At UptimeRobot, we love hearing how creators and founders use our tools to keep their projects running smoothly. This week, we’re shining a light on Hardcover.app, a fast-growing, community-driven alternative to Goodreads that’s helping readers connect, track their books, and share their literary journeys.
We caught up (async!) with Adam Fortuna, founder of Hardcover, to talk about how the platform started, how it’s scaling to tens of thousands of readers, and how UptimeRobot helps ensure everything stays online and reliable.
Tau (UptimeRobot): Hey Adam! We’re impressed with how you’re leveraging UptimeRobot for Hardcover.app’s community. Can you tell us what inspired you to start Hardcover.app in the first place?
Adam: Back in 2021 Goodreads announced they were discontinuing their API. At the time I was using it to show what I was reading on my personal blog. I looked everywhere for a book tracking + book data site, but couldn’t find one, so I posted on the /r/cofounders subreddit looking for some other people to work with to build it. A few people joined, and within a few months, we had an MVP! We’re four years in now and have almost 50k members.
Tau: That’s fantastic growth! How has UptimeRobot specifically helped your business and community?
Adam: The main way it’s helping is through peace of mind. We haven’t historically had any alerts, so I’d hear about a problem when the site went down and I got notified by a user in our Discord. Now I have the widget on my phone to see the status for our different services in one place.
Tau: That’s a key insight. For others building public status pages, what tips would you share?
Adam: It needs to be discoverable. People won’t use something they don’t know exists. We’re adding our status page to the places where people are most likely to see it: in our footer, our developer documentation, and our error pages. This helps users discover it both proactively and reactively, whether they’re checking in or encountering an issue.
Tau: Have you faced any unique challenges scaling Hardcover.app, and how did you overcome them?
Adam: Absolutely. We have a website, an iOS app, an Android app, and an API that allows users to do anything possible from the apps. Initially, the website and API were tightly coupled in how they scaled, which created bottlenecks. Recently, we split our API reads into hitting a follower database. That’s been amazing for isolating traffic and limiting its impact on website and app users, a crucial architectural win.
Tau: Excellent, that’s a real infrastructure strategy. Looking ahead, what innovations excite you most about Hardcover.app’s future?
Adam: We’re working on a really fun project that combines Reddit’s Discussions, Facebook’s Groups, and Meetup’s Events, but with a focus on connecting people around books, both online and in person. After extensive user interviews, design prototypes, and feature spiking, we’re making solid progress. There’s a lot of moderation work still needed, but I’m genuinely excited to bring this to the book community. 📚
About Hardcover
Hardcover.app is an open, community-driven platform for book lovers. It helps readers track what they’re reading, discover new titles, and connect with others who share their interests. Founded in 2021, Hardcover has grown to nearly 50,000 members who are redefining how books are shared and discussed online.
Wrap-up
Hardcover’s story is a great example of how small teams can build big communities when they focus on reliability, transparency, and connection. From a Reddit post to a 50,000-member platform, Adam and his team show what’s possible when creators listen to their users and iterate fast, all while keeping uptime in check.
At UptimeRobot, we’re proud to be part of that journey. Whether you’re running a SaaS platform, a community app, or a passion project, uptime is the backbone of trust.
Want to make sure your own app stays online and trusted like Hardcover?
