# Slate.com vs Daily Beast

The clearest difference is rating: Daily Beast at 4.8 against Slate.com's 4.5. Daily Beast also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 5 weeks). Slate.com's advantage is device support (4 vs 2). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Slate.com sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Daily Beast sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Daily Beast holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 9.1K and 7.7K respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 33% and 33% positive.

Slate.com ships an update every 5 weeks, Daily Beast fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Slate.com | Daily Beast |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (9.1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/slatecom/id357555242/reviews) | **[4.8 (7.7K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/daily-beast/id898117224/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **9.1K** | 7.7K |
| Positive reviews | **33.2% of reviews** | 32.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#71** | #72 |
| Size | 60 MB | 92 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.1** | 16.4 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [The Slate Group, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/796274625) | [The Daily Beast Company LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/359917657) |

## What reviewers say

### Slate.com

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/slatecom/id357555242)

**Currently charting:** #71 Top Grossing · Magazines & Newspapers, #87 Top Grossing · News, #166 Top Free · Magazines & Newspapers (US App Store)

Access award-winning daily online magazine content, including in-depth analysis, commentary, and podcasts. Enjoy curated stories, reviews, and advice with options for ad-free reading and exclusive content through a membership.

**Highlights:** Editorially curated stories, Political and legal commentary, Movie and television reviews, Award-winning podcasts, Push notifications, Light/Dark mode reading, Slate Plus membership

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

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Slate Plus | $9.99 | per month |
| Slate Plus | $68.99 | per year |
| Slate Plus | $119.00 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Clean layout, easy to navigate
- 🚀 Great news source
- 🚀 Excellent journalism
- 👍 Informative, insightful content

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes constantly
- 🐛 Buggy, glitchy performance
- 🐛 Unreliable login and sign-in
- 🐛 Slow loading times
- 🐛 Incompatible with newer iOS versions

**Reported bugs**

- Articles not loading properly
- Blank screens and white screens
- Inability to access Slate Plus content
- Podcasts cutting out or not playing correctly

**Requested features**

- Add search functionality
- Improve podcast playback controls
- Implement landscape mode for iPad
- Better identify Slate Plus content


### Daily Beast

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/daily-beast/id898117224)

**Currently charting:** #72 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

Access award-winning original reporting and sharp opinion on politics, pop-culture, and world news. Enjoy top stories updated on demand and available for offline reading, plus a smart news summary.

**Highlights:** Award-winning original reporting, Sharp opinion pieces, Politics and pop-culture coverage, World news updates, Offline reading, The Cheat Sheet™ news summary

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

**In-app purchases (9)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| MONTHLY | $4.99 | per month |
| Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| MONTHLY | $5.99 | per month |
| The Daily Beast | $5.99 | per month |
| Annual | $34.99 | per year |
| ANNUAL | $49.99 | per year |
| Annual | $49.99 | per year |
| The Daily Beast | $59.99 | per year |
| The Daily Beast | $119.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and up-to-date reporting
- 👍 Concise and easy-to-understand articles
- 💡 Unique and insightful perspectives
- 🚀 Convenient and accessible app
- 👍 Informative and entertaining content

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and glitches
- 💰 Excessive ads even for paid subscribers
- 🔒 Difficult login and account management
- 🔍 Lack of search functionality
- 📚 Fewer articles than the website version

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on launch or during use
- Frequent log-out issues for subscribers
- Inability to refresh content or load new articles
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions
- Inconsistent performance across different devices

**Requested features**

- Add a search feature to find articles easily
- Improve login and account management experience
- Introduce a dark mode option for better readability
- Provide more customization options for users
- Sync content between app and website seamlessly


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Slate.com free?

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

### Is Daily Beast free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Slate.com or Daily Beast?

Daily Beast is rated higher. Slate.com averages 4.5 out of 5 from 9.1K ratings, while Daily Beast averages 4.8 from 7.7K ratings.

### Do Slate.com or Daily Beast have ads?

Both Slate.com and Daily Beast show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Slate.com or Daily Beast?

Slate.com ships an update every 5 weeks, and Daily Beast fortnightly. Most recently, Slate.com was updated on September 23, 2026 and Daily Beast on September 24, 2026.

### Which is more popular, Slate.com or Daily Beast?

Slate.com currently peaks at #71 in the App Store charts, and Daily Beast at #72. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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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.*