# How to change a book's reading status

> Keep track of what you want to read, what you're reading and what you've finished. Change a book's status and correct its reading dates.

Source: https://bookrise.app/help/reading-status/ · Updated 2026-10-27

A book's reading status tells Bookrise where to keep it in your library. Change it when you start a book, finish the last page or decide to put it down.

## Change the status on the book's page

1. Open the book.
2. Tap **Reading Status**.
3. Choose **To Read**, **Reading**, **Finished** or **Abandoned**.

![A book's page with the Reading Status menu open, showing To Read, Reading, Finished and Abandoned](https://bookrise.app/_astro/book-states--status-menu.CNYeEk6G_29Ntiv.webp)

You can also start tracking straight away: saving progress with **Update Progress** or a **Reading Mode** session moves a **To Read** book to **Reading** for you.

## Choose the right status

- **To Read**: books you'd like to read. You'll find them in **Want to Read** on the **Books** tab.
- **Reading**: books you've started. They appear in **Reading Now** at the top of the **Books** tab, ready to pick up again.
- **Finished**: books you've read to the end. They count toward your yearly goal and reading statistics.
- **Abandoned**: books you've put down and don't plan to finish.

New books start as **To Read** unless you choose another status. You can set it while adding a book under **Book Status** → **Reading Status** in **Add Book**.

## Change the status from a list

You can change a book's status while browsing a list:

1. Open a list, such as **All Books** or **Want to Read**.
2. Touch and hold the book, then choose **Update reading status**.
3. Pick the new status.

You'll see **Book reading status updated** when it's saved.

## What happens when you change it

Bookrise updates the book's dates along with its status:

- Choose **Reading** for a book you haven't started, and today becomes its start date.
- Choose **Finished** or **Abandoned**, and today becomes the date you finished or stopped reading.
- Choose **To Read**, and the book returns to **Want to Read** with its **Added** date set to today.

If **Review Finished Books** is on in **Settings**, your review also opens when you finish a book. You can write it then or come back to it later.

## Pick up a finished book again

If you change a **Finished** or **Abandoned** book back to **Reading**, Bookrise asks **Start a Re-read?**

- **Read Again** starts a new read today and keeps the earlier read in your book's history.
- **Continue Last Read** reopens the last read. Choose this if you marked the book finished too soon.

## Change the start or finish date

To record a different start or finish day:

1. Open the book.
2. Tap the date below its title, next to **My Review**.
3. Choose the right day. Dates in the future aren't available.

> [!TIP]
> For a book you finished a while ago, set it to **Finished**, then change the date to the day you finished it. That keeps your monthly and yearly reading totals accurate.

## Find books by status

Open the **Books** tab and scroll to **Library**. You'll find **Want to Read**, **Reading**, **Finished** and **Abandoned**, along with **All Books** and **Favorites**.

Each card shows how many books are in that list. Tap one to browse, then use **Search** or **Sort** to find the book you want.

![The Finished list with 16 books, a search field and a Sort button](https://bookrise.app/_astro/library--finished-books.CbKnmpZ__Zzl2BF.webp)

## FAQ

### What's the difference between To Read and Want to Read?

They mean the same thing. To Read is the status you choose on a book's page. Want to Read is the name of that list on the Books tab.

### What happens if I mark a finished book as Reading again?

Bookrise asks whether you'd like to start a re-read or continue your last read. Choose Read Again to start fresh and keep your earlier history, or Continue Last Read if you marked the book finished too soon.