Comparison

Richmond Times vs 12OnYourSide

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

Head to head
About

Richmond Times

Access in-depth local news, sports, and weather for Richmond and central Virginia. Personalize your news feed, receive breaking alerts, and enjoy multimedia content including podcasts and videos. Support local journalism with a subscription for unlimited digital access.

Highlights
  • Personalized news topics
  • Breaking news alerts
  • Multimedia content (video, podcasts)
  • Audio playback for articles
  • Customizable text size
  • Hourly and 10-day weather forecasts
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Your story lives in Richmond. Get in-depth stories from the leading real-time source for news, advertising, commentary and community conversations across Richmond, central Virginia, and beyond – including news, sports, opinion, obituaries, entertainment, and politics. From reporting on all your favorite teams to the news that matters most in your community, we cover it all. 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. Support local journalism by subscribing today for unlimited digital access. 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 * Continue watching – pause a video and pick up where you left off across devices * 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 to breaking news updates, analysis, and more. Get The Richmond Times-Dispatch in Your Inbox Get convenient, curated updates delivered to your Inbox. Sign up for Breaking News updates as they happen, the Afternoon Update for a roundup of the latest local top stories, Daily Sports for the latest sports headlines, Food & Drink for foodies, Virginia Politics Insider for the latest in national and local politics, and many more. Visit https://richmond.com/newsletters/ to view and subscribe to all of The Richmond Times-Dispatch Newsletters. Keep Up with The Richmond Times-Dispatch Follow us on Facebook and other social platforms: https://x.com/rtdnews/ https://www.instagram.com/rtdnews/ https://www.facebook.com/TimesDispatch/ https://www.youtube.com/user/RTDNewsroom https://www.linkedin.com/company/richmond-times-dispatch/ About The Richmond Times-Dispatch When Virginians look for their trusted news source, they turn to The Richmond Times-Dispatch. In addition to award-winning news reporting, The Times-Dispatch specializes in business, sports, and entertainment coverage. We also provide thought-provoking commentary and advertising solutions that drive results for local businesses. We'd love to hear what you think! For any technical issues or questions, contact us at PWhelan@timesdispatch.com https://richmond.com/terms The Richmond Times-Dispatch is part of Lee Enterprises.

About

12OnYourSide

Get local news and traffic updates for Richmond and central Virginia. Receive breaking news alerts, view live headlines, and access sports and video content. The app customizes content based on your location.

Highlights
  • Breaking news alerts
  • Local traffic coverage
  • School closings
  • Live news headlines
  • Sports updates
  • Video content
Features
Read full description

Download the power of the WWBT 12 News application right to your iPhone! WWBT 12 News provides you with local news, and traffic coverage for Richmond and the rest of central Virginia. Features include: - Breaking news alerts - First Warning Traffic - School closings - Live, local news headlines and stories - Sports - Video - And so much more! Also serving Chesterfield, Henrico, Hanover, Petersburg, Hopewell, Dinwiddie, Prince George, Charles City, Powhatan, Amelia, Cumberland, Sussex, King & Queen, Louisa, Hopewell, Chester, Goochland, Caroline, King William and New Kent. This app requests location to help customize content for you. We will provide location information and information about your use of the app to our advertising partners in order to customize the ads displayed in this app and other apps you use. Please review our privacy policy for more details and for your choices.

Screenshots

Richmond Times4 screens
12OnYourSide3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: 12OnYourSide at none against Richmond Times's 7. 12OnYourSide also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.1) and ratings volume (6.3K vs 1.7K). Richmond Times's advantage is review sentiment (26% vs 13%) and chart position (#141 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Richmond Times sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $29.99 per month. 12OnYourSide asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

12OnYourSide holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.7K and 6.3K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 26% of Richmond Times's written reviews are positive against 13% of 12OnYourSide's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Richmond Times ships an update every 2 months, 12OnYourSide monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Richmond Times versus 12OnYourSide: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRichmond Times12OnYourSide
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (1.7K ratings)4.5 (6.3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews26.3% of reviews — better13.5% of reviews
Number of ratings1.7K6.3K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
Best chart rank#141 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size101 MB99 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperBH Media GroupGray Television Group, Inc.

Customer experience

Richmond Times

All ratings1,744 ratings
Positive75.2%
Neutral10.7%
Negative14.1%
Written reviews118 reviews
Positive26.3%
Neutral16.9%
Negative56.8%

12OnYourSide

All ratings6,324 ratings
Positive89.0%
Neutral3.6%
Negative7.4%
Written reviews104 reviews
Positive13.5%
Neutral4.8%
Negative81.7%

User reviews

Richmond Times

From 1.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great content
  • 👍 Convenient digital version
  • 👍 Provides local and state news
  • 👍 Positive and accurate news

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Unreliable zooming
  • 🐛 Frequent login issues
  • 🐛 Buggy and glitchy app
  • 🔍 Lack of local investigative journalism
  • 🔍 Perceived liberal bias

12OnYourSide

From 6.3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Accurate news reporting
  • 🌟 Great weather team
  • 💻 Useful for live streaming

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Difficult to navigate
  • 💰 Too many ads
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔌 High battery consumption
  • 🤖 Poorly designed UI updates

Bugs and requests

Richmond Times

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App frequently crashes or freezes
  • Login issues and constant re-logins required
  • Content not loading or showing 'no content available'
  • Formatting issues with e-edition

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add ability to read and share comments
  • Improve formatting for digital viewing
  • Add search functionality
  • Provide more options for push notifications

12OnYourSide

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes after recent updates
  • Live stream frequently pauses or stops working
  • Notifications don't link to updated stories
  • Compatibility issues with certain devices and OS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Reduce ads and improve user experience
  • Improve accessibility and readability
  • Provide more timely updates, especially on weekends
  • Offer an ad-free paid version

In-app purchases

7 purchases

Richmond Times

Subscriptions7
  • Subscriptions$29.991 Month
  • Subscriptions$42.991 Month
  • Subscriptions$46.991 Month
Show 4 more
  • Subscriptions$50.001 Year
  • Subscriptions$289.991 Year
  • Subscriptions$344.991 Year
  • Subscriptions$379.991 Year
None

12OnYourSide

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Richmond Times free?
Richmond Times is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is 12OnYourSide free?
12OnYourSide is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Richmond Times or 12OnYourSide?
12OnYourSide is rated higher. Richmond Times averages 4.1 out of 5 from 1.7K ratings, while 12OnYourSide averages 4.5 from 6.3K ratings.
Do Richmond Times or 12OnYourSide have ads?
Both Richmond Times and 12OnYourSide show ads.
Which is updated more often, Richmond Times or 12OnYourSide?
Richmond Times ships an update every 2 months, and 12OnYourSide monthly. Most recently, Richmond Times was updated on November 6, 2026 and 12OnYourSide on November 5, 2026.

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