Castanet vs National Post ePaper
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Castanet
Access local and national news, classifieds, events, and more from the Okanagan region. Features include direct messaging for classifieds, posting ads, webcams, and an airport arrivals/departures page.
- Local and national news
- Classifieds with messaging
- Post classified ads
- Scenic and traffic webcams
- Airport arrivals/departures
- Events listings
- Obituaries
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Since launching in November 2000, Castanet has become one of the most visited media websites in Western Canada. The free Castanet.net app is the B.C. Interior's source for the latest local, national and world news, classifieds, events, webcams and more. The Castanet.net site is visited by 600,000 people every week. The Castanet.net app has all the features our desktop and mobile sites have with improved usability for smartphones.
National Post ePaper
Access the National Post newspaper digitally, mirroring the print edition. Read articles and news from home or work. Offers monthly subscriptions or single issue purchases.
- Digital newspaper replica
- Read anytime, anywhere
- Monthly subscription option
- Single issue purchase
- Automatic renewal management
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Now you can read National Post anytime, anywhere. The National Post ePaper is available to you at home or at work, and is the same edition as the printed copy available at the newsstand. •The National Post ePaper app allows you to subscribe to a 1 month subscription for $12.99/month or purchase a single issue at $1.99/issue. •Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase •The 1 month subscription will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period •Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and the cost of renewal is •You may manage your subscriptions and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the your Account Settings after purchase •No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period Privacy Policy: https://epaper.nationalpost.com/help/PrivacyPolicy Terms of Use: https://epaper.nationalpost.com/help/TermsOfUse
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Castanet at none against National Post ePaper's 2. Castanet also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 6 months). National Post ePaper's advantage is review sentiment (53% vs 19%) and ratings volume (191 vs 1). On price, ads 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. National Post ePaper sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $10.99 per month. Castanet asks for nothing beyond the download.
Castanet holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: National Post ePaper has 191 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 19% of Castanet's written reviews are positive against 53% of National Post ePaper's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Castanet ships an update every 6 weeks, National Post ePaper every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Castanet | National Post ePaper |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | 4.6 (191 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 19.4% of reviews | 53.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 191 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 31 MB | 54 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Castanet Media Ltd. | Postmedia Network INC. |
Customer experience
Castanet
National Post ePaper
Bugs and requests
Castanet
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
National Post ePaper
Reported bugs
28 issues- Cannot sign in to the mobile site
- Too many requests to log in
- Login is glitchy and doesn't always work
- App does not recognize paid subscribers
- App crashes constantly
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- App crashes when flipping through sections
- App crashes when opening
- App crashes or exits multiple times while reading
- Cannot enter comments
- App crashes and online edition has to be opened multiple times
- App doesn't work, contacted support with no response
- PDFs are often improperly formatted
- App is unreliable, no service for extended periods
- Customer service won't assist with Apple subscriptions
- App stopped downloading on iOS
- No new paper since a specific date
- App stopped working after a week, blank page
- Repeat crashes in iOS 15.2
- App crashes all the time when swiping from page to page
- Cannot get the paper on Windows computer
- Have to download the app every day, goes to iTunes
- Optimizing function fails at times, requires iPad reboot
- PressReader capitalization and paragraph breaks are difficult to read
- App won't connect to the paper
- App won't connect for the last 3 days
- Paid for monthly e-paper, received trial for another paper
- Impossible to get subscription issues fixed in the app
- When tapping to continue a story, enlarged font size doesn't hold
Requested features
6 requests- Disable headline links to article text for pure simulated paper
- Add a comic strip page and regular letters section
- Start a national TV broadcast program
- Improve typesetting for a cleaner look
- Maintain enlarged font size when continuing a story on another page
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- Better fact checking
In-app purchases
Castanet
No in-app purchases
National Post ePaper
- National Post ePaper Monthly$10.991 Month
- National Post Single Issue$1.99
Questions
Is Castanet free?
Is National Post ePaper free?
Which has better reviews, Castanet or National Post ePaper?
Do Castanet or National Post ePaper have ads?
Which is updated more often, Castanet or National Post ePaper?
Other comparisons
