curious Fawn to Celestial Buck, and completing a book series earns a trophy - gamification you can lean into or ignore entirely.
The real differentiator for readers is Buck AI. One tap on any book or author page and you can explore the stylistic traits that define an author, the controversies surrounding their work, the themes running through a particular book, or a list of read-alikes when you want to line up your next title. It’s a depth of context Goodreads simply doesn’t offer - the difference between logging what you’ve read and actually understanding it.
There’s a friend-powered recommendation engine too, though it earns its keep more on the screen side than with books. Instead of “readers also enjoyed”, Buck compares your rating history with each friend’s, works out whose taste matches yours per media type, and predicts how much you’ll like something. It’s the least essential piece for books - you’re less likely to have a big circle of friends reading exactly what you read than watching what you watch - but it’s there, and it sharpens as your circle grows.
And because everything lives in one app, one circle of friends covers your whole media life: the friend feed shows what they’re reading and watching, and “what should I read next?” and “what should we watch tonight?” finally get answered in the same place. Free on iOS and Android.
The catch: the calculated scores need a few friends to come alive. Solo, you still get the tracker, series and tier progress, watchlist and the full suite of Buck AI features. And if what you want is Goodreads’ book-club-scale community of strangers, a private circle isn’t that.
Best for: readers who want to go deeper into what they read - using Buck AI to unpack an author’s style, a book’s themes, the controversies around a title, or read-alikes for their next pick - plus anyone who also watches and plays, tracks series, and wants recommendations from friends instead of an algorithm.
2. The StoryGraph - best books-only Goodreads replacement
If your complaint is Goodreads itself and books are genuinely all you track, The StoryGraph is the answer this list would be dishonest without. Independent, actively developed, with half-star (quarter-star, even) ratings, mood and pace tagging, excellent reading stats, and a straightforward Goodreads import.
The catch: it’s books only, by design - no movies, no TV, no games. The community is growing but a fraction of Goodreads’ size, and some stats sit in the paid Plus tier.
Best for: dedicated readers who want Goodreads, but good.
3. Hardcover - best indie challenger for book lovers
Hardcover is an independent book tracker built in the open: modern design, lists, reading goals, stats, and a team that ships and listens. It positions itself squarely as the Goodreads alternative for people who care that their tracker isn’t owned by the company selling them the books. (Full transparency: Buck uses Hardcover’s API to enrich our own book data — we’re fans of what they’ve built.)
The catch: books only, and a smaller community and database than Goodreads.
Best for: book lovers who want a modern, actively developed tracker with none of the Amazon baggage.
4. Likewise - best for algorithmic cross-media recommendations
Likewise tracks books, movies, TV and podcasts and is really a recommendation feed with tracking attached - you tell it what you like, it serves suggestions from its algorithm and community.
The catch: the recommendations come from an algorithm and strangers, which is the exact model you might be trying to escape. Tracking is shallower than a dedicated tracker’s, and there’s no games support.
Best for: people who want a “what next?” idea machine and only light tracking.
The quick version
Book tracking only? StoryGraph or Hardcover - both modern, independent and actively developed.
Books and the rest of your media life? That’s a two-app shortlist: Likewise if you’re happy with algorithmic suggestions, Buck The Critics if you want more than a log.
Buck’s standout for readers is Buck AI: one tap to unpack an author’s style, the controversies around their work, a book’s themes, or a set of read-alikes for your next pick 0 a level of depth no other tracker on this list offers. Add friend-powered recommendations across books, movies, TV and games, and it’s a reading app that actually deepens how you understand what you read. The full feature-by-feature breakdown against Goodreads, Letterboxd, TV Time and the rest lives on our homepage comparison table.
FAQ
Is there a Goodreads alternative that also tracks movies? Yes. Buck The Critics tracks books, movies, TV and games in one app with friend-powered recommendations; Likewise covers books, movies, TV and podcasts with algorithmic recommendations. Most other Goodreads alternatives, including The StoryGraph and Hardcover, are books only.
What is the best Goodreads alternative for just books? The StoryGraph - independent, half-star ratings, mood tags and strong stats, with easy Goodreads import. Hardcover is the newer indie option.
Can I track book series progress in Buck The Critics? Yes - book pages are organised by author and series, the app tracks your progress through both, and completing a series earns a trophy.
Does The StoryGraph track movies or TV? No - it’s deliberately books only. If you want one app for books and screen media, look at Buck The Critics or Likewise.
Can i import my reviews from Goodreads? Yes. Just go to the settings menu from within the app for instructions.
Is Buck The Critics free? Buck is free to download on iOS and Android, and reviewing films and TV is free. Book tracking is a premium feature - but every new account gets a 14-day premium trial, which you can extend by inviting friends.
How much does premium cost? £39.99 / $39.99 a year, less than the price of a single hardback, and every account starts with a 14-day trial you can extend by inviting friends. Reviewing films and TV stays free.
One app for everything you read, watch and play
Rated by the only critics who matter. See the full comparison, or grab it free below.