# The Spectator Magazine

> Subscriber-exclusive access to news, comment, and culture from a historic magazine. (iPhone/iPad app by The Spectator (1828) Ltd.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-spectator-magazine/id568014889 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [The Spectator (1828) Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/441452894)
- Category: News, Magazines & Newspapers
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.80/5 from 1,848 App Store ratings · 243 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 12+
- Requires: iOS 17.0 · 56 MB
- Languages: British English
- Released: 2012-10-24
- Data updated: 2026-08-30
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-spectator-magazine/id568014889/reviews.md

## What is The Spectator Magazine?

The Spectator app is a subscriber exclusive that gives you the best of news, comment and culture from the world’s oldest magazine.

Simply download the app and sign in.

App highlights:
• A daily mixture of political commentary, cultural criticism and humour
• Each issue of the weekly magazine published every Thursday at 4 a.m.
• Receive alerts on breaking news – and the latest from Spectator writers
• Listen to all Spectator podcasts and narrated articles
• Read articles when you’re offline
• Keep track of the articles you’ve already read

Join the party with Europe’s fastest-growing current affairs magazine.

Terms of use: https://www.spectator.co.uk/terms/

## Key features

- Daily political commentary, cultural criticism, and humor
- Weekly magazine issues
- Breaking news alerts
- Podcasts and narrated articles
- Offline reading
- Read article tracking

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 year | $149.99 | per year |
| 1 month | $16.99 | per month |

**One-time purchases**

| Purchase | Price | Type |
| --- | --- | --- |
| The Spectator Magazine 15 December 2012 | $5.99 | one-time |
| The Spectator Magazine 14 December 2013 | $4.99 | one-time |
| 13 December 2014, The Spectator Magazine | $4.99 | one-time |
| 12 December 2015, The Spectator Magazine | $4.99 | one-time |
| 25 June 2016, The Spectator Magazine | $4.99 | one-time |
| 2 July 2016, The Spectator Magazine | $4.99 | one-time |
| 10 December 2016, The Spectator Magazine | $4.99 | one-time |
| 31 December 2016, The Spectator Magazine | $4.99 | one-time |


## Chart rankings

- #166 in Top Grossing · Magazines & Newspapers (US App Store)

## What do users think of The Spectator Magazine?

Overall sentiment: mixed

**Pros**

- 👍 Best writing every week
- 👍 Compulsory reading!
- 👍 Fabulous
- 👍 Great
- 👍 Fantastic editorial.
- 👍 Well designed app for a great publication
- 👍 Love this magazine it's fantastic great writers
- 👍 Spectator'Spectacular
- 👍 Fantastic Content
- 👍 Great when travelling
- 👍 Simply put, the finest magazine in the world.
- 👍 Worthy and sensible
- 👍 Why The Spectator?
- 👍 Outstanding Content
- 👍 Being well dressed
- 👍 Spot on analysis
- 👍 Review good magazine
- 👍 Best magazine!
- 👍 No boundaries in this rag
- 👍 Consistently Superb
- 👍 Excellent reading materials
- 👍 The only thing left to trust.
- 👍 Finally a decent news app
- 👍 Excellent magazine but app doesn't work on older phones
- 👍 Give it a try
- 👍 A classic read
- 👍 Excellent

**Cons**

- 🐛 Password Hell
- 🐛 Overrepresentative of the Jewish standpoint.
- 🐛 Outstanding content but poor navigation (UI/UX) and no author favourite option.
- 🐛 Some bright spots in a mostly dark room
- 🐛 Terrible for offline use
- 🐛 Content okay, platform terrible
- 🐛 What's this? Advertising on the app???
- 🐛 SIGN IN IMPOSSIBLE
- 🐛 Hopeless login
- 🐛 Beware
- 🐛 Terrible
- 🐛 Desperately needs an audio player like substack
- 🐛 Subscribed but cannot access online content.
- 🐛 It just won't load!
- 🐛 Significantly Degraded
- 🐛 Unreliable
- 🐛 No app support
- 🐛 RAM management bug
- 🐛 Logging In
- 🐛 Seize
- 🐛 App loses its place when phone locks
- 🐛 Frustrating and near impossible to use
- 🐛 The app is a disaster
- 🐛 New version difficult to use
- 🐛 Unutterably awful new app
- 🐛 Problem trying to read offline
- 🐛 Swiping to left to advance page is sometimes non responsive
- 🐛 Keeps crashing
- 🐛 Can't even get to the article to read it!
- 🐛 Simply awful app

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Password not recognized
- App crashes frequently
- Offline reading issues
- Login problems
- Navigation difficulties

**Most requested features**

- Add a favourite author section to be notified of new articles
- Add an audio player like Substack
- Improve offline reading functionality

## Recent user reviews (10 of 243)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-spectator-magazine/id568014889/reviews.md

### 5/5 — My review

*2026-08-20, version 8.1.9*

First class 11 I enjoy reading The Spectator every week

### 5/5 — Essential Reading

*2026-08-19, version 8.1.9*

Superb journalism. Thoughtful, intelligent, informed, witty. Essential reading.

### 5/5 — The best

*2026-08-19, version 8.1.9*

What can I say? The Spectator reliably amazes and delights. It’s cheap at the price.

### 5/5 — Writing that reflects facts & reality!!

*2026-08-19, version 8.1.9*

For those who believe in an Alliance of Responsible Citizenship!!

### 5/5 — Independent journalism

*2026-08-17, version 8.1.9*

Wonderful to read independent thoughts by independent minds

### 5/5 — The Elder

*2026-08-17, version 8.1.9*

Excellent list of Journalists & articles.

### 5/5 — Few adverts

*2026-08-16, version 8.1.9*

I find most Spectator articles to be well written. I enjoy reading the analyses without the continuous pop-up adverts interrupting my train of thought and concentration as happens when reading the Daily Telegraph. I admit adverts do not appear in the online newspaper itself. Even so, I’m thinking of cancelling my Telegraph subscription and relying substantially on the excellent articles in the Spectator for keeping myself informed on current affairs and politics.

### 5/5 — Sliding a Bit But Still Great

*2026-08-15, version 8.1.9*

I’ve been a reader for years.  Under Michael Gove, articles have gotten shorter and more shallow, alas.

### 1/5 — Worst of the worst

*2026-08-15, version 8.1.9*

This paper has nothing to do with news, science or politics. It’s all about rage, hate blame. I want my £1 back!

### 5/5 — Debating fellow nobheads

*2026-08-15, version 8.1.9*

It’s not just the articles that are world class. You can, on a daily basis lock horns with other cranks who need an outlet to vent. We are all going down but at least the comment section makes a minute fraction of this enjoyable! love x

## Frequently asked questions about The Spectator Magazine

### What is The Spectator app?

The Spectator app provides subscribers with exclusive access to the best news, commentary, and culture from the world's oldest magazine. It offers a daily mix of content, weekly magazine issues, breaking news alerts, podcasts, and the ability to read articles offline.

### What are the key features of The Spectator app?

Key features include a daily blend of political commentary, cultural criticism, and humor, access to the weekly magazine issue, breaking news alerts, a library of Spectator podcasts, narrated articles, offline reading capabilities, and a system to track read articles.

### How much does The Spectator app cost?

The app itself is free to download and sign into. However, it is a subscriber-exclusive service, meaning access to the content requires a subscription to The Spectator magazine. Specific subscription costs are not detailed in the provided description.

### What kind of content can I find in The Spectator app?

The app offers a diverse range of content including political commentary, cultural criticism, humor, and in-depth analysis. You can also listen to Spectator podcasts and narrated articles, and read the full weekly magazine issue.

### Can I read articles offline with The Spectator app?

Yes, one of the highlighted features of The Spectator app is the ability to read articles when you are offline. This allows you to catch up on content even without an internet connection.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 8.1.9 — 2026-08-10

Bug fixes and performance improvements

### 8.1.7 — 2026-04-29

• You can now switch between the US and UK editions within the app
• Easily toggle between regional coverage via the top navigation or settings.

### 8.1.6 — 2026-04-28

• You can now switch between the US and UK editions within the app
• Easily toggle between regional coverage via the top navigation or settings.

### 8.1.2 — 2026-01-26

Bug fixes and performance improvements.

### 8.1.1 — 2025-10-22

Bug fixes and performance improvements

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## More apps by The Spectator (1828) Ltd

- [Apollo - Legacy app](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/apollo-legacy-app/id381259282)
- [The Spectator Australia](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-spectator-australia/id676150021)
- [The Spectator World](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-spectator-world/id1519467769)
- [Apollo Magazine](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/apollo-magazine/id6740406178)

All apps by The Spectator (1828) Ltd: https://appshunter.io/developer/441452894

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*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 2026-08-30.*