Report

Should I Use Readwise?

readwise.io·Analyzed 1 hour ago·Based on 14 sources

Grow wiser and retain books better: Readwise sends you a daily email resurfacing your best highlights from Kindle, Instapaper, iBooks, and more.

Depends

Buy if you highlight heavily and actually revisit what you read — the daily resurfacing and Reader app earn loyal fans.

Great for heavy highlighters who revisit reading; pricey overkill for casual readers — Kindle notes or free apps suffice.

Confidence: Medium

4.8/5

G2 rating

~200 reviews

$6.99/mo

Readwise plan (monthly)

Reader bundle: $9.99/mo annual

Yes

Free tier

30-day trial, then limited free plan

$17M raised

Funding

Mostly bootstrapped; est. ~$58M valuation

Value for money

Fans say worth it; many call it pricey

Ease of use

Clean, well-regarded apps; some new users confused

Feature depth

Reader consolidates reading, RSS, PDFs, AI

Security posture

No CVEs found; no end-to-end encryption

Pros

Daily highlight resurfacing genuinely helps users retain what they read^¹
Reader app praised as clean, fast, and best-in-class for power readers
Syncs highlights from Kindle, Instapaper, iBooks; exports to Obsidian and more
Strong ratings: 4.8/5 on G2 across ~200 reviews

Cons

Expensive for a personal reading tool^⁵
Long-time paying users still report frustration with Reader^⁷
No end-to-end encryption on stored highlights¹⁰
Some users worry development is slowing down^⁸
New users report confusion about the core value

Gotchas

highReal use requires the paid plan: Reader runs $9.99/mo annual (~$120/yr); free tier is limited^³
mediumTwo separate subscriptions (Readwise and Reader) with different prices confuse buyers^⁶
mediumUsers report price increases^⁹
mediumNo end-to-end encryption — your highlights live on Readwise's servers¹⁰

Best for

Avid Kindle and book highlighters
Power readers using read-it-later daily
Obsidian/Notion PKM builders
People who forget what they read

Not for

Casual readers who highlight rarely
Businesses or teams — consumer tool, no admin controls
Privacy purists needing end-to-end encryption
Anyone balking at ~$120/year for a reading habit

Pricing

Readwise Free

30-day trial of full features
Limited highlights resurfacing after trial

Readwise (includes Lite)

$6.99/mo monthly

Daily highlight email resurfacing
Kindle/Instapaper/iBooks sync

Reader bundle

$9.99/mo annual (~$119.88/yr)

Read-it-later, RSS, PDFs, newsletters
Ghostreader AI
Full resurfacing

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

No end-to-end encryptionOfficial docs state Readwise and Reader do not support end-to-end encryption.¹⁰
Privacy critiqueA 2021 blog post criticized cloud storage of highlights where local storage would be possible; no breach reported.¹¹