Hacker Feed vs Hacko for Hacker News
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hacker Feed
A fast and elegant application for reading Hacker News stories. Browse top, new, and specialized sections with beautiful typography and thumbnail options. Includes built-in reader mode, comment management, and iCloud syncing for bookmarks.
- Browse Top, New, Show HN, Ask HN, Jobs stories
- Beautiful typography with compact/large thumbnails
- Built-in Safari view with reader mode
- Expand/collapse story comments and threads
- Bookmark favorite stories with iCloud sync
- Share story links to other apps
- System Dark Mode support
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Hacker Feed is a modern, fast and elegant app for reading Hacker News. Features: • Swipe between tabs to browse Top, New, Show HN, Ask HN and Jobs stories • Scroll through stories in beautiful typography, along with compact or large thumbnails • Open story links in the built-in Safari view, with reader mode support • Expand and collapse story comments and threads via intuitive tap gestures • Bookmark your favourite stories to read later, synced across all your devices via iCloud • Easily share story links to other apps • System Dark Mode support for browsing in low-lighting conditions • Universal app - split view support on iPad for easy viewing • Optimised for performance Contact me @ken_toh on Twitter, if there are any issues. Enjoy!
Hacko for Hacker News
This client offers a unique way to navigate Hacker News discussions, keeping comments readable at any depth. Enjoy smooth navigation, custom boards, search, and a reading list for an enhanced experience.
- Alternative comment tree display
- Maintains comment readability
- Swipe navigation
- Custom boards
- Search functionality
- Reading list
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It's a Hacker News client that uses an alternative way of displaying the comment tree. Advantages over traditional interfaces: - Comment width doesn't get narrower no matter how deep in the tree you are - You always see the parent of the comment you're currently reading - Swiping allows you to move in and out of subtrees with animated transitions that you fully control - You can easily skip subtrees that don't interest you by simply scrolling As a result it's easier to maintain the context and to keep track of where you are in the Hacker News discussion tree. There are also: custom boards, search, in-thread search, anchors, reading list, recent items. Enjoy your Hacker News reading experience! Developer is not affiliated with Hacker News (https://news.ycombinator.com/) in any way.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Hacker Feed at none against Hacko for Hacker News's 5. Hacker Feed also leads on review sentiment (83% vs 67%) and update cadence (every 5 days vs fortnightly). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Hacko for Hacker News sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Hacker Feed asks for nothing beyond the download.
Hacker Feed holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hacker Feed has 436 ratings behind it against 31, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of Hacker Feed's written reviews are positive against 67% of Hacko for Hacker News's.
Hacker Feed ships an update every 5 days, Hacko for Hacker News fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hacker Feed | Hacko for Hacker News |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (436 ratings) — better | 4.6 (31 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 82.5% of reviews — better | 66.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 436 — better | 31 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 12 MB | 10 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Ken Toh | Andrii Sievrikov |
Customer experience
Hacker Feed
Hacko for Hacker News
Bugs and requests
Hacker Feed
Reported bugs
4 issues- Cached stories not updating with latest content
- Stories not loading
- Intermittent loading delays when opening links
- Thread collapsing on accidental screen touch
Requested features
13 requests- Dark mode
- Adjustable text/font size
- User account login for voting and commenting
- Ability to post new threads
- Search functionality
Show 8 moreShow fewer
- Edge browser support on iOS
- Export/backup bookmarks feature
- Text selection in comments for dictionary lookup
- Dim visited posts
- Compact feed view option
- Landscape video support
- Pull-to-refresh for new content
- Open HN links within app instead of external browser
Hacko for Hacker News
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Hacker Feed
No in-app purchases
Hacko for Hacker News
- Tip - Regular Tip$0.99
- Tip - Big Tip$3.99
- Premium$5.99
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- Tip - Large Tip$6.99
- Tip - Huge Tip$9.99
Questions
Is Hacker Feed free?
Is Hacko for Hacker News free?
Which has better reviews, Hacker Feed or Hacko for Hacker News?
Do Hacker Feed or Hacko for Hacker News have ads?
Which is updated more often, Hacker Feed or Hacko for Hacker News?
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