AL.com vs Talk 99.5
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
AL.com
Get timely and reliable local news, sports, and weather updates directly impacting your community. Stay informed about unfolding events in your backyard, from politics and business to culture and more. Access essential information from a trusted source, anytime and anywhere.
- Local news reporting
- Sports updates
- Weather forecasts
- Community-focused content
- Timely and reliable information
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Get trusted local news across Alabama. Breaking news, in-depth reporting, and all the stories people are talking about. Stay connected to what's happening around you with timely coverage of news, weather, sports, and more, optimized for your phone. Free to download. Get breaking news, alerts, and top stories. Subscribers receive unlimited access to in-depth reporting, exclusive content, and additional features. Subscriptions are available in-app. Our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use: http://www.advance.net/advancedigitalUserAgreementPP/
Talk 99.5
Stay informed with real-time news, engaging conversations, and breaking stories. This application delivers the latest updates and discussions from Birmingham.
- Real-time news updates
- Best conversation
- Breaking stories
- Live audio streaming
- Local Birmingham content
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Talk 99.5 is Birmingham's home for the latest news, best conversation, and breaking stories in real time
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: AL.com at 4.5 against Talk 99.5's 2.9. AL.com also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 5 months) and ratings volume (16K vs 9). Talk 99.5's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, review sentiment, 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. AL.com sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Talk 99.5 asks for nothing beyond the download.
AL.com holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AL.com has 16K ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 23% of AL.com's written reviews are positive against 20% of Talk 99.5's.
AL.com ships an update every 3 weeks, Talk 99.5 every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | AL.com | Talk 99.5 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (16K ratings) — better | 2.9 (9 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 23.4% of reviews — better | 20.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 16K — better | 9 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 5 months |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Ad-supported — better |
| Best chart rank | #115 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 32 MB | 59 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | al.com | Cumulus Media |
Customer experience
AL.com
Talk 99.5
Bugs and requests
AL.com
Reported bugs
3 issues- App title displaying incorrectly as 'OSU Basketball'
- Inability to access recent search history
- Difficulty closing ads or navigating back from articles
Requested features
3 requests- Improve app stability and performance
- Provide more balanced and objective news coverage
- Optimize ad placement to minimize disruption
Talk 99.5
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
AL.com
- Digital Access1 Month trial$9.991 Month
- Digital Access$9.991 Month
- Basic Access to Al.com$10.001 Month
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- All Access to Al.com$15.001 Month
- Premium Access to Al.com$20.001 Month
- Digital Access1 Year trial$99.991 Year
- Digital Access$99.991 Year
- Basic Access to Al.com$100.001 Year
- All Access to Al.com$150.001 Year
- Premium Access to Al.com$200.001 Year
Talk 99.5
No in-app purchases
