# Hartford Courant vs NJ.com

The clearest difference is ads: NJ.com at none against Hartford Courant's shown. NJ.com also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.3) and ratings volume (25K vs 4.3K). Hartford Courant's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Hartford Courant sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month and NJ.com sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

NJ.com holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NJ.com has 25K ratings behind it against 4.3K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 22% of Hartford Courant's written reviews are positive against 18% of NJ.com's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Hartford Courant ships an update monthly, NJ.com every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hartford Courant | NJ.com |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (4.3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hartford-courant/id391113483/reviews) | **[4.5 (25K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/njcom/id419202474/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 4.3K | **25K** |
| Positive reviews | **21.6% of reviews** | 18.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Subscription | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | #78 | **#52** |
| Size | 195 MB | 34 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Tribune Publishing Company, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/290161713) | [NJ.com](https://appshunter.io/developer/419202477) |

## What reviewers say

### Hartford Courant

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hartford-courant/id391113483)

**Currently charting:** #78 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

Access exclusive Connecticut news, sports, business, and entertainment. Enjoy premium storytelling, videos, and photo galleries. Save articles for later and receive breaking news alerts.

**Highlights:** Exclusive premium storytelling, News, sports, business, entertainment, Exclusive videos and photo galleries, Save stories for offline reading, Breaking news notifications, Customizable font size

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

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlimited Digital Access | $19.99 | per month |
| News App Only | $19.99 | per month |
| Monthly Subscription | $19.99 | per month |
| Hartford Courant | $199.99 | per year |
| Annual Subscription | $199.99 | per year |
| Premium Story Credits | $0.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🌟 Reliable news source
- 📰 Comprehensive local coverage
- 🔍 Useful search functionality

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐞 Frequent app crashes
- 🔍 Unreliable search results
- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 📱 Poor mobile app experience
- 📢 Intrusive ads even for subscribers

**Reported bugs**

- Articles fail to load or scroll properly
- App freezes or crashes on launch
- Subscription status not properly recognized

**Requested features**

- Restore landscape mode for tablets
- Improve article scrolling and navigation
- Provide clear subscription pricing and terms
- Enhance customer support responsiveness


### NJ.com

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/njcom/id419202474)

**Currently charting:** #52 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

Stay informed with local news, sports, and weather impacting your community. Access timely and reliable reporting from journalists who live and work in your area. Covers a wide range of topics including news, politics, business, and culture.

**Highlights:** Local news reporting, Sports coverage, Weather updates, Politics and business news, Culture and events, Premium content access

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

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Rutgers Sports Insider | $5.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $9.99 | per month |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $9.99 | per month |
| All Access to NJ.com | $11.99 | per month |
| All Access to NJ.com | $15.00 | per month |
| All Access to New Jersey | $15.00 | per month |
| All Access to NJ.com | $99.99 | per year |
| All Access to NJ.com | $119.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🗞️ Informative local news coverage
- 📰 Reliable source for NJ news
- 🔍 Helpful search functionality

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Excessive paywall restrictions
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezes
- 💤 Slow loading times and performance issues
- 📢 Overwhelming ads and notifications
- 🗣️ Lack of user commenting features

**Reported bugs**

- Login issues and inability to access subscriber content
- Frequent app crashes and freezes
- Navigation and search functionality problems
- Incompatibility with certain devices and OS versions

**Requested features**

- Bring back ability to save articles
- Improve app stability and performance
- Offer more free content access
- Restore team-specific sports browsing
- Add user commenting functionality


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hartford Courant free?

Hartford Courant is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is NJ.com free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Hartford Courant or NJ.com?

NJ.com is rated higher. Hartford Courant averages 4.3 out of 5 from 4.3K ratings, while NJ.com averages 4.5 from 25K ratings.

### Do Hartford Courant or NJ.com have ads?

Hartford Courant shows ads; NJ.com does not.

### Which is updated more often, Hartford Courant or NJ.com?

Hartford Courant ships an update monthly, and NJ.com every 3 weeks. Most recently, Hartford Courant was updated on November 10, 2026 and NJ.com on November 10, 2026.

### Which is more popular, Hartford Courant or NJ.com?

Hartford Courant currently peaks at #78 in the App Store charts, and NJ.com at #52. 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.*