Comparison

Heartfeed RSS Reader vs An Otter RSS Reader

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Heartfeed RSS Reader

This app offers an efficient, no-nonsense way to read news from RSS, Atom, and JSON feeds without requiring account setup or server reliance. It features a compact grid view, background feed refreshing, and seamless syncing across iOS devices via iCloud.

Highlights
  • Compact grid view for feeds
  • Internal browser with content blocker support
  • Automatic iCloud sync for feeds and read status
  • Quick pick list for selecting news items
  • Background feed refresh and caching
  • Bookmark management with iCloud sync
  • Night mode theme
Features
Read full description

Do you want to read your news using RSS/Atom/JSON feeds in the most efficient, no-nonsense way, and with no requirement to setup an app-specific user account or relying on a server? If you do, Heartfeed might be the app for you. Features: - A compact grid view for your feeds, making it easy to check all of them at once - When reading news in the internal browser, full support of your configured content blockers, saved passwords, etc. - Automatic synching of subscribed feeds and read status between iOS devices (requires an iCloud account) - Quick pick list: Easily select which news items from different feeds you want to read - Background refresh of feeds: Some feeds refresh often and you then risk missing news in case the app is not used frequently. Background refresh, together with caching of the last 50 news items in each feed, prevents this from happening - Bookmarks, including reading them from either inside Heartfeed or from any iOS or macOS browser (requires an iCloud account) - Night mode theme - Subscribing to feeds from the current Heartfeed top list, from files, or directly from the web - Full support for split views and multi-tasking on iPads - No tracking of usage or personal data; optionally, you can anonymously share which feeds you subscribe to for improving the builtin top list of recommended feeds The app is 100% free and without ads. If you want to tip me somethings as thanks for the app, you can do so within the settings. I hope you'll enjoy using Heartfeed!

About

An Otter RSS Reader

A minimalistic RSS reader that synchronizes your subscribed feeds across Apple devices via iCloud. It allows for automatic feed discovery, organization into folders, and reading articles in a standard web view. Integrates with Shortcuts and offers home screen widgets for unread counts.

Highlights
  • iCloud feed synchronization
  • Auto-discover RSS feeds
  • Group feeds into folders
  • Read articles in web view
  • Shortcuts integration
  • Home screen widgets
  • Import/Export with OPML
Features
Read full description

An Otter RSS Reader is a simple RSS reader for following news, blogs, and personal sites without another account. Subscribe to feeds, organize them into folders, and let iCloud keep everything in sync across your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Otter keeps the experience intentionally calm: quick refreshes, native navigation, readable article views, and just enough personality to make checking your feeds feel pleasant. New in 2.0, the iPad edition grew up. The Front Page opens to today's stories while native adaptive columns keep feeds and the story list side by side when there’s room, then collapse cleanly on smaller screens. Articles set in a real serif with a comfortable reading measure, on iPad and iPhone alike. Features: - Subscribe to RSS, Atom, JSON Feed, and XML feeds - Sync subscriptions and reading state with iCloud - The Front Page: a daily opening spread across iPhone and iPad - Smart Folders that fill themselves — long reads, quick reads, podcasts, videos - A serif reading view with adjustable typography - Reading Insights: streaks, reading calendar, and when-you-read patterns - Organize feeds into folders - Import and export subscriptions with OPML - Keyboard shortcuts and menu commands on iPad - Refresh feeds in the background or manually - Shortcuts actions, Home Screen widgets, and alternate app icons Otter Pro, the optional subscription, adds ad-free reading, custom Smart Folders, TL;DR article summaries, and the full Reading Insights dashboard. Otter is not trying to be a social network, inbox, or power-user dashboard. It is a practical little RSS reader for people who still like the open web. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://anotterrss.com/privacy

Screenshots

Heartfeed RSS Reader4 screens
An Otter RSS Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Heartfeed RSS Reader at 4.8 against An Otter RSS Reader's 4.1. Heartfeed RSS Reader also leads on review sentiment (89% vs 60%) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). An Otter RSS Reader's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 months). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Heartfeed RSS Reader sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and An Otter RSS Reader sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Heartfeed RSS Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 90 and 73 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 89% of Heartfeed RSS Reader's written reviews are positive against 60% of An Otter RSS Reader's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Heartfeed RSS Reader ships an update every 2 months, An Otter RSS Reader every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 12, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Heartfeed RSS Reader versus An Otter RSS Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHeartfeed RSS ReaderAn Otter RSS Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (90 ratings) — better4.1 (73 ratings)
Positive reviews89.2% of reviews — better60.0% of reviews
Number of ratings90 — better73
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size14 MB45 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperOzymandiasJosh Holtz

Customer experience

Heartfeed RSS Reader

All ratings90 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral2.2%
Negative4.4%
Written reviews93 reviews
Positive89.2%
Neutral5.4%
Negative5.4%

An Otter RSS Reader

All ratings73 ratings
Positive75.3%
Neutral8.2%
Negative16.4%
Written reviews110 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative30.0%

User reviews

Heartfeed RSS Reader

From 90 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎯 Perfect Pulse replacement with grid/tile layout
  • 👍 Simple, intuitive, and streamlined interface
  • ⚡ Fast and efficient news consumption
  • 🔄 Reliable syncing across devices
  • 📱 Clean, uncluttered design without bloat

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes on opening and usage
  • 💰 Paywall for unlimited feeds ($2.99)
  • 🔍 No search functionality across feeds
  • 📸 Limited thumbnail/image display options
  • 🌍 No multi-language or RTL script support

An Otter RSS Reader

From 73 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Elegant and convenient
  • 👍 Great app
  • 👍 Cute RSS reader in every way
  • 👍 Works Great, syncs on all iOS Devices
  • 👍 More than an 'okay minimalistic app'

Room to improve

  • 🐛 It does not work
  • 🐛 Abandoned app
  • 🐛 Bug list view dark mode
  • 🐛 Only shows a couple of entries
  • 🐛 Missing keyboard shortcuts

Bugs and requests

Heartfeed RSS Reader

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • App crashes on launch
  • Crashes after adding feeds
  • Multiple crashes during normal usage
  • App fails to start after recent updates
  • iCloud syncing issues (requires troubleshooting)
Show 1 more
  • Bright reader screen conflicts with dark mode setting

Requested features

13 requests
  • Search functionality with highlighting across feeds
  • Individual mark-as-read buttons per feed
  • Thumbnail images in grid view
  • Apple Watch app support
  • Offline reading capability
Show 8 more
  • Multi-language support including RTL scripts
  • Integration with Feedly and other accounts
  • Preserve feed groups on OPML import
  • Dark mode for reader screen
  • Feed discovery page with popular feeds index
  • Ability to save/bookmark articles
  • Variable font sizes in grid view
  • Apple News+ integration

An Otter RSS Reader

Reported bugs

10 issues
  • It does not work
  • Articles flicker in and out of existence and about 30 of them don't show at all
  • The list views are messed up with many black spaces where a feed item should appear but is completely black
  • Reader mode seems to not work
  • Articles show up in duplicated often, articles had been marked as read will show up again as unread
Show 5 more
  • Feeds disappear after closing the app
  • Feeds don't refresh
  • Crashes when importing OPML files
  • Crashing when importing opml files
  • Crashes when trying to import an OPML file

Requested features

13 requests
  • Encripted iCloud backups would be welcome
  • Mark articles read on scrolling past them
  • Option to hide read articles by default instead of manually hiding all the time
  • When clicking on a top level folder it expands the folder clicking the arrow should expand the folder
  • Needs swipe gestures example swipe right mark read/unread swipe left add to favorite
Show 8 more
  • Need to add an option to sort by oldest and newest first
  • If in reader mode hitting the safari button should open in the in app browser instead of leaving the app
  • Under notifications there should be an option to show badge count with unread articles
  • Should be an option to see favicons to the left of the headline to quickly see at a glance which site posted the story as well as an option to enable images if there is one in the story
  • MiniFlux Sync would be nice
  • Offline reading?
  • Dark mode option
  • Advanced analytics dashboard

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Heartfeed RSS Reader

One-time5
  • Tipping the developer$0.99
  • Unlimited feeds$2.99
  • Tipping the developer$2.99
Show 2 more
  • Even more tip to the developer$9.99
  • Maximum tip to the developer$24.99
6 purchases

An Otter RSS Reader

Subscriptions2
  • Otter Pro Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Otter Pro Annual7 Days trial$9.991 Year
One-time4
  • Small Tip2 variants$0.99
  • Medium Tip2 variants$2.99
  • Large Tip2 variants$5.99
Show 1 more
  • Mega Tip2 variants$12.99

Questions

Is Heartfeed RSS Reader free?
Heartfeed RSS Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is An Otter RSS Reader free?
An Otter RSS Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Heartfeed RSS Reader or An Otter RSS Reader?
Heartfeed RSS Reader is rated higher. Heartfeed RSS Reader averages 4.8 out of 5 from 90 ratings, while An Otter RSS Reader averages 4.1 from 73 ratings.
Do Heartfeed RSS Reader or An Otter RSS Reader have ads?
Neither Heartfeed RSS Reader nor An Otter RSS Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Heartfeed RSS Reader or An Otter RSS Reader?
Heartfeed RSS Reader ships an update every 2 months, and An Otter RSS Reader every 3 days. Most recently, Heartfeed RSS Reader was updated on October 12, 2026 and An Otter RSS Reader on October 12, 2026.

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