Comparison

Phys.org vs New Scientist

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

Head to head
About

Phys.org

Stay updated with daily science and technology news across various fields like physics, space, biology, and engineering. Bookmark and share articles easily. Access a selection of spotlight stories for free, with an option to subscribe for unlimited content.

Highlights
  • Daily science and technology news
  • Covers physics, space, biology, engineering, and more
  • Bookmark favorite stories
  • Share articles
  • Ads-free experience
  • Free spotlight stories
Features
Read full description

Daily spotlight science and technology news stories from Phys.org. This includes stories in the fields of physics, nanotechnology, electronics, space and earth sciences, biology, chemistry, computer sciences, engineering, mathematics, etc. Readers may bookmark and share favorite stories from the app. The Phys.org app is ads-free. Free app content is limited to selected spotlight stories. Access to Phys.org's full content is available with the monthly subscription plan for just $0.99. Your first subscription week is free. Monthly subscription options: - Unlimited digital access on any device for $0.99 per month. You will be charged in your local currency at the prevailing exchange rate as defined by App Store. - The app offers 7 days trial. At the end of the free trial period, the full price of the subscription will be charged thereafter. Cancellations must occur 24 hours before the end of the subscription period to avoid being charged. - Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. - Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. - Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. - No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period. Privacy policy can be found at http://sciencex.com/help/privacy/ Terms of use: https://sciencex.com/help/terms/ Feedback and comments: https://sciencex.com/help/feedback/

About

New Scientist

Access award-winning journalism on science and technology. Read daily news, watch videos, and listen to podcasts covering topics from AI to quantum physics. Log in with your subscription for full access.

Highlights
  • Daily news updates
  • Latest issue access
  • Science videos
  • Weekly podcast
  • Audio articles
Features
Read full description

Discover award-winning journalism with the New Scientist app. From artificial intelligence to climate change, and the latest innovations in healthcare to the mysteries of quantum physics and the human mind, New Scientist is your trusted, impartial source of information about what is going on in the world. Read daily news updates and our latest issues Watch fascinating videos – from robotics to rare animal behaviour Listen to our weekly podcast and audio articles Download the app for free now. Already a subscriber? Log in with your newscientist.com account to unlock your full access. Need help? Visit newscientist.com/help

Screenshots

Phys.org4 screens
New Scientist4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: New Scientist at 69% against Phys.org's 18%. New Scientist also leads on rating (4.8 vs 2.8) and ratings volume (5.5K vs 70). Phys.org's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Phys.org sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per month and New Scientist sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

New Scientist holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: New Scientist has 5.5K ratings behind it against 70, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of Phys.org's written reviews are positive against 69% of New Scientist's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Phys.org ships an update every 5 weeks, New Scientist every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Phys.org versus New Scientist: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhys.orgNew Scientist
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.8 (70 ratings)4.8 (5.5K ratings) — better
Positive reviews18.5% of reviews68.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings705.5K — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#71 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB47 MB
Age rating17+12+
DeveloperOmicron Tech LtdNew Scientist Ltd

Customer experience

Phys.org

All ratings70 ratings
Positive37.1%
Neutral15.7%
Negative47.1%
Written reviews65 reviews
Positive18.5%
Neutral15.4%
Negative66.2%

New Scientist

All ratings5,476 ratings
Positive96.2%
Neutral1.6%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews213 reviews
Positive68.5%
Neutral6.6%
Negative24.9%

User reviews

Phys.org

From 70 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great content source
  • 👍 Informative articles
  • 👍 Smooth experience (sometimes)
  • 👍 No ads (in some contexts)
  • 👍 Well-formatted content

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes when accessing saved articles
  • 🐛 App crashes on startup
  • 🐛 Unreadable text/links in dark mode
  • 🐛 Flickering articles
  • 🐛 Login issues

New Scientist

From 5.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Fascinating and informative content
  • 🚀 Accessible and easy to read
  • 🤓 Covers a wide range of scientific topics
  • 📚 Valuable source of up-to-date science news

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy app with login and subscription issues
  • 🔒 Difficult to manage subscriptions and access content
  • 💰 Expensive subscription fees
  • 🙄 Forced subscription model and lack of transparency

Bugs and requests

Phys.org

Reported bugs

14 issues
  • App crashes when trying to view saved articles
  • App crashes on startup
  • App crashes after iOS updates
  • Login issues
  • Subscription not working
Show 9 more
  • Blank screen for content
  • Flickering articles
  • SSL errors
  • Favorites bug (crashes when accessing)
  • Tech feed not working
  • Dark blue hyperlinks unreadable in dark mode
  • Side swipe gesture reloads article
  • Orientation change reloads article and loses scroll position
  • No data connection error

Requested features

10 requests
  • Add search functionality
  • Sync ScienceX account for saved articles
  • Improve dark mode readability
  • Add Stage Manager support for iPadOS
  • Add Apple Watch compatibility
Show 5 more
  • Consolidate updates into an 'All' tab
  • Allow offline reading of more than a few articles
  • Add audio narration or video summaries
  • Allow toggling light/dark mode independently of OS
  • Filter articles by specific science subjects

New Scientist

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App fails to recognize active subscriptions
  • Downloading and accessing content is unreliable
  • Frequent crashes and performance issues
  • Inconsistent user experience across platforms

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add dark mode option
  • Improve navigation and ability to resume reading
  • Implement better syncing and cross-device access
  • Provide more customization options for text size and font

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Phys.org

Subscriptions1
  • All access$0.991 Month
11 purchases

New Scientist

Subscriptions4
  • 1 Month Subscription1 Month trial$9.991 Month
  • 3 Month Subscription$49.993 Months
  • 1 Year Subscription$99.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • 12 Month Subscription$179.991 Year
One-time7
  • August 30 2014$1.99
  • October 04 2014$1.99
  • July 16 2016$1.99
Show 4 more
  • September 03 2016$1.99
  • October 01 2016$1.99
  • November 19 2016$1.99
  • Essential Guide 10$9.99

Questions

Is Phys.org free?
Phys.org is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is New Scientist free?
New Scientist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Phys.org or New Scientist?
New Scientist is rated higher. Phys.org averages 2.8 out of 5 from 70 ratings, while New Scientist averages 4.8 from 5.5K ratings.
Do Phys.org or New Scientist have ads?
Neither Phys.org nor New Scientist shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Phys.org or New Scientist?
Phys.org ships an update every 5 weeks, and New Scientist every 2 months. Most recently, Phys.org was updated on September 25, 2026 and New Scientist on September 24, 2026.

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