diff --git a/bookwyrm/forms.py b/bookwyrm/forms.py
index 1f1f1a3b5..df68334e0 100644
--- a/bookwyrm/forms.py
+++ b/bookwyrm/forms.py
@@ -156,14 +156,6 @@ class UserGroupForm(CustomForm):
         fields = ["groups"]
 
 
-class TagForm(CustomForm):
-    class Meta:
-        model = models.Tag
-        fields = ["name"]
-        help_texts = {f: None for f in fields}
-        labels = {"name": "Add a tag"}
-
-
 class CoverForm(CustomForm):
     class Meta:
         model = models.Book
diff --git a/bookwyrm/migrations/0070_auto_20210423_0121.py b/bookwyrm/migrations/0070_auto_20210423_0121.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..0b04c3ca2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bookwyrm/migrations/0070_auto_20210423_0121.py
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+# Generated by Django 3.1.8 on 2021-04-23 01:21
+
+from django.db import migrations
+
+
+class Migration(migrations.Migration):
+
+    dependencies = [
+        ("bookwyrm", "0069_auto_20210422_1604"),
+    ]
+
+    operations = [
+        migrations.AlterUniqueTogether(
+            name="usertag",
+            unique_together=None,
+        ),
+        migrations.RemoveField(
+            model_name="usertag",
+            name="book",
+        ),
+        migrations.RemoveField(
+            model_name="usertag",
+            name="tag",
+        ),
+        migrations.RemoveField(
+            model_name="usertag",
+            name="user",
+        ),
+        migrations.DeleteModel(
+            name="Tag",
+        ),
+        migrations.DeleteModel(
+            name="UserTag",
+        ),
+    ]
diff --git a/bookwyrm/models/__init__.py b/bookwyrm/models/__init__.py
index 35e32c2cf..2a25a5251 100644
--- a/bookwyrm/models/__init__.py
+++ b/bookwyrm/models/__init__.py
@@ -17,8 +17,6 @@ from .favorite import Favorite
 from .notification import Notification
 from .readthrough import ReadThrough, ProgressUpdate, ProgressMode
 
-from .tag import Tag, UserTag
-
 from .user import User, KeyPair, AnnualGoal
 from .relationship import UserFollows, UserFollowRequest, UserBlocks
 from .report import Report, ReportComment
diff --git a/bookwyrm/models/tag.py b/bookwyrm/models/tag.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 2c45b8f91..000000000
--- a/bookwyrm/models/tag.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,63 +0,0 @@
-""" models for storing different kinds of Activities """
-import urllib.parse
-
-from django.apps import apps
-from django.db import models
-
-from bookwyrm import activitypub
-from bookwyrm.settings import DOMAIN
-from .activitypub_mixin import CollectionItemMixin, OrderedCollectionMixin
-from .base_model import BookWyrmModel
-from . import fields
-
-
-class Tag(OrderedCollectionMixin, BookWyrmModel):
-    """ freeform tags for books """
-
-    name = fields.CharField(max_length=100, unique=True)
-    identifier = models.CharField(max_length=100)
-
-    @property
-    def books(self):
-        """ count of books associated with this tag """
-        edition_model = apps.get_model("bookwyrm.Edition", require_ready=True)
-        return (
-            edition_model.objects.filter(usertag__tag__identifier=self.identifier)
-            .order_by("-created_date")
-            .distinct()
-        )
-
-    collection_queryset = books
-
-    def get_remote_id(self):
-        """ tag should use identifier not id in remote_id """
-        base_path = "https://%s" % DOMAIN
-        return "%s/tag/%s" % (base_path, self.identifier)
-
-    def save(self, *args, **kwargs):
-        """ create a url-safe lookup key for the tag """
-        if not self.id:
-            # add identifiers to new tags
-            self.identifier = urllib.parse.quote_plus(self.name)
-        super().save(*args, **kwargs)
-
-
-class UserTag(CollectionItemMixin, BookWyrmModel):
-    """ an instance of a tag on a book by a user """
-
-    user = fields.ForeignKey(
-        "User", on_delete=models.PROTECT, activitypub_field="actor"
-    )
-    book = fields.ForeignKey(
-        "Edition", on_delete=models.PROTECT, activitypub_field="object"
-    )
-    tag = fields.ForeignKey("Tag", on_delete=models.PROTECT, activitypub_field="target")
-
-    activity_serializer = activitypub.Add
-    object_field = "book"
-    collection_field = "tag"
-
-    class Meta:
-        """ unqiueness constraint """
-
-        unique_together = ("user", "book", "tag")
diff --git a/bookwyrm/templates/snippets/tag.html b/bookwyrm/templates/snippets/tag.html
deleted file mode 100644
index 507def723..000000000
--- a/bookwyrm/templates/snippets/tag.html
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,23 +0,0 @@
-{% load i18n %}
-<div class="control">
-    <form name="tag" action="/{% if tag.tag.identifier in user_tags %}untag{% else %}tag{% endif %}/" method="post">
-        {% csrf_token %}
-        <input type="hidden" name="book" value="{{ book.id }}">
-        <input type="hidden" name="name" value="{{ tag.tag.name }}">
-
-        <div class="tags has-addons">
-            <a class="tag" href="{{ tag.tag.local_path }}">
-                {{ tag.tag.name }}
-            </a>
-            {% if tag.tag.identifier in user_tags %}
-            <button class="tag is-delete" type="submit">
-                <span class="is-sr-only">{% trans "Remove tag" %}</span>
-            </button>
-            {% else %}
-            <button class="tag" type="submit">+
-                <span class="is-sr-only">{% trans "Add tag" %}</span>
-            </button>
-            {% endif %}
-        </div>
-    </form>
-</div>
diff --git a/bookwyrm/templates/tag.html b/bookwyrm/templates/tag.html
deleted file mode 100644
index b6fa67783..000000000
--- a/bookwyrm/templates/tag.html
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,14 +0,0 @@
-{% extends 'layout.html' %}
-{% load i18n %}
-{% load bookwyrm_tags %}
-
-{% block title %}{{ tag.name }}{% endblock %}
-
-{% block content %}
-<div class="block">
-    <h1 class="title">{% blocktrans %}Books tagged "{{ tag.name }}"{% endblocktrans %}</h1>
-    {% include 'snippets/book_tiles.html' with books=books.all %}
-</div>
-{% endblock %}
-
-
diff --git a/bookwyrm/tests/views/test_tag.py b/bookwyrm/tests/views/test_tag.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 6ad6ab254..000000000
--- a/bookwyrm/tests/views/test_tag.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,119 +0,0 @@
-""" test for app action functionality """
-from unittest.mock import patch
-from django.contrib.auth.models import Group, Permission
-from django.contrib.contenttypes.models import ContentType
-from django.template.response import TemplateResponse
-from django.test import TestCase
-from django.test.client import RequestFactory
-
-from bookwyrm import models, views
-from bookwyrm.activitypub import ActivitypubResponse
-
-
-class TagViews(TestCase):
-    """ tag views"""
-
-    def setUp(self):
-        """ we need basic test data and mocks """
-        self.factory = RequestFactory()
-        self.local_user = models.User.objects.create_user(
-            "mouse@local.com",
-            "mouse@mouse.com",
-            "mouseword",
-            local=True,
-            localname="mouse",
-            remote_id="https://example.com/users/mouse",
-        )
-        self.group = Group.objects.create(name="editor")
-        self.group.permissions.add(
-            Permission.objects.create(
-                name="edit_book",
-                codename="edit_book",
-                content_type=ContentType.objects.get_for_model(models.User),
-            ).id
-        )
-        self.work = models.Work.objects.create(title="Test Work")
-        self.book = models.Edition.objects.create(
-            title="Example Edition",
-            remote_id="https://example.com/book/1",
-            parent_work=self.work,
-        )
-        models.SiteSettings.objects.create()
-
-    def test_tag_page(self):
-        """ there are so many views, this just makes sure it LOADS """
-        view = views.Tag.as_view()
-        with patch("bookwyrm.models.activitypub_mixin.broadcast_task.delay"):
-            tag = models.Tag.objects.create(name="hi there")
-            models.UserTag.objects.create(tag=tag, user=self.local_user, book=self.book)
-        request = self.factory.get("")
-        with patch("bookwyrm.views.tag.is_api_request") as is_api:
-            is_api.return_value = False
-            result = view(request, tag.identifier)
-        self.assertIsInstance(result, TemplateResponse)
-        result.render()
-        self.assertEqual(result.status_code, 200)
-
-        request = self.factory.get("")
-        with patch("bookwyrm.views.tag.is_api_request") as is_api:
-            is_api.return_value = True
-            result = view(request, tag.identifier)
-        self.assertIsInstance(result, ActivitypubResponse)
-        self.assertEqual(result.status_code, 200)
-
-    def test_tag_page_activitypub_page(self):
-        """ there are so many views, this just makes sure it LOADS """
-        view = views.Tag.as_view()
-        with patch("bookwyrm.models.activitypub_mixin.broadcast_task.delay"):
-            tag = models.Tag.objects.create(name="hi there")
-            models.UserTag.objects.create(tag=tag, user=self.local_user, book=self.book)
-        request = self.factory.get("", {"page": 1})
-        with patch("bookwyrm.views.tag.is_api_request") as is_api:
-            is_api.return_value = True
-            result = view(request, tag.identifier)
-        self.assertIsInstance(result, ActivitypubResponse)
-        self.assertEqual(result.status_code, 200)
-
-    def test_tag(self):
-        """ add a tag to a book """
-        view = views.AddTag.as_view()
-        request = self.factory.post(
-            "",
-            {
-                "name": "A Tag!?",
-                "book": self.book.id,
-            },
-        )
-        request.user = self.local_user
-
-        with patch("bookwyrm.models.activitypub_mixin.broadcast_task.delay"):
-            view(request)
-
-        tag = models.Tag.objects.get()
-        user_tag = models.UserTag.objects.get()
-        self.assertEqual(tag.name, "A Tag!?")
-        self.assertEqual(tag.identifier, "A+Tag%21%3F")
-        self.assertEqual(user_tag.user, self.local_user)
-        self.assertEqual(user_tag.book, self.book)
-
-    def test_untag(self):
-        """ remove a tag from a book """
-        view = views.RemoveTag.as_view()
-        with patch("bookwyrm.models.activitypub_mixin.broadcast_task.delay"):
-            tag = models.Tag.objects.create(name="A Tag!?")
-            models.UserTag.objects.create(user=self.local_user, book=self.book, tag=tag)
-        request = self.factory.post(
-            "",
-            {
-                "user": self.local_user.id,
-                "book": self.book.id,
-                "name": tag.name,
-            },
-        )
-        request.user = self.local_user
-
-        with patch("bookwyrm.models.activitypub_mixin.broadcast_task.delay"):
-            view(request)
-
-        self.assertTrue(models.Tag.objects.filter(name="A Tag!?").exists())
-        self.assertFalse(models.UserTag.objects.exists())
diff --git a/bookwyrm/urls.py b/bookwyrm/urls.py
index 8c5266a6e..3ad064b23 100644
--- a/bookwyrm/urls.py
+++ b/bookwyrm/urls.py
@@ -277,11 +277,6 @@ urlpatterns = [
     # author
     re_path(r"^author/(?P<author_id>\d+)(.json)?/?$", views.Author.as_view()),
     re_path(r"^author/(?P<author_id>\d+)/edit/?$", views.EditAuthor.as_view()),
-    # tags
-    re_path(r"^tag/(?P<tag_id>.+)\.json/?$", views.Tag.as_view()),
-    re_path(r"^tag/(?P<tag_id>.+)/?$", views.Tag.as_view()),
-    re_path(r"^tag/?$", views.AddTag.as_view()),
-    re_path(r"^untag/?$", views.RemoveTag.as_view()),
     # reading progress
     re_path(r"^edit-readthrough/?$", views.edit_readthrough, name="edit-readthrough"),
     re_path(r"^delete-readthrough/?$", views.delete_readthrough),
diff --git a/bookwyrm/views/__init__.py b/bookwyrm/views/__init__.py
index c0f35ba81..bcd914e10 100644
--- a/bookwyrm/views/__init__.py
+++ b/bookwyrm/views/__init__.py
@@ -34,7 +34,6 @@ from .shelf import create_shelf, delete_shelf
 from .shelf import shelve, unshelve
 from .site import Site
 from .status import CreateStatus, DeleteStatus, DeleteAndRedraft
-from .tag import Tag, AddTag, RemoveTag
 from .updates import get_notification_count, get_unread_status_count
 from .user import User, EditUser, Followers, Following
 from .user_admin import UserAdmin, UserAdminList
diff --git a/bookwyrm/views/books.py b/bookwyrm/views/books.py
index 0c61d1a20..34ebe0b68 100644
--- a/bookwyrm/views/books.py
+++ b/bookwyrm/views/books.py
@@ -57,12 +57,7 @@ class Book(View):
         )
         reviews_page = paginated.get_page(request.GET.get("page"))
 
-        user_tags = readthroughs = user_shelves = other_edition_shelves = []
         if request.user.is_authenticated:
-            user_tags = models.UserTag.objects.filter(
-                book=book, user=request.user
-            ).values_list("tag__identifier", flat=True)
-
             readthroughs = models.ReadThrough.objects.filter(
                 user=request.user,
                 book=book,
@@ -87,11 +82,9 @@ class Book(View):
             "review_count": reviews.count(),
             "ratings": reviews.filter(Q(content__isnull=True) | Q(content="")),
             "rating": reviews.aggregate(Avg("rating"))["rating__avg"],
-            "tags": models.UserTag.objects.filter(book=book),
             "lists": privacy_filter(
                 request.user, book.list_set.filter(listitem__approved=True)
             ),
-            "user_tags": user_tags,
             "user_shelves": user_shelves,
             "other_edition_shelves": other_edition_shelves,
             "readthroughs": readthroughs,
diff --git a/bookwyrm/views/tag.py b/bookwyrm/views/tag.py
deleted file mode 100644
index a6bdf05a2..000000000
--- a/bookwyrm/views/tag.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,73 +0,0 @@
-""" tagging views"""
-from django.contrib.auth.decorators import login_required
-from django.shortcuts import get_object_or_404, redirect
-from django.template.response import TemplateResponse
-from django.utils.decorators import method_decorator
-from django.views import View
-
-from bookwyrm import models
-from bookwyrm.activitypub import ActivitypubResponse
-from .helpers import is_api_request
-
-
-# pylint: disable= no-self-use
-class Tag(View):
-    """ tag page """
-
-    def get(self, request, tag_id):
-        """ see books related to a tag """
-        tag_obj = get_object_or_404(models.Tag, identifier=tag_id)
-
-        if is_api_request(request):
-            return ActivitypubResponse(tag_obj.to_activity(**request.GET))
-
-        books = models.Edition.objects.filter(
-            usertag__tag__identifier=tag_id
-        ).distinct()
-        data = {
-            "books": books,
-            "tag": tag_obj,
-        }
-        return TemplateResponse(request, "tag.html", data)
-
-
-@method_decorator(login_required, name="dispatch")
-class AddTag(View):
-    """ add a tag to a book """
-
-    def post(self, request):
-        """ tag a book """
-        # I'm not using a form here because sometimes "name" is sent as a hidden
-        # field which doesn't validate
-        name = request.POST.get("name")
-        book_id = request.POST.get("book")
-        book = get_object_or_404(models.Edition, id=book_id)
-        tag_obj, _ = models.Tag.objects.get_or_create(
-            name=name,
-        )
-        models.UserTag.objects.get_or_create(
-            user=request.user,
-            book=book,
-            tag=tag_obj,
-        )
-
-        return redirect("/book/%s" % book_id)
-
-
-@method_decorator(login_required, name="dispatch")
-class RemoveTag(View):
-    """ remove a user's tag from a book """
-
-    def post(self, request):
-        """ untag a book """
-        name = request.POST.get("name")
-        tag_obj = get_object_or_404(models.Tag, name=name)
-        book_id = request.POST.get("book")
-        book = get_object_or_404(models.Edition, id=book_id)
-
-        user_tag = get_object_or_404(
-            models.UserTag, tag=tag_obj, book=book, user=request.user
-        )
-        user_tag.delete()
-
-        return redirect("/book/%s" % book_id)