Comparison

NetNewsWire vs Readfold

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

Head to head
About

NetNewsWire

This app aggregates articles from your favorite blogs and news sites, offering a faster and more organized way to consume content. It provides control over your news feed, eliminating the need to visit multiple websites or rely on social media algorithms. Enjoy a streamlined reading experience with customizable features and syncing capabilities.

Highlights
  • Direct feed downloading
  • iCloud and third-party syncing
  • Customizable article themes
  • Reader view
  • Starred articles
  • Smart feeds
  • Home screen widgets
Currently charting
Read full description

It’s like podcasts, but for reading. NetNewsWire is a free and open source RSS reader. It shows you articles from your favorite blogs and news sites and keeps track of what you’ve read. It’s fast, stable, and accessible. If you’ve been going from site to site in your browser looking for new articles to read — or counting on the unreliable algorithms of corporate social media — let NetNewsWire bring you the news you want. It’s easy and fun. And it puts you, not billionaires, in control of your news. Features: * Direct feed downloading * Syncing via iCloud, Feedbin, Feedly, BazQux, Inoreader, NewsBlur, The Old Reader, and FreshRSS * Multiple accounts * Custom article themes * Reader view * Share sheet * Starred articles * All Unread and Today smart feeds * Folders * Importing and exporting OPML feed lists * Background refreshing * Searching * Hiding read articles * Timeline customization * Keyboard shortcuts * Context menus * Home screen widgets for today, unread, and starred articles * Share extension

About

Readfold

Features
Read full description

Readfold takes the sites you choose and lays them out like a newspaper front page — headlines in different sizes, arranged so your eye can move. Not one more endless vertical list. WHAT PEOPLE USE IT FOR - Scanning headlines from several business papers on one page - Following tech news and engineering blogs in one place - Reading world news in the original language - Keeping favourite blogs and newsletters together (where they offer RSS) WHY IT FEELS DIFFERENT A list treats every article the same. A front page does not. Readfold gives bigger space to some stories and smaller space to others, so you can take in twenty headlines in the time a list gives you five. START WITHOUT HUNTING FOR FEEDS 251 recommended sources, across 7 languages and 8 topics — news, tech, business, science, sports, culture, design and more. Choose the languages you read, tap a few sources, and your first front page is ready. You can still paste any RSS or Atom address by hand, and Readfold will find the feed from a plain site address too. WHAT YOU GET - A front page that rebuilds itself as new articles arrive - Folders to keep your sources in order - Save for later and favourites, kept on your device - Search across everything you subscribe to - Read inside the app or jump to the original page - Quiet notifications: new articles, and a nudge if you have been away - Dark and light, and a text size that respects your system setting - Seven interface languages: English, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, German, French NO ALGORITHM, NO ADS There is no feed ranking deciding what you should see. You subscribed to it, so it shows up. There are no ads anywhere in the app, and no advertising ID is collected. YOUR SUBSCRIPTIONS STAY YOURS Signing in is optional — every feature works without an account. Sign in only if you want the same subscriptions on more than one device. If you do, your subscription list is stored in Korea (Seoul region), because what you choose to read is the most personal thing this app touches. Article titles, what you read, and your searches are never sent to a server. Delete your account any time from Settings, and everything on the server goes with it. Readfold is a quiet reader for people who still want to choose their own news. ■ Readfold Pro (optional) The front page, the keyword page, the standard morning brief and interest packs stay free. Pro is for people who want things faster and their own way. - Instant keyword alerts — when a keyword shows up in your sources, you hear about it right away. Sign in and our server checks every 15 minutes even while your phone rests (free: one keyword, checked when your phone fetches new articles) - Make your brief — morning and evening, keyword stories first, only the folders and sources you pick, up to 10 headlines - Ad-free, for good — neither plan has ads now; if ads ever come to the free version, Pro stays clear Monthly $2.99 (first month discounted) or yearly $19.99 (7-day free trial); prices vary by country. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends, and you can cancel anytime in your store account's subscription settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://koat.co.kr/terms/privacy_policy.html

Screenshots

NetNewsWire4 screens
Readfold4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: NetNewsWire at none against Readfold's 2. NetNewsWire also leads on chart position (#102 vs unranked). Readfold's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs monthly) and iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). On price, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Readfold sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. NetNewsWire asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NetNewsWire ships an update monthly, Readfold every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
NetNewsWire versus Readfold: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNetNewsWireReadfold
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (890 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews83.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings890 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
Best chart rank#102 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.5 — better
Further details — not scored
Size27 MB62 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperBrent SimmonsKorea Analytics Technology

In-app purchases

None

NetNewsWire

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Readfold

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly14 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly14 Days trial$17.991 Year

Questions

Is NetNewsWire free?
NetNewsWire is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Readfold free?
Readfold is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do NetNewsWire or Readfold have ads?
Neither NetNewsWire nor Readfold shows ads.
Which is updated more often, NetNewsWire or Readfold?
NetNewsWire ships an update monthly, and Readfold every 4 days. Most recently, NetNewsWire was updated on November 7, 2026 and Readfold on November 6, 2026.

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