Honest Headway App Review – Value For Your Money? [Jan 2024]

You’ve made an effort to be here, so let me cut to the chase. You want to know how is Headway App, and if you should spend your time and money on it.

Headway app is a good choice, but is the second best. Blinkist is the best book summary app in the market and offers the most value for money than every book summary app (yes, better than even Headway App).

Don’t worry. We’ll cover a detailed review of Headway app as well.

Disclosure: This site is user supported. Some of the links in this article may be affiliate links, which can help me buy a coffee or two at no extra cost to you if you decide to purchase a paid plan.

More resources:

• Headway App review video version
• Top book summary apps
• Blinkist review

Headway App – Top Features + Pros/Cons

Title collection + Quality of Book summaries

The short summaries provide enough in-depth key insights into each book, and the readability is excellent.

The recommendations are well-curated, and the books cover a wide range of topics. The book highlights are well-organized, and easy to navigate. Each section has a summary of the key message with option to Share / Remember.

All the summaries available in both audio & text versions.

This extensive collection (over 1500+ titles) cover most non-fiction genres including most of the top bestsellers.

Ease of Use (+ Creates good habits)

The Headway app is very easy to use, with a simple and clean interface that makes it easy to navigate and find the books you are looking for. You can get the summaries in both audio version & the text version.

The app skillfully breaks down complex books into concise, 15-minute summaries without diluting the essence of the original works. With Headway, you can absorb the key insights of a book during your morning commute or lunch break, effectively turning ‘dead’ time into productive learning sessions.

In addition to its book summaries, Headway offers value-added features, including 28-day programs and self-growth challenges. These initiatives are designed to help users apply what they’ve learned and see real progress in their lives. You can see your learning progress visually.

Spaced repetition: This feature allows users to revisit the content at intervals, reinforcing the information and enhancing knowledge retention.

Pricing & Plans

What Headway offers is essentially just a free or a Premium version. The prices vary depending on the length of your subscription. For $16 a month, or $80-90 annually, Headway app allows readers to have access to all premium features of the Headway app. The prices may vary, check Headway App for the latest prices.

Top Pros & Cons

Pros

• If you want to digest a lot of books in spite of your busy schedule, a book app summary like Headway App does the job! The summaries are good, and App is easy to use
• Great option to replace doom scrolling & build healthy and productive habits
• The pricing is very competitive in comparison to competition, especially on the annual plan (+8% additional discount if you buy here)
• Very popular amongst the users, great validation from the market

Cons

• The title collection isn’t as wide as getAbstract (25000+ titles) or Blinkist (6500+ titles)
• The monthly plan is slightly more expensive compared to Blinkist (especially when also considering the smaller number of titles)
• The pricing plans aren’t flexible. There is only one plan: Premium -monthly/annual but is mostly true for other book summary apps as well

Here’s a video comparing the top book summary apps!

More about Book Summary Apps

• Honest Headway app review (gets over 7K clicks/month)
• The best book summary apps
• Shortform vs Blinkist
• getAbstract vs Blinkist
• Blinkist vs Headway App
• Honest Blinkist Review
• Complete Instaread review

What is Headway app?

Headway is a bite sized learning app (from GTHW app limited). This popular book summary app that allows you to easily digest and understand key insights from popular books. With a simple, clean interface, easy navigation, and great readability, Headway is a great option for busy readers looking to get more out of their reading time.

With Headway App, you can

Increase Productivity – Headway allows you to easily digest and understand key insights from popular books, which can help you be more productive in your reading time.

Need Less time – With a simple, clean interface, easy navigation, and great readability, Headway is a great option for busy readers looking to get more out of their reading time.

Pay Less – What Headway offers is essentially just a Premium version. The prices vary depending on the length of your subscription. But it is very competitive compared to its peers and delivers decent value for money.

Headway app – Top Features

Titles library

The library on the Headway apps has 1500+ nonfiction books. While it is nowhere close to Blinkist or getAbstract, but most people would find something to their liking in this library.

The main themes are primarily Self-growth, Business and similar topics. The most popular titles include

• Atomic Habits
• Think and Grow Rich
• Thinking, Fast and Slow
• The Next Millionaire Next Door
• The Richest Man in Babylon – Six Laws of Wealth
• Rich Dad Poor Dad
• AI Superpowers

Elegant Design

User Experience

The Headway app is designed to give you the choice to reading or listen if you like audio versions. The App also shows you suggestions on your next read/listen based on your listening / reading history and the preferences in your settings.

Text & Audio summaries / Search

One of the most popular features of Headway is the ability to toggle between text and audio content. The Headway app also includes a ‘search’ mode, which allows you to quickly highlight the text & search Google for the specific text.

Remembering key lessons

When you want to remember a key lesson from the chapter, you can easily add it via the ‘Remember’ button conveniently placed at the bottom right on the screen. This spaced repetition feature allows you to comeback and remember the lessons as you move along.

Pricing & Plans – How much does Headway app cost?

Now to the very important question – How much does Headway app cost?

Free trial

Headway offers a free trial for 7 days. This 7 day free trial opens up the library that is usually limited access to paid subscribers. There is no ‘Free’ version of the Headway app, just a limited access Free trial!

In the trial period, go through as many titles as possible so get a good understanding of how the book summaries are. I would suggest getting started with summaries of the books that you have already read.

This way, you can assess if the book summary is closer to what you’d expect.

Premium membership

Unfortunately, there are no unique options / too many options depending on where you look. But all of them are versions of just a simple Premium membership. The Headway app offers two pricing options – $14.99 or $19.99/month or $69.99/year for unlimited access to the premium. Prices may vary based on your location and the length of your subscription.

I’ve also found multiple pricing variations when trying to subscribe via iTunes and must admit that it is totally confusing. I’ll go with the simplest version from Headway official site.

If you are unsure about which plan is right for you, start with the monthly subscription that you are offered and switch to the annual plan once you are convinced.

Headway app Alternatives

Headway app isn’t the only game in town that provide summaries of nonfiction books. Two apps that provide books summaries are Blinkist & getAbstract. Here’s a comparison of getAbstract vs Blinkist.

Blinkist vs Headway

Both Headway and Blinkist are popular, but Blinkist offers more value than any other book summary app. Here’s a complete Blinkist Review.

Quality of Book Summaries

I’d rate Blinkist slightly better than Headway. I have listened to over 120+ summaries on Blinkist, and most times the summary is enough for me to decide what to do next – buy the book or move to the next one. I could get the crux of the entire book with the summary on Blinkist (even complicated ones like Thinking, Fast and Slow).

Title collection

With over 5000+ titles, Blinkist easily wins the battle here. It covers almost all of the bestselling nonfiction books. Headway app (1500+ titles) still has a long way to go to be compared as a competition to Blinkist.

Pricing

Blinkist is way less expensive ($8 – $12 a month based on currency) than Headway on monthly plan. And the discounts when you switch to Annual subscription is steep around 50%). I see similar pricing for Headway App (around $7/month in annual plan) on my iPhone on annual pricing, but the website says a different number. It’s hard for me to sure what it actually costs.

Blinkist vs Headway app – what should I go for?

Blinkist – hands down is the winner! Blinkist also offers a 7-day free trial, try it out for FREE.

Here’s my quick video review of Blinkist.

getAbstract vs Headway

getAbstract is another popular book summary app and rules the world along with Blinkist. Interestingly, getAbstract’s founder is Rolf Dobelli and is a master of condensing complex ideas into simple summaries. He is the author of the bestseller – The Art of Thinking Clearly.

Here’s a full getAbstract review.

Quality of Book Summaries

getAbstract has better summaries than Headway app, and readers / listeners are more likley to take something away given the quality of the summaries.

Most summaries nail it! You’ll be able to decide if you should buy the book or move on to the next one immediately.

Title collection

With over 25000+ titles, getAbstract is one of the giants in the market of book summary apps. Almost everyone is likely to find a few titles they love.

Pricing

getAbstract is slightly more expensive ($30 a month based on currency) than Headway. But there is a steep discount when you switch to Annual plans is steep (around 50%).

While it getAbstract is more expensive, it does offer a full FREE version for students and covers over 5000+ titles.

getAbstract vs Headway app – what should I go for?

3-day free trials are also available with getAbstract. While the pricing isn’t comparable to Headway app, so are the features and the title collections. Most readers will find getAbstract more useful than Headway app given the quality & selection of book summaries (at a slightly higher cost though!).

Summary of the Headway app review – Is It Worth the Money?

Overall, I would recommend checking out Headway if you are looking for a simple and easy way to digest books and get more out of your reading time. With great features and competitive pricing, it may be worth your money! However, I would suggest taking the free trial before you sign up.

But if you are looking for best ‘value for money’ book summary app, Blinkist is the clear winner! Blinkist offers slightly better summaries (& 4 times more titles) at the same price. You should try it as well before making a commitment!

How does the Headway app review on Google/Apple stores?

Headway is a popular app on both Apple/Google ecosystems.

Headway app review on Apple App Store – 4.7/5 (growing in popularity)

Headway app review on Google Play Store – 4.3/5

Frequently Asked Questions

Why a book summary app covers only non-fiction books?

The book selection on all book summary apps focus only on nonfiction books. It is easier to condense a nonfiction book to its essence. However, with fiction the way the story unfolds is as important as the story itself.

What does the Headway app do?

Headway App is a book summary app that condenses the key ideas of non-fiction books in both text and audio format. It is one of the most popular book summary apps out in the market today.

Does Headway offer a free version?

Yes, Headway app is free to install and offers a free daily summary curated by the app. If you want to listen to anything else, you’ll need to be a paid subscriber.

Who benefits most from Book Summary Apps?

Anyone who wants to understand the summary of the book without having to read the entire book. It helps in many ways – saving time and money, exploring new topics and more.

Is Headway better than Blinkist?

Blinkist offers much more value for money than Headway App as it offers 4 times more titles at almost the same price. The book summary qualities on Blinkist are also slightly better in my opinion. In addition to book summaries, Headway app offers infographics for some titles while Blinkist offers podcasts/shortcasts.

Is Headway legit?

Headway app & other apps work with the publishers to get the rights to do the book summaries. I doubt if the authors and publishing companies would allow book summary service if it was not legit.

What happens when I forget my password?

Use the password reset option, don’t get lazy and use these silly excuses to miss reading some great non fiction tomes.

Is Headway app worth it? (Reddit)

Many users on Reddit have shared positive experiences with the Headway app, praising its quality book summaries and user-friendly interface. However, opinions may vary, so it’s recommended to try the app’s free trial to see if it aligns with your reading preferences and needs.

You’ll likely find these on sub-reddit threads like is headway app worth it reddit, headway app reddit, headway app review reddit, is headway worth it reddit etc., Please do note that many of these are old threads and may not reflect the current reality.

What is a good Blinkist free alternative / book summary apps to Blinkist that are free?

While Blinkist offers a free trial, there are also some free alternatives available for book summaries. Some popular options include Headway App, StoryShots (but can vary based on marketing campaigns). But don’t forget the Blinkist free daily summary feature that offers one free book summary a day.

How much does Headway app cost and what is included in the pricing?

Headway app offers a premium membership at different price points. The exact pricing may vary based on your location, but it generally ranges from $14.99 to $19.99 per month or around $85 per year.

Does Headway offer animated summaries?

No, not yet.

Can I cancel Headway App subscription anytime?

Yes, you can cancel anytime and would not be billed for the next cycle based on your subscription plan. I’ve noticed from feedback on reliability of support requests on online forums, but my personal experience has been good whenever I’ve needed support.

Will there be a German version of this review?

I hope it’s not needed. This blog already ranks for German keywords like was kostet blinkist basic, headway opiniones etc., I’m hoping the ‘translate’ option on the browser is good enough!

Other Productivity / Tools posts that may interest you

• Productivity
• Book summary apps – Headway App vs Blinkist vs getAbstract
• AI Writers: / Blogging – Jasper, Writesonic, Article Forge , Copy AI, Anyword, Writecream, Copymatic, Quillbot, Peppertype, Jasper AI (pricing) &
• Work From Home tools: Jabra

Author also writes at his Medium site.