# Espresso: World news in a shot — Quick daily news reporting

> Daily news digest with concise analysis and audio options. (iPhone/iPad app by The Economist.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/espresso-world-news-in-a-shot/id896628003 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [The Economist](https://appshunter.io/developer/358769478)
- Category: News, Magazines & Newspapers
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.80/5 from 17,140 App Store ratings · 417 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 17+
- Requires: iOS 14.0 · 57 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2014-11-05
- Data updated: 2026-08-27
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/espresso-world-news-in-a-shot/id896628003/reviews.md

## What is Espresso?

Espresso from The Economist is the faster, smarter way to know the news. Power through the world’s top stories in the time it takes to have a cup of coffee, with incisive analysis updated throughout the day. 

The Espresso app is now free for students. Here is what people say about Espresso:
“If all you have each day is a few minutes and you're tired of the 24hrs news cycle mostly regurgitating the same info all day everyday, the Espresso helps distil the cacophony of news each day into a single powerful update.”

What you’ll get:
- Top stories for quick analysis
- “The World in Brief” news summary updated three times a day
- Five bite-size articles offering finishable 1 minute reads 
- Audio versions of articles to enjoy hands-free
- Daily podcasts and short videos offering fresh perspectives on current events
- A zingy blend of Figure of the day, Quote of the day and Chart of the day
- Selected news stories from the weekly edition in the “For you” tab

Features:
- Time to read highlighted on each article
- Adjustable text size
- Personalize your topic preferences
- Dark mode for more comfortable reading
- Mobile and tablet-compatible
- Enable notifications

Topics covered:
- The Americas
- Asia
- China
- Britain
- Business
- Middle East
- Africa
- Finance
- Economics
- Science
- Technology
- Culture
- People
- Coronavirus
- US Elections
- Editor’s Picks

Full terms of use can be found at https://www.economistgroup.com/terms-of-use
Our privacy policy can be found at https://www.economistgroup.com/privacy-policy

## Key features

- 1-minute reads
- Daily news summary
- Audio versions of articles
- Personalized topic preferences
- Adjustable text size
- Dark mode

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Espresso monthly subscription | $8.90 | per month |
| Espresso monthly subscription | $8.90 | per month |
| Espresso annual subscription | $99.00 | per year |
| Espresso monthly subscription | $9.90 | per month |


## Chart rankings

- #92 in Top Free · News (US App Store)
- #55 in Top Free · Magazines & Newspapers (US App Store)
- #109 in Top Grossing · News (US App Store)
- #84 in Top Grossing · Magazines & Newspapers (US App Store)

## What do users think of Espresso?

Overall sentiment: positive

**Pros**

- 🚀 Concise and informative news
- 👍 Excellent content curation
- 🌍 Global perspective
- 🤓 High-quality journalism
- 🔍 Balanced and objective reporting
- ⏱️ Quick daily read
- 🧠 Thought-provoking
- ☕ Great morning routine companion

**Cons**

- 🐛 Audio issues (outdated, not updating)
- 📱 Suboptimal user experience on smaller screens
- 🔒 Difficult to unsubscribe
- 💰 Overpriced for limited content
- 🔍 Lacking depth compared to full Economist publication
- 🗓️ Unable to access previous days' content

**Commonly reported bugs**

- App crashes or freezes
- Content not updating correctly
- Privacy settings issues
- Inconsistent behavior across devices

**Most requested features**

- Offline content availability
- Customizable content preferences
- Integration with podcast players
- iPad-optimized layout
- Ability to access previous days' content
- Improved navigation between articles

## Recent user reviews (10 of 417)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/espresso-world-news-in-a-shot/id896628003/reviews.md

### 2/5 — Okay but needs optimisation

*2026-07-22, version 3.42.0*

The app is feature-wise fine, however what should be a simple and elegant reading experience is marred by performance issues.

The main issue I have is that when going between many screens the animation is very laggy.

This is most noticeable when opening articles — the main point of the app — where it looks like it tries to generate the article while it’s opening, which will inevitably be inefficient.

Better to pre-load the article before it’s opened, or let it open and then load it. It’s a design choice that makes the app feel sluggish.

The main Economist app doesn’t suffer from this problem.

### 1/5 — App will charge without access

*2026-05-14, version 3.42.0*

Espresso’s ‘restore’ functionality is broken and will charge you without allowing access

### 1/5 — Does not recognize my subscription

*2026-04-24, version 3.42.0*

I have been a subscriber through the App Store for a decade now, and the app recently stopped recognizing my subscription, even though I’m still paying.

### 1/5 — Scammers — I’m paying for this app and can’t access the content

*2026-04-04, version 3.40.0*

I’ve been a subscriber to The Economist Espresso for years now. When the app works, it’s tremendous content and worth paying for. 

However, it’s been nearly impossible to access the content on a daily basis for a while now. I tried talking to their customer support team and they were useless. So, in the meantime, The Economist is taking my money without providing a service. 

Terrible, I’d give 0 stars if I could. They also tried to contact me after another 1 star review I left, and were no help there either. Awful customer service

### 1/5 — Bad data policies

*2026-04-01, version 3.40.0*

This will be a nuisance to unsubscribe from, constant emails with a bad unsubscribe policy. Difficult if at all possible to delete account, I regret downloading this

### 5/5 — Very useful, but could be a tad better

*2026-03-18*

Very informative and efficient way of keeping up with news that matter.

Now, the pictures on top of each article also looks interesting: it would be useful to be able to zoom in on them and better get a feel for what they depict.

Also, being able to send some corrections or non-public comments could be of interest both for journalists and for readers. AI could help triage communications.

**Developer response:** Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. We’re glad to hear that you’re enjoying our global analysis, and hope we will continue to be your trusted guide to business news, politics, economics and culture in the future.

### 2/5 — Students should get full economist version.

*2026-01-22, version 3.40.0*

Espresso is a husk of the Economist. If a student was so interested to even find your newsroom, one might think loaning them the full economist for free would be worth it while they pursued a degree, once in the workforce they’ve got a habit of owning your subscription, so then they pay. 

But Espresso is clickbait scroll-y goo of a news app, embarrassing.

### 2/5 — Overpriced

*2025-10-12, version 3.40.0*

Espresso is some $79 bucks for just 4 or 5 articles daily, ie 1/3 the price of regular economist, but for much much less than 1/3 of the articles…
and to pick the 4 or 5 free articles or just topics, you have to let the share your data…ie the one article you want to read, sorry not included in this app.

### 1/5 — Too Little content and impossible to unsubscribe

*2025-10-10*

Very frustrating

**Developer response:** We’re sorry to hear you’ve experienced issues when trying to cancel, and we’d like to resolve this for you as soon as possible. Please email complaints@economist.com from the email address linked to your subscription and we’ll be in touch soon.

### 2/5 — Nice, unsubscribing very difficult

*2025-09-28, version 3.40.0*

Like the concept not enough value for money in my view. No self serve unsubscribe makes you contact support. Dark UX pattern is a bit disappointing for reputable company.

## Frequently asked questions about Espresso

### What is Espresso from The Economist?

Espresso from The Economist is a news application designed to provide users with a quick and insightful overview of global news. It offers top stories, bite-sized articles that can be read in about a minute, and audio versions of content, all updated throughout the day.

### What are the key features of Espresso?

Key features include five bite-sized articles for quick reads, a "The World in Brief" news summary updated three times daily, audio versions of articles, daily podcasts and short videos, and a "zingy blend" of daily figures, quotes, and charts. Users can also personalize topic preferences, adjust text size, and utilize a dark mode.

### Is Espresso free to use?

The app is currently free for students. While the description indicates it has in-app purchases and ads, the core functionality of receiving news updates and summaries is available. Specific premium features or content may require in-app purchases.

### What topics does Espresso cover?

Espresso covers a wide range of global topics including The Americas, Asia, China, Britain, Business, the Middle East, Africa, Finance, Economics, Science, Technology, Culture, People, Coronavirus, and US Elections. It also features Editor's Picks.

### Who is the target audience for Espresso?

This app is designed for busy individuals who want to stay informed about the world's top stories without dedicating a significant amount of time. It's ideal for those who prefer concise analysis and quick updates to keep up with current events.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 3.42.0 — 2026-04-16

- General improvements

Thank you for reading Espresso. We're constantly working to improve your experience.

### 3.40.0 — 2025-07-23

- Enhanced accessibility features for better navigation and screen reader support
- Fixed article sharing issues
- Improved video playback reliability
- Various performance improvements

Thank you for reading Espresso. We're constantly working to improve your experience.

### 3.39.0 — 2025-06-03

- We've made various under-the-hood improvements for a smoother reading experience

### 3.38.0 — 2025-05-06

- Improved video playback for a smoother viewing experience
- Enhanced notification capabilities to keep you informed about important updates
- Better personalisation to deliver content that matters to you
- Fixed several issues that were affecting app performance
- General stability improvements and bug fixes

Thank you for reading Espresso. We're constantly working to improve your experience.

### 3.37.0 — 2025-03-05

- We've refreshed the Today tab to ensure you always see the most up-to-date content
- Improved the display of dates in The World in Brief section, making it easier to see when content was last updated
- Fixed an issue with image cropping to enhance your reading experience
- Various behind-the-scenes improvements to make the app more reliable

## Apps similar to Espresso

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [The Economist: News & Analysis](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-economist-news-and-analysis/id1239397626) | 4.9 (182,192) | Free | News |
| [BBC: World News & Stories](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bbc-world-news-and-stories/id364147881) | 4.5 (85,924) | Free | News |
| [The Guardian - US & World News](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-guardian-us-and-world-news/id409128287) | 4.9 (113,064) | Free | News |
| [CNN: Live & Breaking News](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cnn-live-and-breaking-news/id331786748) | 4.8 (1,664,114) | Free | News |
| [NYTimes: US and Global News](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nytimes-us-and-global-news/id284862083) | 4.8 (758,677) | Free | News |
| [The Wall Street Journal. News](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-wall-street-journal-news/id364387007) | 4.7 (551,858) | Free | News |

## More apps by The Economist

- [Economist GBR](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/economist-gbr/id951457811)
- [The Economist: News & Analysis](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-economist-news-and-analysis/id1239397626)

All apps by The Economist: https://appshunter.io/developer/358769478

## Related topics

[espresso economist](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/espresso-economist) · [espresso](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/espresso) · [esprose](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/esprose) · [the economist espresso](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/the-economist-espresso) · [espresso app](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/espresso-app) · [the economist](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/the-economist) · [daily mumtaz](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/daily-mumtaz) · [economist](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/economist) · [the economist podcast](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/the-economist-podcast) · [fabbrica in pedavena prato](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/fabbrica-in-pedavena-prato) · [current affairs made easy](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/current-affairs-made-easy) · [yoto daily](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/yoto-daily) · [newspapers world](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/newspapers-world) · [science news daily](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/science-news-daily) · [current events](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/current-events) · [ecrs news](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/ecrs-news) · [brazil times](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/brazil-times)

---

*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-27.*