Compare Google Gemini and Readwise Reader: Which App is the Best?
Gemini is Google’s next-generation AI assistant, offering creative tools, productivity features, and deep integration with Google services. | Readwise Reader is a powerful read-it-later app that consolidates web articles, newsletters, PDFs, and ebooks into one platform. With advanced highlighting, AI assistance, and seamless note-taking integrations, it's designed for serious readers who want a distraction-free, feature-rich reading experience. | |
| Key Features A summary of the most important features offered by each app. |
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| Our Rating Prod Apps's expert review score for each app, based on hands-on testing and research. | 8.2 Winner in this category | 7.6 |
| Total users Total active users across all major browsers: Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari. | 0 | 0 |
| Total ratings Total number of user ratings received across all supported browsers. | 0 | 0 |
| Average rating Average user rating across all browsers, calculated from available store ratings. | — ⭐ | — ⭐ |
| Entry Level Price The minimum price required to start using the app. "Free" means a free tier is available. | Free | Free |
| Android User rating and stats for the app on Android browser. |  Downloads | Downloads |
| iOS User rating and stats for the app on iOS browser. |  | |
| Features Prod Apps's expert score for the 'Features' aspect of each app. | 7.8 Gemini is packed with things you can do:
If you pay for Pro or Ultra, you get even more, like video generation and deep research. But not everything works everywhere. Some features, like video-to-talk, didn’t show up on all our devices. And if you’re used to the old Google Assistant, you might miss a few things. Still, the basics work well and Gemini keeps getting better. Just check if the features you want are available for your phone. We think Gemini’s features are strong, but we’d like to see them work the same for everyone. | 8.5 This is where Readwise Reader really shines. The features are genuinely impressive - not just marketing fluff, but stuff that actually makes reading online better. What we love:
The rough spots? Search is surprisingly bad for such a polished app. Some stuff doesn't work great on e-readers. We hit bugs that shouldn't exist in a paid app. But the core features solve real problems and do it well. Winner in this category |
| Performance Prod Apps's expert score for the 'Performance' aspect of each app. | 8.6 Gemini runs smoothly.
Some features aren’t on every device yet, but that’s not a speed issue. For what’s there, everything works as it should. Winner in this category | 7.0 Performance presents a tale of two experiences - the core reading functionality works smoothly and reliably, but recent updates have introduced stability issues that affect the overall user experience. The strong points are evident during daily use. Reading feels responsive with smooth scrolling and quick page navigation. Content synchronization across devices works consistently, and importing articles, PDFs, and RSS feeds processes efficiently. The basic reading, highlighting, and annotation functions that form the app's foundation operate reliably. Recent developments tell a different story though. The significant drop from a 4.3 overall rating to 3.78 for recent reviews signals genuine stability problems with newer versions. Android users report more issues than their iOS counterparts, including navigation problems and functionality regressions. Some users have experienced critical issues like being unable to add new content after updates, while others consistently note that search performance remains poor. Device compatibility also varies, with particular issues reported on e-ink devices and certain Android configurations. While active development appears to be addressing these concerns, the reliability issues prevent the app from achieving the stability users expect from a paid service. |
| Design Prod Apps's expert score for the 'Design' aspect of each app. | 8.5 Gemini looks and feels like a Google app. It’s clean, modern, and easy to use. We liked how simple it was to find what we needed. The colors and icons make it friendly, and everything loads fast. We didn’t run into any design problems, and most people seem to like how it looks. We do wish there were more ways to customize things, but overall, it’s a nice app to use. Winner in this category | 7.5 The design philosophy centers on creating a distraction-free reading environment, and it largely succeeds. Users consistently describe the app as "gorgeous," and the overall aesthetic genuinely supports focused reading with clean typography and thoughtful spacing. Design strengths that impressed us:
The cross-platform execution reveals some inconsistencies though. The app clearly prioritizes iOS, and this shows in the Android experience. Navigation elements don't always follow Android design conventions, and gesture interactions occasionally feel foreign to the platform. While the core reading experience remains visually appealing, the iOS-first approach creates noticeable polish differences that affect the overall experience on Android devices. |
| Value for Money Prod Apps's expert score for the 'Value for Money' aspect of each app. | 8.3 Gemini gives you a lot for free:
The free version is generous, and the paid plans are fair for what you get. There are no hidden fees. Winner in this category | 7.5 The value proposition is complex and heavily depends on your reading habits and tolerance for subscription models. The subscription approach generates polarized reactions - some users find it completely worthwhile while others strongly prefer one-time purchases. For power users, the comprehensive feature set justifies the cost. AI assistance, advanced highlighting, deep integrations, and reliable infrastructure create genuine productivity benefits. The 30-day trial period (with no credit card required) provides ample time to evaluate whether the app fits your workflow, and active development means you're paying for ongoing improvements. The subscription model does create barriers though. Unlike competitors, there's no permanently free tier with basic features, and the recurring cost adds up over time. Some users feel the subscription requirement should be more prominently displayed upfront, and occasional bugs or missing features (like robust search) can impact the perceived value when you're paying monthly. For serious readers who can utilize the full feature set and don't mind subscription costs, the value proposition is solid. Casual users or those preferring one-time purchases will likely find better alternatives elsewhere. |
| Ease of Use Prod Apps's expert score for the 'Ease of Use' aspect of each app. | 8.0 Gemini is easy to get started with.
Some features only work on certain phones or in some countries, which can be confusing. We also wish you could talk to Gemini without always opening the app. But for most things, it’s simple and quick. Winner in this category | 7.0 The usability picture is mixed - while the core reading experience feels intuitive once you're up and running, several barriers can frustrate new users during the initial setup and exploration phases. Where the app excels in usability:
The friction points become apparent early on though. The mandatory account creation before even testing the app frustrates many potential users, and Android users face additional hurdles with gesture navigation that doesn't behave as expected. The wealth of features also means there's a genuine learning curve - power users eventually find everything intuitive, but newcomers need time to discover and understand all capabilities. These initial barriers prevent the app from being truly accessible to everyone, despite its strong foundation once you're familiar with it. |
| Security & Privacy Prod Apps's expert score for the 'Security & Privacy' aspect of each app. | 8.2 Gemini uses Google’s usual privacy and security rules.
Like other Google apps, some data is collected to make things work better. If you care a lot about privacy, it’s worth reading the policy. We like that you can change some privacy settings, but this isn’t an offline or anonymous tool. Winner in this category | 8.0 Readwise Reader handles security and privacy reasonably well for a cloud-based reading service, though the nature of the product requires some data collection and account management that privacy-conscious users should be aware of. Privacy and security strengths:
Areas of privacy consideration:
For a service that fundamentally requires cloud sync and AI processing, Readwise Reader handles privacy appropriately. However, users seeking maximum privacy might prefer local-only solutions. We rate security and privacy at 8.0 out of 10. |
| Conclusion A summary of our findings and final thoughts for each app. | We’ve used Gemini for a while and think it’s a smart, helpful assistant that keeps getting better. There are still a few things missing, but the basics are strong and new features show up often. If you want a free AI assistant that works well with Google apps and can help with lots of tasks, Gemini is a great pick. We’re excited to see how it improves in the future. | After weeks of actually using Readwise Reader, we're impressed. It's not perfect, but it genuinely solves the "reading stuff scattered everywhere" problem that drives us crazy. The highlighting works great, the AI assistant is actually useful (shocking!), and having everything sync to your notes automatically is pretty amazing. The downsides are real though. The subscription model will annoy people, you can't try it without making an account first, and if you're on Android, it's going to feel a bit clunky. Plus, for a paid app, it crashes more than we'd like. But here's the thing - if you read a lot online and you're tired of managing content across multiple apps, this might change how you work. The 30-day trial is long enough to really test it out. Just don't expect perfection, expect a really good tool that keeps getting better. |
| Our Recommendation | ||
