# Instapaper vs Hatena Bookmark

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Instapaper at 64% against Hatena Bookmark's 19%. Instapaper also leads on ratings volume (3.5K vs 17) and chart position (#167 vs unranked). Hatena Bookmark's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Instapaper sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Hatena Bookmark asks for nothing beyond the download.

Hatena Bookmark holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Instapaper has 3.5K ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 64% of Instapaper's written reviews are positive against 19% of Hatena Bookmark's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Instapaper ships an update every 2 weeks, Hatena Bookmark monthly. Both last shipped on October 16, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Instapaper | Hatena Bookmark |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (3.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/instapaper/id288545208/reviews) | **[4.8 (17 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hatena-bookmark/id354976659/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **3.5K** | 17 |
| Positive reviews | **64.1% of reviews** | 18.9% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | **#167** | — |
| Size | 49 MB | 75 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Instant Paper, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/284942716) | [株式会社はてな](https://appshunter.io/developer/354976662) |

## What reviewers say

### Instapaper

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/instapaper/id288545208)

**Currently charting:** #167 Top Free · News, #187 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

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:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Instapaper Premium | $5.99 | per month |
| Instapaper Premium | $59.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Efficient reading experience
- 👍 Clean, minimalist design
- 💡 Useful features like highlighting and notes
- 🚀 Seamless integration with various platforms
- 👍 Reliable and stable app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Bugs and crashes
- 🔒 Concerns about data privacy and GDPR compliance
- 💰 Subscription price increase
- 🔍 Unreliable search functionality
- 🚫 Inability to delete account

**Reported bugs**

- 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**

- 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


### Hatena Bookmark

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hatena-bookmark/id354976659)

Save and share Japanese news, blogs, and websites. Discover trending content, follow topics, and organize articles for later reading. Connect with friends and popular users within the service.

**Highlights:** Save and share web content, Discover trending Japanese news, Follow specific topics, Read articles later, Search bookmarks, Connect with users

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Instapaper free?

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

### Is Hatena Bookmark free?

Hatena Bookmark is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Instapaper or Hatena Bookmark?

Hatena Bookmark is rated higher. Instapaper averages 4.6 out of 5 from 3.5K ratings, while Hatena Bookmark averages 4.8 from 17 ratings.

### Do Instapaper or Hatena Bookmark have ads?

Neither Instapaper nor Hatena Bookmark shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Instapaper or Hatena Bookmark?

Instapaper ships an update every 2 weeks, and Hatena Bookmark monthly. Most recently, Instapaper was updated on October 16, 2026 and Hatena Bookmark on October 16, 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.*