Comparison

QCTimes vs MagCMS

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

Head to head
About

QCTimes

Access local news, sports, and in-depth stories from the Illinois Quad-Cities region. Enjoy exclusive commentary, photography, video, and podcasts. Personalize your news feed and receive breaking alerts.

Highlights
  • Personalized local news topics
  • Breaking news and custom alerts
  • Exclusive commentary and podcasts
  • Photo and video updates
  • Article listening option
  • Customizable text size
Features
Read full description

Your story lives in the Illinois Quad-Cities. From reporting on all of your favorite teams to the news that matters most, we cover it all. Get in-depth stories from the region and beyond – including news, sports, opinion, obituaries, entertainment, and politics. Easily access the very latest news in an app built for you. Read, see, and hear exclusive commentary, stunning photography, video updates, and binge-worthy podcasts. Plus, subscribers have the ability to upgrade to News+, our premium ad-free experience! That means faster-loading pages and an uninterrupted reading experience. Our app features: * Your Stories – personalize your experience by selecting the local news topics that matter most to you * Get notified – stay in the loop by selecting alerts for news, sports, weather, and more * Easy navigation – see all the latest local stories by simply swiping up/down, and left/right. * Read stories your way – either in the News Feed or via the E-edition * Breaking news updates – top banners let you know what’s happening right now * Follow author – get notifications whenever your favorite writers post a story * Bookmark for later – save stories to enjoy at your leisure * Listen to articles – press the play button to listen instead * Customize your text size – make the content bigger or smaller in your profile settings * Weather where you are – hourly, 10-day forecasts, and frequent video updates Free to download. Subscribers enjoy unlimited access. https://qctimes.com/terms

About

MagCMS

This app allows publishers to preview their digital magazines before publishing them on the Magzter platform. Ensure interactive content and functionality are exactly as intended for readers.

Highlights
  • Preview digital magazines
  • Check interactive content
  • Verify functionality
  • Publish to Magzter platform
  • Publisher registration required
Features
Read full description

Magzter, the world’s largest and fastest growing global digital magazine newsstand, introduces the MagCMS app exclusively for publishers using the Magzter digital publishing platform. The new MagCMS app allows publishers to quickly and easily preview their digital magazines, including all interactive content and functionality, before publishing them to the Magzter platform. With the MagCMS app publishers can be completely confident that the experience they provide to their readers on Magzter will be exactly as they intend it to be. Use of the Magzter MagCMS app requires registration as a Publisher on Magzter.com.

Screenshots

QCTimes4 screens
MagCMS3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: MagCMS at 5.0 against QCTimes's 3.5. MagCMS also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 7) and ads (none vs shown). QCTimes's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 10 months) and ratings volume (212 vs 1). On price 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. QCTimes sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $27.99 per month. MagCMS asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

MagCMS holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: QCTimes has 212 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

QCTimes ships an update every 2 months, MagCMS every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
QCTimes versus MagCMS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterQCTimesMagCMS
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (212 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews27.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings212 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 10 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size103 MB34 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperMadison Newspapers IncorporatedMagzter Inc.

Customer experience

QCTimes

All ratings212 ratings
Positive56.6%
Neutral17.9%
Negative25.5%
Written reviews58 reviews
Positive27.6%
Neutral10.3%
Negative62.1%

MagCMS

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

7 purchases

QCTimes

Subscriptions7
  • Subscriptions$27.991 Month
  • Subscriptions$40.991 Month
  • Subscriptions$44.991 Month
Show 4 more
  • Subscriptions$50.001 Year
  • Subscriptions$269.991 Year
  • Subscriptions$329.991 Year
  • Subscriptions$364.991 Year
None

MagCMS

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is QCTimes free?
QCTimes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is MagCMS free?
MagCMS is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, QCTimes or MagCMS?
MagCMS is rated higher. QCTimes averages 3.5 out of 5 from 212 ratings, while MagCMS averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do QCTimes or MagCMS have ads?
QCTimes shows ads; MagCMS does not.
Which is updated more often, QCTimes or MagCMS?
QCTimes ships an update every 2 months, and MagCMS every 10 months. Most recently, QCTimes was updated on October 7, 2026 and MagCMS on October 2, 2026.

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