Comparison

Instapaper vs NetNewsWire

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

Head to head
About

Instapaper

Save articles from the web for later reading, with a clean, clutter-free experience. Access your saved content offline, anywhere, anytime. Features include text-to-speech narration and customizable reading options.

Highlights
  • Save web articles for offline reading
  • Clutter-free reading experience
  • Text-to-speech narration
  • Customizable fonts and themes
  • Highlighting and note-taking
  • Article organization with folders
Features
Read full description

Instapaper is the simplest way to save and store articles for reading: offline, on-the-go, anytime, anywhere, perfectly formatted. Instapaper for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch provides a mobile-optimized text view that makes reading Internet content a clean and uncluttered experience. Instapaper also enhances the standard reading experience with features like text-to-speech. Instapaper has been inducted into the iPhone and iPad Hall of Fame, received Macworld Editor's Choice Award, and has also been featured in publications including Wired, TIME, Daring Fireball, and The Verge, among others. Core Features: - Strip away all clutter and save the content of web pages into iOS-optimized formatting. - Read anywhere! No internet, no problem: access your articles on airplanes, subways, elevators, or Wi-Fi-only devices away from Internet connections. - Save to Instapaper from other iOS applications with one tap. Additional Features: - Control every aspect of your reading experience with a variety of font, color themes, and spacing options. - Find that great quote you want to remember and share? Instapaper makes it easy to highlight and add notes to text in any article. - Have your Instapaper articles narrated to you with text-to-speech. Just turn up the volume on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch and relax! - Sort your list of articles by popularity, date, and article length. - Folders for easy organization. Instapaper also offers an optional Instapaper Premium subscription for $5.99/month or $59.99/year. With Instapaper Premium you receive: - Full-text search for articles in your account - Unlimited highlights and notes. - Text-to-speech Playlist to seamlessly listen to multiple articles. - Unlimited use of the speed reading feature to help you get through articles up to 3x faster. On sign up for Instapaper Premium, payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at the confirmation of purchase. The subscription automatically renews unless it is canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel your subscriptions by going to your App Store account settings after purchase. Terms of service: https://www.instapaper.com/terms Privacy policy: https://www.instapaper.com/privacy

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

Screenshots

Instapaper4 screens
NetNewsWire4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: NetNewsWire at none against Instapaper's 2. NetNewsWire also leads on review sentiment (85% vs 64%) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). Instapaper's advantage is ratings volume (3.5K vs 882). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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. Instapaper sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. NetNewsWire asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Instapaper against 4.7 for NetNewsWire. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3.5K and 882 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 64% of Instapaper's written reviews are positive against 85% of NetNewsWire's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Instapaper ships an update every 2 weeks, NetNewsWire monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Instapaper versus NetNewsWire: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterInstapaperNetNewsWire
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (3.5K ratings)4.7 (882 ratings) — better
Positive reviews64.1% of reviews84.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3.5K — better882
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#135 — better#153
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size49 MB27 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperInstant Paper, Inc.Brent Simmons

Customer experience

Instapaper

All ratings3,537 ratings
Positive89.8%
Neutral3.3%
Negative6.8%
Written reviews1,364 reviews
Positive64.1%
Neutral9.1%
Negative26.8%

NetNewsWire

All ratings882 ratings
Positive93.8%
Neutral2.3%
Negative4.0%
Written reviews321 reviews
Positive84.7%
Neutral7.5%
Negative7.8%

Bugs and requests

Instapaper

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Speak feature freezes on most articles
  • Pagination issues causing text to be cut off
  • Folders and archives disappearing
  • Inability to save articles from certain websites
  • Subscription not unlocking premium features

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for tables and charts
  • Improve text-to-speech quality
  • Implement a 'go back to beginning of article' feature
  • Add support for EPUB files
  • Introduce a 'random article' feature

NetNewsWire

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Instapaper

Subscriptions2
  • Instapaper Premium$5.991 Month
  • Instapaper Premium$59.991 Year
None

NetNewsWire

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Instapaper free?
Instapaper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is NetNewsWire free?
NetNewsWire is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Instapaper or NetNewsWire?
NetNewsWire is rated higher. Instapaper averages 4.6 out of 5 from 3.5K ratings, while NetNewsWire averages 4.7 from 882 ratings.
Do Instapaper or NetNewsWire have ads?
Neither Instapaper nor NetNewsWire shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Instapaper or NetNewsWire?
Instapaper ships an update every 2 weeks, and NetNewsWire monthly. Most recently, Instapaper was updated on September 25, 2026 and NetNewsWire on September 23, 2026.
Which is more popular, Instapaper or NetNewsWire?
Instapaper currently peaks at #135 in the App Store charts, and NetNewsWire at #153. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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