# The West Australian — user reviews

> 70 indexed App Store user reviews of The West Australian by West Australian Newspapers Limited.

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-west-australian/id1198233691/reviews
- App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-west-australian/id1198233691.md

## What do users think of The West Australian?

Overall sentiment: negative

**Pros**

- 👍 Great new update (Shrekguvuvuyvuy)
- 👍 Excellent new app (Shrenik Jobanputra)
- 👍 Good interface (Sctmreader)
- 👍 Reinstated landscape reading (66Paul66)
- 👍 Vastly improved (johnsy_83)
- 👍 Much improved (Kensingtonlad)
- 👍 Very good (lepint)

**Cons**

- 🐛 App crashes frequently
- 🐛 App won't load
- 🐛 App is slow
- 🐛 App is unresponsive
- 🐛 App is unstable
- 🐛 App is too sensitive
- 🐛 Ads are intrusive
- 🐛 Subscription issues
- 🐛 Content not loading properly
- 🐛 Poorly designed interface
- 🐛 Difficult to navigate
- 🐛 Auto-playing videos are annoying
- 🐛 Audio hijacking
- 🐛 Latest updates are problematic
- 🐛 Content not fully displayed
- 🐛 Login issues
- 🐛 Download errors
- 🐛 Text mode issues
- 🐛 Puzzles not working correctly
- 🐛 Subscription cancellation problems
- 🐛 Web-based app experience
- 🐛 Obits run together
- 🐛 Content fuzzy or blurred

**Commonly reported bugs**

- App won't go past login page
- App crashes frequently
- App no longer loading after update
- App takes multiple attempts to download
- App sometimes fails to download paper fully
- App crashes on opening after update
- App is too sensitive and changes screen accidentally
- App keeps losing wifi connection
- App pages don't fill screen
- App is unstable
- App sleeps too quickly while reading text
- App refuses to boot, hangs on logo then crashes
- Newspapers editions often don't download
- New two-page spread viewer is terrible on iPads
- Sunday Times not coming up under Editions after update
- App frequently won't allow opening of puzzles
- Puzzle states completed before trying
- App constantly asking to sign in
- App freezes on WA logo on iPhone SE
- App doesn't load well, half pages blank or fuzzy
- Last accessible page blurred
- App keeps jumping to non-newspaper view
- App is hard to navigate due to jumping
- App doesn't work on iPhone
- App crashes regularly
- App is clunky to navigate
- App often fails to load articles and needs restart
- App crashes almost every time it is opened
- Difficult to navigate to newspaper tab and download edition
- App has too many Google ads
- App has annoying banner ad at the bottom
- Live podcast band across the bottom of the screen
- NEDS ADVERT across the bottom of the banner
- Login issues with iPhone 'save password' feature
- Cannot access back page or Sport Cover
- Cannot see whole page without scrolling/dragging
- Cannot set up an account
- No email sent for password reset
- Subscription fraud prevention system rejects
- Cannot send messages due to fraud prevention
- Cannot zoom in on photo/article without it shutting down and refreshing
- Videos auto-play when reading pages
- App hijacks audio on opening
- Articles opening to text view when trying to move pages
- Painfully slow to load when moving between articles
- Tortuous effort to return to main screen after following links
- Subscription service bombards with ads
- App is slow, won't download, too sensitive to touch
- App drains data
- Articles dating back to last year and 'live' news stories appear
- New format seems unstable
- Difficult to print a single page of readable size
- App is impossibly slow, news is out of date
- Latest update is a massive step backwards
- Auto opening of individual articles is irritating
- Pop up text mode is frustrating
- Cannot show a full page on iPad
- Cannot get two-page view like previous app
- Takes longer to download
- Clippings were easier in old app
- New app doesn't load well
- Text is fuzzy you can't read it
- Cannot search articles from the app
- Cannot do holiday hold anymore
- App is clunky to use
- No refresh button
- Extremely predatory practices, still charged after cancellation
- Horribly designed app with terrible navigation UI
- Deaths/obituaries run together as gibberish
- Cannot look at pictures separately
- You have to have an account to look at it and it won't give you an account without having existing account

**Most requested features**

- Allow turning off text mode
- Make pop-out text mode optional
- Improve two-page spread view on iPads
- Add cryptic crossword
- Implement holiday hold feature
- Add a refresh button
- Improve search functionality
- Fix links to open in app
- Allow iPhone 'save password' feature to work
- Improve puzzle functionality
- Make app feel less like a web browser
- Improve presentation of obituaries
- Allow users to view pictures separately
- Fix articles cut off across pages
- Stop app zooming out when scrolling zoomed page
- Fix live podcast band and NEDS ADVERT placement
- Improve content organization
- Make app feel more like a native app

## Newest reviews (14 of 70)

### 1/5 — The West Australian

*2025-03-06, version 2.6.214*

This app is a disaster! So many failures in so many functions. It’s not even worth having completely free! Paying $28 a month for it is a total rip off!

### 1/5 — Sort the app out or im out

*2024-12-06, version 2.6.140*

About 50% of the time the daily papers wont load. There is a massive glitch somewhere

### 1/5 — Fix, what????

*2024-11-09, version 2.6.118*

The latest update overnight and cannot even open!!!! Just crashes!!!! This is the single most useless, awkward app I ever use!!! Back to the old way if I read the West in the future

### 1/5 — Hopeless App

*2024-09-08, version 2.5.86*

The geek who wrote this program should be fired it is hopeless. Its way too sensetive very slow at times and no matter what you set it for in downloading editions it makes up its own mind. Occupying up to 7 gb of space on my Ipad.

### 1/5 — App is as bad as the newspaper

*2024-08-19, version 2.5.86*

Terrible app, for a terrible newspaper.

### 1/5 — Doesn’t work. App and website.

*2024-08-17, version 2.5.86*

Try and buy a subscription but the fraud prevention system rejects it. 

Try and send them a message but the fraud prevention system rejects it. 

Not sure what’s going on. Tried multiple logins with no success.

### 1/5 — So Bad

*2024-07-30*

This masthead is an embarrassment. WA should be ashamed of this rag and its accompanying app. The 1 Star ratings say it all. And what are the app developers doing about it? They are an embarrassment too.
Where else can you zoom in on a photo or article in this pathetic excuse of a newspaper app only for the whole article to shut down and refresh on to another news article.
Minus 5 Stars clowns

### 1/5 — Auto playing videos

*2024-07-25*

The videos that auto play when reading certain pages are beyond annoying. The app also hi jacks your audio on opening for no reason shutting off your music.

I can’t read an article while listening to music without this app taking over. It annoys me so much I don’t read the news.

### 1/5 — Effectively unuseable

*2024-07-20*

Atrocious. I have just deleted the app after frustrating years of waiting for it to be upgraded; programmers obviously don’t use it. Articles opening to text view when trying to move on to another page, painfully slow to Load when moving between articles. The lack of speedy and timely loading whenever anything reloads is akin to Chinese water torture, with apologies to the Chinese. The tortuous effort to return to main screen after following links is abysmal.
Just hopeless - don’t use it…

### 1/5 — Ad???

*2024-07-02, version 2.5.77*

A subscription service that bombards you with ads? Absolute rubbish.

### 1/5 — Frustrating

*2024-05-14, version 2.5.70*

Worst of the worst app. Slow, won’t download, too sensitive to touch. Subscription is going to be cancelled.

### 1/5 — Doesn’t load on my iPhone SE

*2024-01-27, version 2.5.54*

I installed the app, but when I open it it just freezes on the WA logo. I waited for a full minute before giving up. Please fix!

### 2/5 — Format

*2024-01-20, version 2.5.54*

The new format seems unstable. Also difficult to print a single page of size enough to read easily. I thought the previous format was fine. Is your intention to prevent print off of pages?

### 1/5 — Impossibly slow

*2024-01-08, version 2.5.54*

The app is so slow to upload the news is already out of date!  Much much worse than before.

## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated)

### 1/5 — Getting sick of logging in

*2026-08-25*

I’m getting pretty sick of having to re-login every few days. The new comments section on the app that they changed a few months ago is not great and has taken away from
Community feedback. That’s if the comment section is even open, as usually these days it is not. 
Really thinking about cancelling my subscription if these things aren’t fixed.

### 1/5 — Doesn’t work

*2026-06-14, version 2.7.440*

Downloaded the APP and it won’t even go past the log in page. Press login and it does nothing.

### 1/5 — Apalling Change

*2026-06-06*

This new version is appalling. I am a paid subscriber of The West and am bombarded by ads. It is hard to tell what is an ad and an actual news item. Disappointing as I use it throughout the day to check the latest news. I don’t always have time to read through the whole newspaper.  The ‘latest’ news is always yesterday

### 1/5 — Poorly designed and implement app

*2026-04-29, version 2.7.380*

The application crashes frequently making reading the paper a challenging experience. Have cancelled my subscription until such time it is completely overhauled.

### 1/5 — Waste of time

*2026-02-06, version 2.7.267*

Down loaded the app and tried to set up account. Could not set up an account. Tried to reset password no email sent. Delete the app.

### 1/5 — Subscription

*2026-02-01, version 2.7.267*

This is a joke as I can’t even set up an account. No email response, nothing

### 1/5 — No longer loading

*2025-10-05, version 2.7.58*

I have an iPad Air generation 3. iPad OS version 26.0.1 After the most recent update,  the app will no longer work.

### 1/5 — Unbelievably Pathetic

*2025-06-29, version 2.6.272*

Considering that the app is their future connection to their audience, it is just unbelievable for how appalling it is. If there was an alternative ’news print’ service in WA, this mob would be smoked.

### 1/5 — App

*2025-06-19, version 2.6.272*

Not working

### 1/5 — Disgraceful

*2025-05-24, version 2.6.272*

The app is a disgraceful app sometimes you can’t download the paper fully and you have to delete then download the app again. 

Really poor quality

## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated)

### 5/5 — Great app and really love the new update!

*2026-04-06, version 2.7.370*

This a great new update and really love the new app!

### 5/5 — Excellent New App

*2026-04-05, version 2.7.370*

A very good working interface!

### 5/5 — Good interface

*2025-08-29, version 2.6.477*

With good notifications

### 5/5 — Very good

*2022-04-19*

I love being able to download the paper and read it as I choose. No wet paper, no looking in the shrubs for it, no fighting over different sections, no ink on my hands and bench top. And cheap price as well.
As for  adverts, how do whingers think publishers keep afloat?
Not from subscriptions!

### 5/5 — Much improved

*2021-07-16*

The original app was woeful, but the updated version is excellent. Tapping on the blue heading brings up the text of the story in an easy to read format.

### 5/5 — Vastly improved

*2021-01-21*

The new app is much better than the old one, great to have some good functionality again. No issues on iOS.

### 3/5 — Latest update

*2025-04-03, version 2.6.235*

Can confirm that latest update fixes the issue of The West app taking over your mobile device speakers when you open it 👍🏼

### 3/5 — Pop up Text mode should be optional

*2023-11-19*

Glad to see the ability to read the full page  in landscape has been reinstated. If the pop out text mode can be made as an optional feature to turn off and on then this will be a better reading experience for iPad users as it’s quite frustrating to read with it continuously opening when you just want to read it in newspaper mode.

### 2/5 — What have they done to this app

*2025-10-03*

It used to be such a good app. Easy to use, intuitive, fast and reliable. Now it’s none of those things. It now takes me multiple attempts to download the latest paper. Walk to the shops and buy a paper - it’s faster.

### 2/5 — Worst News Site

*2024-02-12, version 2.5.54*

This app is like a black hole. Seems to drain every available bytes just to turn the wagon wheel! There are articles dating back to last year and “live” news stories just appear.
I am sure WA Newspapers can do a lot better than this product.

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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 2026-09-02.*