# The Progress vs Franklin County Now

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Franklin County Now at none against The Progress's 4. Franklin County Now also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.6). On price, update cadence and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. The Progress sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Franklin County Now asks for nothing beyond the download.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | The Progress | Franklin County Now |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.1 (7 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-progress-index/id1638994551/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **7** | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 184 MB | 10 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [USA TODAY Co., Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/404843797) | [Saga Communications](https://appshunter.io/developer/333180331) |

## What reviewers say

### The Progress

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-progress-index/id1638994551)

Access in-depth local journalism, breaking news, and engaging multimedia content. Customize your reading experience with features like offline access, adjustable text size, and night mode. Enjoy a streamlined interface for news, sports, and community events.

**Highlights:** In-depth journalism, Breaking news alerts, Streamlined multimedia experience, Offline reading, Customizable text size and night mode, eNewspaper access

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Digital Rate | $9.99 | per month |
| Monthly Digital Rate | $14.99 | per month |
| Monthly Digital Subscription | $16.99 | per month |
| Annual Digital Subscription | $69.99 | per year |


### Franklin County Now

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/franklin-county-now/id6737202973)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is The Progress free?

The Progress is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Franklin County Now free?

Franklin County Now is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do The Progress or Franklin County Now have ads?

The Progress shows ads; Franklin County Now does not.

### Which is updated more often, The Progress or Franklin County Now?

The Progress ships an update monthly, and Franklin County Now monthly. Most recently, The Progress was updated on October 24, 2026 and Franklin County Now on October 15, 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.*