TBC eEdition vs CalMatters
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
TBC eEdition
Access an interactive replica of the daily Bakersfield Californian newspaper on your iPad and iPhone. Read local news, save stories, and view past editions offline. Requires a paid print or digital subscription.
- Interactive replica edition
- Share and save stories
- Access previous editions
- Download for offline viewing
- Local news coverage
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The Bakersfield Californian app features the most complete local news and information on your iPad and iPhone. Now you can read an interactive replica edition of the daily Bakersfield Californian nicely formatted for the iPad and iPhone. Share and save stories, access previous editions, download for offline viewing and more. Access requires a paid print OR digital subscription to The Bakersfield Californian. Covering Bakersfield, Kern County, Tehachapi, Oildale, Delano, Rosedale, Lamont, Arvin, Shafter, Taft, Wasco and the Kern River Valley.
CalMatters
Access in-depth, nonpartisan news and analysis focused on California's quality of life issues. Hold leaders accountable with investigative journalism covering the Golden State and its global economic impact.
- In-depth news analysis
- Focus on quality of life issues
- Investigative journalism
- Accountability reporting
- Covers California and its economy
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CalMatters is a nonpartisan and nonprofit news organization bringing Californians stories that probe, explain and explore solutions to quality of life issues while holding our leaders accountable. We are the only journalism outlet dedicated to covering America’s biggest state, 39 million Californians and the world’s fifth largest economy.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: CalMatters at 5.0 against TBC eEdition's 4.4. CalMatters also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 21 months). TBC eEdition's advantage is ratings volume (1.5K vs 18). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
CalMatters holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: TBC eEdition has 1.5K ratings behind it against 18, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of TBC eEdition's written reviews are positive against 50% of CalMatters's.
TBC eEdition ships an update every 21 months, CalMatters every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | TBC eEdition | CalMatters |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (1.5K ratings) | 5.0 (18 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 33.3% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.5K — better | 18 |
| Update frequency | Every 21 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Ad-supported — better |
| Best chart rank | — | #196 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 50 MB | 53 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | The Bakersfield Californian Apps | CalMatters |
Customer experience
TBC eEdition
CalMatters
Bugs and requests
TBC eEdition
Reported bugs
4 issues- New newspapers not showing since Wednesday
- App stops picking the latest edition
- Asked to log in repeatedly for no reason
- Current edition not available, only archived issues
Requested features
4 requests- Seamless transition from subscription expiration to renewal
- Ability to share comments on stories and post letters to the editor
- Option to change between landscape and portrait views
- Ability to print coupons
CalMatters
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
TBC eEdition
No in-app purchases
CalMatters
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is TBC eEdition free?
Is CalMatters free?
Which has better reviews, TBC eEdition or CalMatters?
Do TBC eEdition or CalMatters have ads?
Which is updated more often, TBC eEdition or CalMatters?
Other comparisons
