MLive.com vs Caller Times
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MLive.com
Stay informed with local news, sports, and weather that directly impacts your community. Access timely and reliable reporting from trusted journalists who live and work in your area. Coverage spans news, politics, business, culture, and more, ensuring you're always aware of what's happening in your backyard.
- Local news reporting
- Sports coverage
- Weather updates
- Politics and business news
- Culture and community events
- Unlimited premium content access
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Get trusted local news from across Michigan. 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/
Caller Times
Access in-depth local journalism, including news, sports, and community events. Enjoy a fast, customizable reading experience with real-time alerts and offline access. Includes a digital replica of the print edition and access to other eNewspapers.
- In-depth local journalism
- Breaking news alerts
- Sports coverage
- Customizable reading experience
- Offline reading
- eNewspaper access
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From critically acclaimed storytelling to powerful photography to engaging videos — the Caller Times app delivers the local news that matters most to your community. APP FEATURES: • Access all of our in-depth journalism, including things to do around town, sports coverage from high school to the pros, and much more. • Enjoy a streamlined, fast-loading experience that makes it easy to view the stories, photos, and videos that matter to you. • Get breaking news, sports scores, and weather alerts with real-time notifications tailored to your interests. • Customize your experience by saving your favorite stories, adjusting text size, using night mode, or reading offline. • eNewspaper: Just like our print edition but accessible on your mobile devices. And access to USA TODAY and 200+ local eNewspapers. MORE INFORMATION: • Privacy Policy: https://cm.caller.com/privacy/ • Terms of Service: https://cm.caller.com/terms/ • Help Center: https://help.caller.com • Subscriptions are charged to your account at confirmation of purchase and automatically renew each month or year, unless turned off in your account settings 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. You can manage your subscriptions and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to your Account Settings after purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when you purchase a subscription, where applicable. See "Subscription Support" in the app's Settings for more details and customer service contact information.
Screenshots
Verdict
MLive.com and Caller Times both sit at 4.4 stars, but that hides the real split: 52% of Caller Times's written reviews are positive against 11% of MLive.com's. Caller Times also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription). MLive.com's advantage is ratings volume (16K vs 600). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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. MLive.com sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and Caller Times sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 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 — 4.4 for MLive.com against 4.5 for Caller Times. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MLive.com has 16K ratings behind it against 600, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 11% of MLive.com's written reviews are positive against 52% of Caller Times's.
MLive.com ships an update every 3 weeks, Caller Times monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MLive.com | Caller Times |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (16K ratings) | 4.5 (600 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 11.3% of reviews | 52.4% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 16K — better | 600 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Monthly |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Subscription | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #71 — better | #145 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 33 MB | 189 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | MLive.com | USA TODAY Co., Inc. |
Customer experience
MLive.com
Caller Times
User reviews
MLive.com
From 16K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Quick, accurate, and well-written news
- 👍 Good coverage of Michigan news
- 🌐 Broad spectrum news coverage
Room to improve
- 🔒 Paywalled content, too many articles behind subscription
- 🐛 Buggy, crashes, freezes, and loading issues
- 💤 Outdated, repetitive, and lacking in real reporting
- 🔍 Poor search functionality and content organization
- 📢 Excessive ads and intrusive advertising
Caller Times
From 600 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 📰 Comprehensive local news coverage
- 👍 User-friendly interface and navigation
- 📱 Accessible on mobile devices
- ⚡ Current and timely news updates
- ✍️ Well-written, specific articles
Room to improve
- 🐛 App frequently freezes or malfunctions
- 📉 Limited local news content
- 💰 High subscription cost relative to content
- ⏰ Outdated news due to Houston printing delays
- 📄 Poor display format compared to print version
Bugs and requests
MLive.com
Reported bugs
3 issues- Login issues and inconsistent subscription handling
- Notifications not working as expected
- Scrolling and navigation problems
Requested features
3 requests- Ability to filter and customize content
- Improved local news coverage and focus
- Removal of paywall for breaking news and essential content
Caller Times
Reported bugs
8 issues- App won't load on iPad despite paid subscription
- Password authentication loop prevents account access
- Bonus section shows available but won't open
- Crossword puzzles require screenshots to complete
- Sunday crossword impossible to use on iPad
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- App frequently crashes or becomes unresponsive
- Inconsistent content display across sections
- Video articles fail to load properly
Requested features
11 requests- Restore previous app version display format
- Correct time zone display for sports listings
- Improve crossword puzzle functionality on iPad
- Add coupon access to digital subscription
- Faster access to obituaries section
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- Restore 'Bonus' section functionality
- Add text enlargement tool
- Implement weekend and holiday news updates
- Reduce or eliminate ads for paid subscribers
- Increase local news coverage
- Restore missing columnists (David Sikes, Murphy Givens)
In-app purchases
MLive.com
- Wolverine Confidential.$7.991 Month
- Digital Access$9.991 Month
- Digital Access1 Month trial$9.991 Month
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- Digital Access7 Days trial$9.991 Month
- Subscriber Exclusive Content1 Month trial2 variants$9.991 Month
- Monthly Access1 Month trial$10.001 Month
- All Access to MLive.com$11.991 Month
- All Access to MLive$15.001 Month
- All Access to MLive.com6 Months trial$75.001 Year
- Wolverine Confidential.$79.991 Year
- All access to MLive.com1 Year trial$99.991 Year
- Digital Access$99.991 Year
- Subscriber Exclusive Content1 Year trial$99.991 Year
- Subscriber Exclusive Content$99.991 Year
- Annual Access1 Year trial$100.001 Year
- All access to MLive.com$119.991 Year
- All Access to MLive$150.001 Year
Caller Times
- Monthly Digital Rate1 Month trial$14.991 Month
- Monthly Digital Subscription1 Month trial$19.991 Month
- Corpus Christi Caller-Times Digital Subscription1 Month trial$19.991 Month
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- Corpus Christi Caller-Times Annual Digital Subscription1 Year trial$69.991 Year
