ProPublica vs POLITICO
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ProPublica
Access in-depth investigative journalism covering critical topics like government, healthcare, and criminal justice. Enjoy a streamlined reading experience with offline support and notifications for major stories.
- Latest investigative journalism
- Reporting on government and policy
- Coverage of healthcare and criminal justice
- Environmental reporting
- Streamlined reading experience
- Offline support
- Story notifications
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• Get the latest independent investigative journalism from ProPublica. • Dig deep into reporting about government and policy, health care, criminal justice, the environment and more. • Get a streamlined reading experience, with smart offline support and notifications for our biggest stories.
POLITICO
Get real-time political news and analysis delivered directly to your phone. This app offers a streamlined way to access breaking news and in-depth stories from a leading political news source.
- Up-to-the-minute insight
- Political news analysis
- Breaking news alerts
- Sleek and navigable design
- Dynamic stories
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Stay up to speed on the political news driving the day with the POLITICO iPhone app, featuring up-to-the-minute insight and analysis delivered straight to your phone. The sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's dynamic stories and breaking news alerts.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ProPublica at 75% against POLITICO's 29%. ProPublica also leads on ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). POLITICO's advantage is ratings volume (49K vs 104) and update cadence (monthly vs every 4 months). On price, in-app purchases, chart position 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
POLITICO holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: POLITICO has 49K ratings behind it against 104, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of ProPublica's written reviews are positive against 29% of POLITICO's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
ProPublica ships an update every 4 months, POLITICO monthly. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.
| Parameter | ProPublica | POLITICO |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (104 ratings) | 4.7 (49K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 74.8% of reviews — better | 29.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 104 | 49K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Best chart rank | #47 — better | #53 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 7 MB | 129 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | ProPublica | POLITICO, LLC |
Customer experience
ProPublica
POLITICO
User reviews
ProPublica
From 104 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 📰 High-quality investigative journalism
- ✅ Factual, unbiased reporting
- 🎯 In-depth, well-researched stories
- 🆓 Ad-free content
- 🧹 Clean, simple interface
Room to improve
- 🌙 Bright white screen (no dark mode)
- 📤 Social sharing doesn't include headlines
- ⚠️ Outdated app updates
- 🖼️ Image sizing issues on older devices
- 🔄 Slow initial loading times
POLITICO
From 49K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent news coverage
- 🔍 Thorough and insightful analysis
- 🗞️ Reliable and trustworthy journalism
- 📊 Valuable data and metrics
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔄 Difficulty refreshing content
- 📱 Poor app performance and navigation
- 🔍 Biased or partisan reporting
- 🔍 Lack of objectivity
Bugs and requests
ProPublica
Reported bugs
10 issues- App crashes on launch
- App won't open or load content
- Stories don't appear when clicked
- MuckReads section fails to load
- Data filter dropdowns non-functional
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Articles don't fit screen (horizontal scrolling required)
- Images not resizing properly
- App freezes phone
- Device registration issues
- Content never populates
Requested features
9 requests- Dark mode for nighttime reading
- Bookmark/save articles function
- Home screen widget
- Adjustable font size
- Persistent font size settings
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- iOS 18 theme adherence
- Read-later app integration (Instapaper, Pocket)
- Improved article navigation
- Better browsing of older stories
POLITICO
Reported bugs
4 issues- App freezes and crashes
- Inability to refresh content
- Notifications not working properly
- Compatibility issues with newer devices
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to adjust font size
- Offline reading mode
- Improved article organization and search
- More balanced political coverage
In-app purchases
ProPublica
No in-app purchases
POLITICO
No in-app purchases
