The Spinoff vs Hail
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Spinoff
This app delivers daily news and cultural commentary from Aotearoa. It features a mix of current affairs, humor, and in-depth stories presented through text, podcasts, and video.
- Daily Aotearoa publications
- Current affairs coverage
- Cultural commentary
- Text articles
- Podcasts
- Video content
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New Zealand’s home for independent journalism, illuminating perspectives and good times
Hail
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The Hail app is the mobile feed for everything your school, sports club or organisation publishes in Hail. When they publish something new — news, notices, newsletters or publications — it appears instantly in your feed. Always current. Always accurate. No searching websites. No missed emails. Just the updates that matter. Download the Hail App, find your organisation and follow. No login or password required. As more schools, sports clubs and community groups join Hail, you’ll be able to follow them all in one live feed. For participating schools, parents can also report absences directly through the app.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Hail at fortnightly against The Spinoff's every 3 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
The Spinoff ships an update every 3 months, Hail fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Spinoff | Hail |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (1 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 34.9% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 1 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 59 MB | 39 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hex Work Ltd | Hail |
In-app purchases
The Spinoff
No in-app purchases
Hail
No in-app purchases
