# MLive.com vs The Morning Sun

The clearest difference is monetization model: The Morning Sun at free with in-app purchases against MLive.com's subscription. The Morning Sun also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). MLive.com's advantage is ratings volume (16K vs 88) and rating (4.4 vs 4.2). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. MLive.com sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and The Morning Sun sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

MLive.com holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MLive.com has 16K ratings behind it against 88, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 12% of MLive.com's written reviews are positive against 7% of The Morning Sun's.

MLive.com ships an update every 3 weeks, The Morning Sun monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | MLive.com | The Morning Sun |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.4 (16K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mlivecom/id419886579/reviews)** | [4.2 (88 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-morning-sun/id520224707/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **16K** | 88 |
| Positive reviews | **11.8% of reviews** | 7.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | **#126** | — |
| Size | 35 MB | 188 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | +12 | 12+ |
| Developer | [MLive.com](https://appshunter.io/developer/419886587) | [Journal Register Company](https://appshunter.io/developer/503293224) |

## What reviewers say

### MLive.com

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mlivecom/id419886579)

**Currently charting:** #126 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

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.

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

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

**In-app purchases (17)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wolverine Confidential. | $7.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Digital Access | $9.99 | per month |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $9.99 | per month |
| Monthly Access | $10.00 | per month |
| All Access to MLive.com | $11.99 | per month |
| All Access to MLive | $15.00 | per month |
| All Access to MLive.com | $75.00 | per year |
| Wolverine Confidential. | $79.99 | per year |
| All access to MLive.com | $99.99 | per year |
| Digital Access | $99.99 | per year |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $99.99 | per year |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $99.99 | per year |
| Annual Access | $100.00 | per year |
| All access to MLive.com | $119.99 | per year |
| All Access to MLive | $150.00 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Quick, accurate, and well-written news
- 👍 Good coverage of Michigan news
- 🌐 Broad spectrum news coverage

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 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

**Reported bugs**

- Login issues and inconsistent subscription handling
- Notifications not working as expected
- Scrolling and navigation problems

**Requested features**

- Ability to filter and customize content
- Improved local news coverage and focus
- Removal of paywall for breaking news and essential content


### The Morning Sun

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-morning-sun/id520224707)

Access personalized news, save articles for later, and enjoy a digital replica of the daily newspaper. Customize notifications and explore included games for a comprehensive content experience.

**Highlights:** Personalized news recommendations, Save articles for later reading, Digital newspaper replica, Customizable push notifications, Offline reading capability, In-app games (Sudoku, Solitaire, etc.)

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| The Morning Sun Monthly Sub | $11.99 | per month |
| The Morning Sun Annual Sub | $11.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to manipulate (for some)
- 👍 Great local news (for some)
- 👍 Easier to read than website (for some)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 App PopUps make news a chore
- 🐛 Adds and videos difficult to scroll past
- 🐛 Redirected when scrolling past ads
- 🐛 Rarely see articles despite paying
- 🐛 Cannot get hold of support to cancel

**Reported bugs**

- App PopUps make news a chore
- Adds and videos difficult to scroll past
- Redirected when scrolling past ads
- Rarely see articles despite paying
- Cannot get hold of support to cancel

**Requested features**

- Adjust ads for easier scrolling
- Way to adjust ads on left or right side
- Search function for past articles
- Update app with new OS
- Adjust screen size for iPad


## Frequently asked questions

### Is MLive.com free?

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

### Is The Morning Sun free?

The Morning Sun is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, MLive.com or The Morning Sun?

MLive.com is rated higher. MLive.com averages 4.4 out of 5 from 16K ratings, while The Morning Sun averages 4.2 from 88 ratings.

### Do MLive.com or The Morning Sun have ads?

Both MLive.com and The Morning Sun show ads.

### Which is updated more often, MLive.com or The Morning Sun?

MLive.com ships an update every 3 weeks, and The Morning Sun monthly. Most recently, MLive.com was updated on October 27, 2026 and The Morning Sun on October 24, 2026.

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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.*