How to Build a Notion Reading Tracker (With Stats and Progress Views)

Goodreads is fine if you want to rate books and share updates with friends. But if you're a maker, founder, or freelancer who reads to learn and grow — and wants to actually capture what you read — Goodreads falls short almost immediately. It doesn't track reading speed. It doesn't surface your best ideas. It can't show you how many pages you read last quarter, which genres you gravitate toward, or let you tag key takeaways per chapter. Notion can do all of that. Here's how to build a reading tracker in Notion with real stats, multiple views, and a one-click book logging button.

Step 1: Build the Books Database

Create a new full-page database called Books. Add these properties:

| Property | Type | Notes | |----------|------|-------| | Title | Title | Default — the book name | | Author | Text | Author's full name | | Genre | Multi-select | Fiction, Non-Fiction, Business, Self-Help, Science, History | | Status | Select | To Read, Reading, Finished, Abandoned | | Rating | Select | ⭐, ⭐⭐, ⭐⭐⭐, ⭐⭐⭐⭐, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | Date Started | Date | When you started reading | | Date Finished | Date | When you finished | | Pages | Number | Total page count | | Notes | Text | Freeform notes, impressions | | Key Takeaways | Text | 3–5 bullet ideas worth keeping |

The Key Takeaways property is the one Goodreads will never have. After every book, you write two sentences that summarize what actually changed in how you think. Six months later, those sentences are worth more than your star rating.

Step 2: Add the Pages Per Day Formula

This is where your reading tracker becomes genuinely useful. Add a Formula property called Pages Per Day:

if(and(not(empty(prop("Date Started"))), not(empty(prop("Date Finished"))), prop("Pages") > 0), round(prop("Pages") / dateBetween(prop("Date Finished"), prop("Date Started"), "days")), 0)

This formula calculates how many pages per day you averaged for each book — but only when both dates are filled in and a page count exists. It returns 0 for books in progress or with missing data, so your table stays clean.

Over time, this number tells you a lot. You'll discover that you read dense non-fiction at 15 pages/day and light fiction at 60+. That self-knowledge helps you set realistic reading goals instead of aspirational ones.

Step 3: Set Up Your Views

Five views cover everything you'll actually need:

Reading Now — Filter: Status = Reading. This is your default working view: just the books currently on your nightstand or Kindle. Keep it minimal. If you have six books showing here, that's a sign you're starting too many and finishing too few.

All Books — Default table view, no filter, sorted by Date Started descending. Your complete library.

By Genre — Board view grouped by Genre. Drag books between columns as you categorize them. This view often reveals patterns you didn't notice: a pile of Business books, almost no Science, zero Fiction in the last year.

Finished This Year — Filter: Status = Finished AND Date Finished is within this year. Your annual reading log. Add a count of records at the top to track your reading goal (e.g., "12 books in 2026").

Top Rated — Filter: Rating = ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. Your best books, separated from the rest. Link to this view when someone asks for book recommendations.

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Step 4: Build the Stats Dashboard

Create a new page called Reading Stats. Add a linked database view of Books — this is where your rollup properties live.

To show aggregate stats, you have two options:

Option A — Inline summary bar. In the All Books or Finished This Year view, click "Calculate" at the bottom of any column to add a sum, count, or average. For Pages, choose Sum to see total pages read. For Rating, choose Average. These show up as a footer row without needing a separate database.

Option B — Linked rollup database. Create a Stats database with a single record called "My Reading Stats." Add a relation property pointing to Books, then add three rollup properties:

• Total Books Finished — relation to Books → Count (filter: Status = Finished)
• Total Pages Read — relation to Books → Sum of Pages (filter: Status = Finished)
• Average Rating — relation to Books → Average of Rating (you'll need Rating as a number; create a shadow Number property mapped 1–5)

The stats database approach works best if you want your numbers visible on a dashboard alongside other life metrics — goals, habits, finances.

Step 5: Add the "Log New Book" Template Button

In your Books database, click the dropdown arrow next to the "New" button → New template → name it "Log New Book."

Inside the template, configure these defaults:

• Status → To Read
• Date Started → Today (click the Date field and select "Today" from the relative date options)

Now every time you open a new book or add one to your reading list, you click "Log New Book" and the template auto-fills the status and start date. You just type the title and author. The rest populates as you go.

Add a content block inside the template for Key Takeaways with a placeholder prompt: "What's one idea from this book worth keeping?" — that prompt, staring at you when you finish a book, is surprisingly effective at getting you to actually write something down.

Putting It Together

Your full reading tracker has:

1. Books DB — 10 properties including the Pages Per Day formula
2. 5 views — Reading Now, All Books, By Genre, Finished This Year, Top Rated
3. Stats — inline summary bar or linked rollup database
4. Log New Book template — pre-fills Status and Date Started

The whole build takes about 45 minutes from scratch. After that, logging a new book is a 30-second task, and your reading stats update automatically as you finish books throughout the year.

The thing that makes this stick where Goodreads doesn't is the Key Takeaways property. Notion becomes the place where reading lives alongside your notes, projects, and goals — not a separate app you only visit for ratings.

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Want a complete reading tracker already built inside a full productivity system? Grab the Ultimate Notion Productivity System ($27) →