Shortform Reviews 960

TrustScore 4 out of 5

4.2

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Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Considering 155 reviews, reviewers had a great experience with this company. Many customers appreciate the high-quality summaries that distill complex concepts and provide key takeaways, often enhancing understanding beyond the original book. The service is praised for its ability to save time, allowing users to quickly grasp main ideas and decide on further reading, with many finding the content informative and engaging. Reviewers also highlight the excellent customer service, noting helpful and quick resolutions to issues, and the user-friendly interface that makes navigation straightforward. However, some people were dissatisfied with the summarizers occasionally debating authors excessively or adding too much context that felt like arguments. There were also mentions of issues with subscription renewals, where users were charged despite attempting to cancel or not receiving notifications about auto-renewal. Additionally, some customers expressed a desire for a wider selection of books, particularly in genres beyond self-help, and noted difficulties with app usability, such as small buttons and highlighting functions.

What people talk about most

User experience

Reviewers highlight positive aspects of user experience, praising the app's presentation, ease of use, and... See more

Product

Customers consistently note positive experiences with product, praising its ability to help them learn from... See more

Service

People report ambiguous experiences with service, with some finding it excellent for understanding concepts... See more

Customer service

Customers had positive experiences with customer service, often describing it as exceptional, amazing, and... See more

Subscription

Reviewers mention ambiguous feedback about subscription, with some finding it poor value for money due to... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Probably the best app of the sort. Much more in-depth summaries than some of the competitors. The summaries do start with an ultra-condensed "1-page" summary which is great. The biggest problem is tha... See more

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

My first experience. I liked it. Personally, I would rather read the actual book but time is limited. Even squeezing the summary into my day can be hard. I would suggest (dearly love) to have the oppo... See more

Company replied

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Shortform has many interesting books, a lot of interesting articles; I like that you can also listen to them, that additional context is provided, and the summary feature is also very helpful somet... See more

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Shortform -book summary app does 3 things really well. 1) Gives you a high-quality summary of a nonfiction book - Instead of reading the whole book, it gives you the main ideas, usually broken i... See more


Company details

  1. Media company

Written by the company

Shortform has the world's best guides to bestsellers and non-fiction books. Learn faster and better.


Contact info

4.2

Great

TrustScore 4 out of 5

960 reviews

5-star
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1-star

Asks customers to review

This company invites their customers to review, whether positive or negative

Replied to 38% of negative reviews

Typically replies within 1 month

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Stay away from this service

Stay away from this service, I do not recommend. I canceled my subscription before my card was charged for another year (there was not any reminder that my earlier deal continues as full price order for another whole year) but they still managed to renew the card.

I emailed them right away I noticed my card had charged that I dont need the service and could they cancel it now when I inform them the same day the renew was done but they only stated they would return 50 percent. Unbeliavable that these days any service can be this way. Stay far from this service, they charge you even you dont want (read also other reviews)!!!

14 June 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Shortform

We’re truly sorry to hear about your experience and understand how frustrating this situation must feel. We never intend to mislead our users, and we do our best to make renewal and billing terms clear during sign-up. Our team has already processed a partial refund as outlined in our policy, but we’ll review your feedback to see how we can make our renewal reminders and cancellation process even clearer.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

The service is excellent, Interface is OK

The service is excellent. Shortform does a great job of summarizing complex concepts into listenable books. While the service is available from apps and web browsers, the interface seems to favor looks over functionality. This is especially noticeable on the iOS Phone app. The buttons are very small, in fact all the text is and hard to see in the car. THey are light colored and contrast poorly against the white background. Perhaps the developers would consider an in car interface, simplified design with the current playing book, and large buttons to the current and favorite lists.

12 September 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thanks so much for your kind and helpful review! We’re glad you’re enjoying Shortform’s content and really appreciate your insights about the app design and in-car usability. We’ll definitely pass your feedback along to our development team.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

What a mess

What a mess. Passwords don't sync across platforms: resetting PW 3 times in 2 days is insane. And as far as I can figure out, for the book I wanted, Neil Howe's 580 page "The Fourth Turning is Here," Shortform offers exactly one long page of 7,400 words--in which they seem to try to make Howe's already A++ vocab even more complex. If there's a book search function, it sure isn't evident on the web app. I read 5-10 books a month; this experience was completely unimpressing. Cancelled.

10 September 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Shortform

We’re really sorry to hear about your experience and appreciate you taking the time to share detailed feedback. We understand how frustrating technical issues and unclear navigation can be. Our team is actively working to improve syncing across platforms and make book search more intuitive. We’ll also review your comments about the summary to ensure it meets our quality standards. Thank you for giving Shortform a try.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Horrendous experience = Low value…

Horrendous experience = Low value service and misleading fees! Why? Well, before the trial period ended, the company assures that they remind users that the trial period had ended and the subscription fee had been charged, which they didn't receive! Instead, the company charged an annual subscription fee, which is visual and subliminal, which is more suggested when creating an account. After the charge, I requested cancellation of my subscription and a refund, as such a procedure misleads the customer. I received a negative response and was refunded 50% of the yearly fee for having had an active account for solely 5 days. It seems like the company earns mainly on the gullibility of potential users.

9 September 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Shortform

We’re very sorry to hear about your experience and appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback. We never intend to mislead our users, and we do our best to make our trial and billing process as clear as possible. Our team will review your comments carefully to see where we can improve. Please feel free to reach out to our support team directly if there’s anything further we can do to help.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Just gave it a try

Just gave it a try, and i wasn't disappointed. Great summarizing and audio narration. Looking forward to more reading and listening. Thanks.

6 September 2025
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Reply from Shortform

We really appreciate your kind words! It’s wonderful to hear you’re enjoying both the summaries and audio narrations. Happy reading and listening!

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

The monthly price is a little high

The monthly price is a little high. But very good quality.

7 September 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thanks so much for your honest feedback! We’re happy you’re enjoying Shortform’s quality and appreciate your input about pricing.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant!

Honestly love shortform they have the best articles and the best summarys truly phenomenal!

1 September 2025
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Reply from Shortform

We really appreciate your kind words! It’s fantastic to know you’re finding our articles and summaries so valuable. Thanks for being part of the Shortform community!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you so much for your kind feedback! We're delighted you’re enjoying Shortform’s selection and summaries. Your support truly means a lot to us.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars
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Reply from Shortform

Thanks so much for your kind words! We're glad you're enjoying Shortform’s summaries and finding them both concise and insightful. Your support means a lot to us.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Was scammed by Blinkist couldn't access…

Was scammed by Blinkist couldn't access service or cancel got bank involved canclled my credit card. They took money out 12 months later from my new card. Finally got subscription cancelled. Blinkist promised a refund then said no because my bank was involved. A scam. Avoid trust pilot 1.6 rating Shortform is excellent.

25 June 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for sharing your experience. We’re glad to hear you’re enjoying Shortform and finding it to be a positive alternative. We appreciate your support and look forward to continuing to provide you with an excellent learning experience.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Great, as far as it goes.

I like the book summaries - longer and more detailed than alternative platforms. And that is why I chose Shortform. However, given the level of professionalism associated with the summaries and the relatively high comparative cost, I would have enjoyed a better experience with the platform interface. Simple in the extreme and perhaps lacking some of the functionality that would be useful. I would also suggest that the choice is comparatively limited.

10 August 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for your thoughtful feedback. We’re glad to hear you appreciate the detail and depth of our summaries. We also appreciate your comments on the platform interface and book selection, and we’ll share them with our product team as we continue working to improve the overall Shortform experience.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

The shortened content is amazing

The shortened content is amazing! Better in some ways than original. App still needs some work especially audio part.

1 August 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for your feedback. We’re glad to hear you’re enjoying the content and finding it even more valuable in some ways than the original. We appreciate your note about the app and audio, and we’ll share it with our product team for improvement.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Make a book a quick read

Make a book a quick read. I am able to get fresh ideas and decide if I want to spend the time reading the whole book.

5 August 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for your feedback. We’re glad to hear Shortform is helping you quickly discover fresh ideas and decide which books to read in full.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Nice i really like it ,i don't have to…

Nice i really like it ,i don't have to read the whole book for some basic ideas or concepts , don't have to waste a lot of time really nice

4 August 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for your feedback. We’re glad to hear you’re enjoying getting key ideas and concepts quickly without having to read the whole book.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Good service

The service itself is terrific, comprehensive breakdowns of great titles. I believe I cancelled my free trial before the deadline and received a confirmation email, yet I think I was still charged afterward. I emailed Shortform and they have now kindly refunded me. This did take some time to happen but I’m pleased it’s been resolved.

3 August 2025
Unprompted review
Shortform logo

Reply from Shortform

We’re sorry to hear about the delay in resolving your request. That’s not the experience we want for our customers. Please reach out to us again with your cancellation confirmation and charge details so we can review your case immediately and work to issue the appropriate refund.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Did not subscribe to their service yet they charged me and refusing to refund

Did not subscribe to their service, yet they charged my credit card in the middle of the night.

I contacted them, and they offered a “half refund,” claiming “they never do this, but I’m in luck.” What? This is not a service I use, yet they charged me anyway. Now they’re stalling and refusing a full refund.

If the full amount is not refunded within 24 hours, I will file a chargeback dispute.

It appears they are doing this to many others you can find countless complaints online about unauthorized charges from this company.

Steer clear of this company.

31 July 2025
Unprompted review
Shortform logo

Reply from Shortform

We’re sorry to hear about your experience. We take billing concerns seriously and aim to make our terms and processes as clear as possible during sign-up. We understand your frustration and want to resolve this matter quickly. Please contact us directly so we can review your case in detail and work toward a resolution.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Better than other book summary sites

I enjoy ShortForm more than other summary sites I’ve tried because of the way ShortForm compares points with other books that may disagree, and also insert their own ShortForm comments, to clarify things.

23 July 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for your feedback. We’re glad to hear you enjoy Shortform’s approach of comparing points with other books and adding clarifying comments. It’s great to know this makes our summaries more valuable for you.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Shortform provides both focused summaries along with essential background and alternative views.

Shortform book summaries offer the best combination of insights into both the central points made by the author along with other viewpoints that are not necessarily contained within the book. This allows subscribers to understand more of the background behind ideas expressed by the author at the same time that it provides alternative views for further study.

13 July 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for your thoughtful feedback. We’re glad to hear you’re enjoying the combination of focused summaries, background context, and alternative viewpoints. It’s great to know these elements are helping you gain a deeper and more well-rounded understanding of each book.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

The concept is great

The concept is great, but thr app on iphone is buggy: slow when i tap buttons, and when i hit a notification for a new book I dont get shown the new book, just the one Im currently reading.

18 July 2025
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Reply from Shortform

Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re glad to hear you like the concept of Shortform and are sorry you’ve experienced issues with the iPhone app. We’ll pass your comments along to our product team as we work to improve speed and ensure notifications take you directly to the intended book.

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