# PennLive vs phillyburbs

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.

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.

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.

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

## The numbers

| Metric | PennLive | phillyburbs |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (3.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pennlive/id421910267/reviews)** | [4.1 (221 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/phillyburbs/id1395398575/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **3.2K** | 221 |
| Positive reviews | **16.4% of reviews** | 16.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Subscription | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | **#150** | #193 |
| Size | 32 MB | 182 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 18.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [PennLive LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/421910270) | [Gannett](https://appshunter.io/developer/404843797) |

## What reviewers say

### PennLive

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pennlive/id421910267)

**Currently charting:** #150 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

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:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (14)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Basic Access to PennLive.com | $5.99 | per month |
| PennLive Sports Insider | $7.99 | per month |
| Basic Access to PennLive.com | $9.99 | per month |
| Basic Access to PennLive.com | $9.99 | per month |
| Basic Access to PennLive.com | $9.99 | per month |
| Subscriber Exclusive Content | $9.99 | per month |
| All Access to PennLive.com | $11.99 | per month |
| All Access to PennLive.com | $15.00 | per month |
| All Access to PennLive.com | $75.00 | per year |
| PennLive Sports Insider | $79.99 | per year |
| All Access to PennLive.com | $99.99 | per year |
| Basic Access to PennLive.com | $99.99 | per year |
| BasicAccess to PennLive.com | $99.99 | per year |
| Basic Access to PennLive.com | $119.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

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

**What reviewers complain about**

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- 🔍 Outdated and stale content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

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

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


### phillyburbs

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/phillyburbs/id1395398575)

**Currently charting:** #193 Top Grossing · News (US App Store)

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Digital Rate | $9.99 | per month |
| Monthly Digital Subscription | $14.99 | per month |
| phillyburbs - monthly | $16.99 | per month |
| phillyburbs - monthly | $69.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

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

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 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

**Reported bugs**

- 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

**Requested features**

- Allow changing default newspaper
- Include The Daily Intelligencer
- Improve classified ad functionality
- Bring back scroll feature
- Allow e-paper to fill screen width


## Frequently asked 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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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*