# Boston.com vs MassLive.com

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Boston.com at none against MassLive.com's 16. Boston.com also leads on review sentiment (34% vs 19%) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). MassLive.com's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months) and chart position (#192 vs unranked). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. MassLive.com sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Boston.com asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Boston.com against 4.5 for MassLive.com. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7.4K and 6K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 34% of Boston.com's written reviews are positive against 19% of MassLive.com's.

Boston.com ships an update every 3 months, MassLive.com every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Boston.com | MassLive.com |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (7.4K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bostoncom/id361786318/reviews)** | [4.5 (6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/masslivecom/id419879721/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **7.4K** | 6K |
| Positive reviews | **34.3% of reviews** | 19.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Ad-supported** | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | — | **#192** |
| Size | 75 MB | 32 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [BOSTON GLOBE MEDIA PARTNERS, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1324796989) | [MassLive.com](https://appshunter.io/developer/419879724) |

## What reviewers say

### Boston.com

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bostoncom/id361786318)

Access curated news alerts, weather updates, and sports scores. Stay informed about local and national news, lifestyle, and entertainment from a team of journalists.

**Highlights:** Curated news alerts, Weather updates, Sports scores, Local and national news, Lifestyle and entertainment coverage

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- ⭐️ Great news and sports coverage
- ⭐️ Wonderful app
- ⭐️ Best progressive newspaper
- ⭐️ Best sports section in Boston
- ⭐️ Favorite news source

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Hiding behind a paywall
- 🚫 No images
- 🕰️ Doesn't update enough
- 🕰️ Zero updates
- 🚫 Recycling of old stories

**Reported bugs**

- Login screen freezes
- Incompatible with older devices

**Requested features**

- Dark mode option
- Advanced analytics dashboard


### MassLive.com

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/masslivecom/id419879721)

**Currently charting:** #192 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

Stay informed with local news, sports, and weather that directly impacts your community. Get timely and reliable reporting from journalists who live and work in your area, covering everything from politics to culture.

**Highlights:** Local news reporting, Sports coverage, Weather updates, Community-focused journalism, Premium content access

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

**In-app purchases (14)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $9.99 | per month |
| Monthly Access with Discount | $10.00 | per month |
| Monthly Access | $11.99 | per month |
| All Access to MassLive | $15.00 | per month |
| All Access to MassLive.com | $75.00 | per year |
| Annual Access | $99.99 | per year |
| Digital Access | $99.99 | per year |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $99.99 | per year |
| Annual Access with Discount | $100.00 | per year |
| Annual Access | $119.99 | per year |
| All Access to MassLive | $150.00 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 💯 Great coverage of important news
- 📰 Excellent local and state news
- 🏆 Best news and sports outlet for Massachusetts

**What reviewers complain about**

- ⏱️ Slow and glitchy performance
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 📢 Too many ads even with subscription
- 🗞️ Biased and sensationalist reporting
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate and find content

**Reported bugs**

- Login and account issues after updates
- Frequent crashes and freezes
- Broken comment and sharing functionality

**Requested features**

- Separate sports and news sections
- Improved search and filtering options
- Ability to customize content feed
- Offline reading mode


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Boston.com free?

Boston.com is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is MassLive.com free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Boston.com or MassLive.com?

Boston.com is rated higher. Boston.com averages 4.6 out of 5 from 7.4K ratings, while MassLive.com averages 4.5 from 6K ratings.

### Do Boston.com or MassLive.com have ads?

Both Boston.com and MassLive.com show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Boston.com or MassLive.com?

Boston.com ships an update every 3 months, and MassLive.com every 3 weeks. Most recently, Boston.com was updated on September 25, 2026 and MassLive.com on September 23, 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.*