Comparison

PennLive vs phillyburbs

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

PennLive

Stay informed about local happenings with timely and reliable reporting on news, sports, and weather. Access in-depth coverage of community events, politics, business, and culture from a trusted source.

Highlights
  • Local news reporting
  • Sports coverage
  • Weather updates
  • Politics and business news
  • Culture and community events
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Get trusted local news from across Central Pennsylvania. 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. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off 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. Your subscriptions may be managed (and auto-renewal can be turned off) by going to your iTunes Account Settings after purchase. No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during the active subscription period. If we offer a free trial, any unused portion of the free trial period will be forfeited when you purchase a subscription. Our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use: http://www.advance.net/advancedigitalUserAgreementPP/

About

phillyburbs

Access local news, in-depth journalism, and engaging multimedia content. Stay informed with breaking news, sports scores, and weather alerts through customizable notifications. Enjoy a streamlined reading experience with offline access and a digital replica of the print edition.

Highlights
  • In-depth local journalism
  • Breaking news and alerts
  • Sports coverage
  • Customizable notifications
  • Offline reading
  • eNewspaper access
Currently charting
Read full description

From critically acclaimed storytelling to powerful photography to engaging videos — the phillyburbs 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.phillyburbs.com/privacy/ • Terms of Service: https://cm.phillyburbs.com/terms/ • Help Center: https://help.phillyburbs.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

PennLive3 screens
phillyburbs3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: PennLive at 4.5 against phillyburbs's 4.1. PennLive also leads on ratings volume (3.2K vs 221). On price, review sentiment, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PennLive sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and phillyburbs sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PennLive holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PennLive has 3.2K ratings behind it against 221, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 16% and 16% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PennLive ships an update every 3 weeks, phillyburbs monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and August 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 9 level
PennLive versus phillyburbs: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPennLivephillyburbs
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (3.2K ratings) — better4.1 (221 ratings)
Positive reviews16.4% of reviews — better16.2% of reviews
Number of ratings3.2K — better221
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionSubscription
Best chart rank#150 — better#193
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size32 MB182 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperPennLive LLCGannett

Customer experience

PennLive

All ratings3,185 ratings
Positive87.7%
Neutral6.2%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews73 reviews
Positive16.4%
Neutral8.2%
Negative75.3%

phillyburbs

All ratings215 ratings
Positive78.1%
Neutral2.3%
Negative19.5%
Written reviews37 reviews
Positive16.2%
Neutral2.7%
Negative81.1%

User reviews

PennLive

From 3.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast news coverage
  • 👍 Great local news focus
  • 👍 Excellent reporting staff

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent app freezes and crashes
  • 🔍 Difficult navigation and poor UI
  • 💰 Excessive ads and paywall
  • 🔍 Outdated and stale content
  • 🔍 Biased and opinionated reporting

phillyburbs

From 221 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Enjoy reading paper daily on iPad
  • 👍 Local news is good
  • 👍 Access latest edition early
  • 👍 Updates throughout the day keep aware

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App does not open
  • 🐛 App changes default newspaper
  • 🐛 Cannot change default newspaper back
  • 🐛 Does not include The Daily Intelligencer
  • 🐛 Haven't been able to view e-edition

Bugs and requests

PennLive

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App freezes and crashes on launch
  • Inability to access articles after updates
  • Inconsistent behavior across devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved app stability and performance
  • Streamlined and intuitive navigation
  • Ability to read articles without paywall
  • Unbiased and fact-based reporting

phillyburbs

Reported bugs

14 issues
  • App does not open
  • App changes default newspaper to Courier Times
  • Unable to change default newspaper back
  • The Daily Intelligencer not listed
  • Unable to view e-edition
Show 9 more
  • App freezes frequently
  • Login issues after transition
  • Password reset not working
  • App requires daily sign-in
  • Classified screen goes blank
  • App asks to subscribe again for paid subscribers
  • Notifications not working
  • Subscription management features missing
  • App not working for Intelligencer subscribers

Requested features

8 requests
  • Allow changing default newspaper
  • Include The Daily Intelligencer
  • Improve classified ad functionality
  • Bring back scroll feature
  • Allow e-paper to fill screen width
Show 3 more
  • Improve text expansion for older users
  • Improve login persistence
  • Add subscription management features

In-app purchases

14 purchases

PennLive

Subscriptions14
  • Basic Access to PennLive.com$5.991 Month
  • PennLive Sports Insider$7.991 Month
  • Basic Access to PennLive.com$9.991 Month
Show 11 more
  • Basic Access to PennLive.com1 Month trial2 variants$9.991 Month
  • Basic Access to PennLive.com7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Subscriber Exclusive Content1 Month trial$9.991 Month
  • All Access to PennLive.com$11.991 Month
  • All Access to PennLive.com$15.001 Month
  • All Access to PennLive.com6 Months trial$75.001 Year
  • PennLive Sports Insider$79.991 Year
  • All Access to PennLive.com$99.991 Year
  • Basic Access to PennLive.com1 Year trial$99.991 Year
  • BasicAccess to PennLive.com1 Year trial$99.991 Year
  • Basic Access to PennLive.com$119.991 Year
4 purchases

phillyburbs

Subscriptions4
  • Monthly Digital Rate1 Month trial$9.991 Month
  • Monthly Digital Subscription1 Month trial$14.991 Month
  • phillyburbs - monthly1 Month trial$16.991 Month
Show 1 more
  • phillyburbs - monthly1 Year trial$69.991 Year

Questions

Is PennLive free?
PennLive is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is phillyburbs free?
phillyburbs is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PennLive or phillyburbs?
PennLive is rated higher. PennLive averages 4.5 out of 5 from 3.2K ratings, while phillyburbs averages 4.1 from 221 ratings.
Do PennLive or phillyburbs have ads?
Both PennLive and phillyburbs show ads.
Which is updated more often, PennLive or phillyburbs?
PennLive ships an update every 3 weeks, and phillyburbs monthly. Most recently, PennLive was updated on September 23, 2026 and phillyburbs on August 31, 2026.
Which is more popular, PennLive or phillyburbs?
PennLive currently peaks at #150 in the App Store charts, and phillyburbs at #193. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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