# Hacker News Tech Reader vs AI news for devs

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AI news for devs at none against Hacker News Tech Reader's 6. AI news for devs also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.7). Hacker News Tech Reader's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (1.6K vs 11). On price and review sentiment there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Hacker News Tech Reader sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. AI news for devs asks for nothing beyond the download.

AI news for devs holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hacker News Tech Reader has 1.6K ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 94% of Hacker News Tech Reader's written reviews are positive against 98% of AI news for devs's.

Hacker News Tech Reader ships an update every 3 days, AI news for devs weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hacker News Tech Reader | AI news for devs |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (1.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hacker-news-tech-reader-hack/id1464477788/reviews) | **[4.9 (11 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ai-news-for-devs-devbytes/id6742091405/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.6K** | 11 |
| Positive reviews | 93.6% of reviews | **98.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 days** | Weekly |
| Monetization | **Free** | Ad-supported |
| Size | 28 MB | 148 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Pranoy Chowdhury](https://appshunter.io/developer/952263202) | [Candela Labs Private Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1796758823) |

## What reviewers say

### Hacker News Tech Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hacker-news-tech-reader-hack/id1464477788)

This app offers a beautiful and intuitive way to read the latest tech, startup, and STEM news from Hacker News. It features customizable reading options, push notifications, and advanced search capabilities, all without ads or subscriptions.

**Highlights:** Ad-free and subscription-free experience, Push notifications for replies, Nested comment threads, Advanced search with filters, Customizable fonts and themes, Article sharing and archiving, Support for multiple browsers

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Nice Tip | $3.99 | one-time |
| Kind Tip | $6.99 | one-time |
| Generous Tip | $9.99 | one-time |
| Amazing Tip | $12.99 | one-time |
| Hack Premium | $17.99 | one-time |
| Godzilla Tip | $19.99 | one-time |


### AI news for devs

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ai-news-for-devs-devbytes/id6742091405)

Consolidate coding, tech, and AI news into a single, distraction-free feed. Access bite-sized updates, in-depth articles, interactive tutorials, and coding challenges. Features an AI sidekick for code explanation and debugging.

**Highlights:** Bite-sized tech news snippets, In-depth articles on senior dev topics, Interactive demos and tutorials, Coding challenges with solutions, AI sidekick for code explanation, Distraction-free learning space

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hacker News Tech Reader free?

Hacker News Tech Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is AI news for devs free?

AI news for devs is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Hacker News Tech Reader or AI news for devs?

AI news for devs is rated higher. Hacker News Tech Reader averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.6K ratings, while AI news for devs averages 4.9 from 11 ratings.

### Do Hacker News Tech Reader or AI news for devs have ads?

AI news for devs shows ads; Hacker News Tech Reader does not.

### Which is updated more often, Hacker News Tech Reader or AI news for devs?

Hacker News Tech Reader ships an update every 3 days, and AI news for devs weekly. Most recently, Hacker News Tech Reader was updated on November 11, 2026 and AI news for devs on November 10, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*