Comparison

Kanopy vs CloudLibrary NewsStand

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

Head to head
About

Kanopy

Access a vast library of films and documentaries for free with your library card. Enjoy ad-free streaming of award-winning movies, The Criterion Collection, and curated content for children, with new titles added regularly.

Highlights
  • Free film streaming
  • Ad-free viewing
  • Library card required
  • Festival award-winning films
  • Documentaries
  • The Criterion Collection
  • Kanopy Kids with parental controls
Features
Read full description

Stream thousands of films for free without ads through your library. Sign up with your library card and start watching festival award-winning films, thought-provoking documentaries, The Criterion Collection, and more with new titles added weekly. Browse Kanopy Kids for unlimited age-appropriate shows and movies with access to parental controls. Available on mobile, web, and living room devices.

About

CloudLibrary NewsStand

Access thousands of magazines and newspapers from around the world for free with your library membership. Enjoy unlimited reading, download issues, and sync across all your devices. Discover a vast selection of titles in multiple languages and categories.

Highlights
  • Unlimited reading of magazines and newspapers
  • Access to over 9500 titles
  • Available in 60 languages
  • Download issues for offline reading
  • Sync across multiple devices
  • Bookmark pages and articles
  • Daily updates and featured content
Features
Read full description

Welcome to OCLC digital solutions for library users, a non-profit organization trusted by over 30,000 libraries worldwide for our digital services, conceived for and by librarians. With CloudLibrary NewsStand you have unlimited access to thousands of magazines and newspapers in English and from around the world, free only with your participating library located in the US, Canada (except Quebec), Australia and New Zealand. CloudLibrary NewsStand by BibliMags(tm), powered by Magzter, presents the widest catalog from the most popular to the often hard to find specialized titles. You also have access to a whole world of cultural diversity from local and worldwide communities! Users will enjoy the simplicity and ease to find their preferred magazines and newspapers, download them and read them on any mobile device, PC or Mac. Patrons may also use the ‘CloudLibrary’ app from OCLC, which integrates the CloudLibrary NewsStand service. Features: - THE LARGEST NUMBER OF TITLES: Over 9500 titles from the most popular to the most specialized magazines and newspapers - ALL-YOU-CAN-READ: Unlimited reading of all titles, issues and articles! - EXTENSIVE SELECTION: Enjoy titles in all categories: entertainment, fashion, well-being, health, teen, culture, sport, celebrities, history, travel, newspapers, journals, nature, and many more - AVAILABLE IN 60 LANGUAGES: Find an extensive offering in English, along with the most complete international catalog including in: Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Hindi, Swedish and more - NEVER MISS OUT ON AN ISSUE: Get the latest issues and back issues - DAILY UPDATES: Get our daily featured magazines, newspapers and news - READ ANYWHERE AND ANYTIME: Read online or download and keep issues on your device - BOOKMARK pages and articles you want to read again - DOWNLOAD ONCE AND READ ANYWHERE: Sync your magazines, newspapers and account info on all your compatible devices on PC/Mac, iPhone, iPad and other smartphone/tablet devices IT’S ALL FREE TO YOU, only with your participating library membership! Check with your local library for availability.

Screenshots

Kanopy4 screens
CloudLibrary NewsStand4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Kanopy at 72% against CloudLibrary NewsStand's 14%. Kanopy also leads on rating (4.8 vs 2.9) and ratings volume (153K vs 33). CloudLibrary NewsStand's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Kanopy holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Kanopy has 153K ratings behind it against 33, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 72% of Kanopy's written reviews are positive against 14% of CloudLibrary NewsStand's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kanopy ships an update every 2 weeks, CloudLibrary NewsStand every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Kanopy versus CloudLibrary NewsStand: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKanopyCloudLibrary NewsStand
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (153K ratings) — better2.9 (33 ratings)
Positive reviews71.9% of reviews — better14.3% of reviews
Number of ratings153K — better33
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
Best chart rank#181 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size103 MB50 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperKanopyMagzter Inc.

Customer experience

Kanopy

All ratings152,540 ratings
Positive95.9%
Neutral2.1%
Negative1.9%
Written reviews818 reviews
Positive71.9%
Neutral7.7%
Negative20.4%

CloudLibrary NewsStand

All ratings32 ratings
Positive43.8%
Neutral12.5%
Negative43.8%
Written reviews14 reviews
Positive14.3%
Neutral7.1%
Negative78.6%

Bugs and requests

Kanopy

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes and freezes frequently
  • Login issues, unable to sign in or access account
  • Chromecast and TV streaming problems
  • Video playback issues, including blurry or out of sync
  • Inconsistent behavior when resuming or rewatching movies

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add ability to pause, rewind, and resume movies without using credits
  • Improve search and browsing functionality
  • Provide more content filtering and parental control options
  • Add support for offline viewing and downloads
  • Enhance Chromecast and TV integration
Show 1 more
  • Improve video quality and playback stability

CloudLibrary NewsStand

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Kanopy

No in-app purchases

None

CloudLibrary NewsStand

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Kanopy free?
Kanopy is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is CloudLibrary NewsStand free?
CloudLibrary NewsStand is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Kanopy or CloudLibrary NewsStand?
Kanopy is rated higher. Kanopy averages 4.8 out of 5 from 153K ratings, while CloudLibrary NewsStand averages 2.9 from 33 ratings.
Do Kanopy or CloudLibrary NewsStand have ads?
Neither Kanopy nor CloudLibrary NewsStand shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Kanopy or CloudLibrary NewsStand?
Kanopy ships an update every 2 weeks, and CloudLibrary NewsStand every 3 months. Most recently, Kanopy was updated on November 7, 2026 and CloudLibrary NewsStand on November 3, 2026.

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