# NJ.com vs Asbury Park Press

The clearest difference is monetization model: Asbury Park Press at free with in-app purchases against NJ.com's subscription. Asbury Park Press also leads on review sentiment (35% vs 19%). NJ.com's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (25K vs 2.4K). On price, rating, update cadence and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. NJ.com sells 16 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Asbury Park Press sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for NJ.com against 4.4 for Asbury Park Press. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NJ.com has 25K ratings behind it against 2.4K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 19% of NJ.com's written reviews are positive against 35% of Asbury Park Press's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | NJ.com | Asbury Park Press |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (25K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/njcom/id419202474/reviews)** | [4.4 (2.4K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/asbury-park-press/id514649656/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **25K** | 2.4K |
| Positive reviews | 18.7% of reviews | **34.6% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | **#61** | #96 |
| Size | 34 MB | 188 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 18.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [NJ.com](https://appshunter.io/developer/419202477) | [USA TODAY Co., Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/404843797) |

## What reviewers say

### NJ.com

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

**Currently charting:** #61 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 (16)**

| 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 |
| Monthly Access | $10.00 | per month |
| All Access to NJ.com | $10.00 | 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 |
| Rutgers Sports Insider | $59.99 | per year |
| All Access to NJ.com | $75.00 | per year |
| All Access to NJ.com | $99.99 | per year |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $99.99 | per year |
| Annual Access | $100.00 | 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


### Asbury Park Press

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/asbury-park-press/id514649656)

**Currently charting:** #96 Top Grossing · Magazines & Newspapers, #128 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

Access in-depth local journalism, breaking news, and sports coverage. Enjoy a fast, customizable reading experience with real-time notifications and an eNewspaper replica. Save stories, adjust text, and read offline.

**Highlights:** In-depth local journalism, Breaking news and sports alerts, Streamlined, fast-loading experience, Customizable reading options, Offline reading, eNewspaper replica, Access to USA TODAY

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Digital Rate | $19.99 | per month |
| Annual Digital Subscription | $19.99 | per year |
| Asbury Park Press Digital Subscription | $24.99 | per month |
| Asbury Park Press Annual Digital Subscription | $69.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 📰 Enjoy reading local news everyday
- 📚 Comprehensive coverage of front page, obits, and sports
- ⏰ Convenient to read on the go
- 🏠 Helps stay connected with hometown news
- 🤓 Informative and educational content

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤯 Difficult to navigate and use
- 🔍 Poor zooming and sizing functionality
- 🐛 Frequent freezing and crashing issues
- 💰 Expensive subscription cost
- 📢 Intrusive ads and pop-ups

**Reported bugs**

- Inconsistent content updates
- Unreliable app performance
- Subscription issues and lack of support
- Compatibility problems with newer devices
- Broken search and navigation features

**Requested features**

- Bring back the old, user-friendly app
- Improve page layout and readability
- Add ability to print crossword puzzles
- Simplify login and account management
- Provide offline reading mode


## Frequently asked questions

### Is NJ.com free?

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

### Is Asbury Park Press free?

Asbury Park Press is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, NJ.com or Asbury Park Press?

NJ.com is rated higher. NJ.com averages 4.5 out of 5 from 25K ratings, while Asbury Park Press averages 4.4 from 2.4K ratings.

### Do NJ.com or Asbury Park Press have ads?

Asbury Park Press shows ads; NJ.com does not.

### Which is updated more often, NJ.com or Asbury Park Press?

NJ.com ships an update every 3 weeks, and Asbury Park Press every 3 weeks. Most recently, NJ.com was updated on October 27, 2026 and Asbury Park Press on October 26, 2026.

### Which is more popular, NJ.com or Asbury Park Press?

NJ.com currently peaks at #61 in the App Store charts, and Asbury Park Press at #96. 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.*