Comparison

NextDraft vs NetNewsWire

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

Head to head
About

NextDraft

Get a curated summary of the day's ten most fascinating news stories, handpicked by an expert news addict. This app cuts through online clutter to deliver essential, entertaining, and often surprising content in an easy-to-read format.

Highlights
  • Daily summary of top 10 news stories
  • Expertly curated content
  • Easy-to-read format
  • Save articles to read later
  • Includes viral videos and photos
Features
Read full description

Real News Daily. Dave Pell, Internet wit and news addict, provides a smart summary of the day's ten most fascinating news stories. "Dave finds stuff I didn't see but should have. Add that to his drop-dead sexiness and you've got yourself an indispensable newsletter." - Steve Bodow, Executive Producer, The Daily Show "You will feel smarter and happier after you download it." - TechCrunch "The NextDraft newsletter is indispensable. Dave Pell cuts through the clutter with urgency, humor and smarts. I never miss it." - Don Van Natta Jr., ESPN "On any given day, Dave turns up the top 10 stories that are important, moving, hilarious, and just weird. Next Draft finds the signal in all the noise that's out there." - Bob Cohn, President, Atlantic Media The News Trusted By Those Who Write the News: "A consistently informative and entertaining guide to some of the best stories on the web, with a healthy mix of news you should know, want to know, and prefer to pretend you didn't read." - Maria Konnikova, New Yorker "Think of Dave Pell as the Internet’s managing editor. The NYT meets SNL. Smart, funny, essential." - Phil Bronstein, Executive Chair, Center for Investigative Reporting "NextDraft is a must-read." - Ram Ramgopal, CNN Executive Editor "Like all great curators, Pell continually provides answers to questions you weren’t even aware you were asking; even as he feeds your mind, he cultivates and expands your curiosity. I read NextDraft the way I breathe, and for the same reason." - Andrew Corsello, GQ "There are days - hell, weeks - where I would be completely lost without the Internet concierge that is NextDraft." - Hilary Sargent, Boston Globe "It is about time the Internet had a managing editor, and Dave Pell turns out to be the perfect choice for he job. NextDraft is always nourishing, often surprising and quite witty (especially given that he is an American). An essential tea time read." - Matthew Bishop, The Economist "Dave is an expert at picking through the deluge and serving up the day's best stories from a huge variety of websites." - Sapna Maheshwari, Buzzfeed Highlights: You need an algorithm to help cut to through the Internet's clutter. News junkie Dave Pell is that algorithm. He combs dozens of sites, finds the most fascinating news stores, and then provides a fast, pithy summary that will make your iPhone vibrate with awesomeness. - Get a quick overview of what matters today. - View the news in a simple, easy to read format. - Save articles to your favorite read later tool with one click (Readability, Instapaper, Pocket, etc). - Don't miss the day's best viral videos and photos. - Be the star of any dinner party.

About

NetNewsWire

This app aggregates articles from your favorite blogs and news sites, offering a faster and more organized way to consume content. It provides control over your news feed, eliminating the need to visit multiple websites or rely on social media algorithms. Enjoy a streamlined reading experience with customizable features and syncing capabilities.

Highlights
  • Direct feed downloading
  • iCloud and third-party syncing
  • Customizable article themes
  • Reader view
  • Starred articles
  • Smart feeds
  • Home screen widgets
Currently charting
Read full description

It’s like podcasts, but for reading. NetNewsWire is a free and open source RSS reader. It shows you articles from your favorite blogs and news sites and keeps track of what you’ve read. It’s fast, stable, and accessible. If you’ve been going from site to site in your browser looking for new articles to read — or counting on the unreliable algorithms of corporate social media — let NetNewsWire bring you the news you want. It’s easy and fun. And it puts you, not billionaires, in control of your news. Features: * Direct feed downloading * Syncing via iCloud, Feedbin, Feedly, BazQux, Inoreader, NewsBlur, The Old Reader, and FreshRSS * Multiple accounts * Custom article themes * Reader view * Share sheet * Starred articles * All Unread and Today smart feeds * Folders * Importing and exporting OPML feed lists * Background refreshing * Searching * Hiding read articles * Timeline customization * Keyboard shortcuts * Context menus * Home screen widgets for today, unread, and starred articles * Share extension

Screenshots

NextDraft3 screens
NetNewsWire4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: NetNewsWire at monthly against NextDraft's every 4 months. NetNewsWire also leads on ratings volume (882 vs 86) and chart position (#140 vs unranked). NextDraft's advantage is iOS requirement (8.0 vs 17.0). On price, rating, review sentiment 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for NextDraft against 4.7 for NetNewsWire. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NetNewsWire has 882 ratings behind it against 86, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 87% of NextDraft's written reviews are positive against 85% of NetNewsWire's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NextDraft ships an update every 4 months, NetNewsWire monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
NextDraft versus NetNewsWire: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNextDraftNetNewsWire
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (86 ratings)4.7 (882 ratings) — better
Positive reviews86.9% of reviews — better84.7% of reviews
Number of ratings86882 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
Best chart rank—#140 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS8.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB27 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperNextDraftBrent Simmons

Customer experience

NextDraft

All ratings86 ratings
Positive87.2%
Neutral5.8%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews122 reviews
Positive86.9%
Neutral2.5%
Negative10.7%

NetNewsWire

All ratings882 ratings
Positive93.8%
Neutral2.3%
Negative4.0%
Written reviews321 reviews
Positive84.7%
Neutral7.5%
Negative7.8%

Bugs and requests

NextDraft

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes on launch with older iOS versions
  • Scrolling issues on some devices

Requested features

3 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Ability to mark articles as read/unread
  • More font size options

NetNewsWire

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

NextDraft

No in-app purchases

None

NetNewsWire

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is NextDraft free?
NextDraft is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is NetNewsWire free?
NetNewsWire is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, NextDraft or NetNewsWire?
NetNewsWire is rated higher. NextDraft averages 4.6 out of 5 from 86 ratings, while NetNewsWire averages 4.7 from 882 ratings.
Do NextDraft or NetNewsWire have ads?
Neither NextDraft nor NetNewsWire shows ads.
Which is updated more often, NextDraft or NetNewsWire?
NextDraft ships an update every 4 months, and NetNewsWire monthly. Most recently, NextDraft was updated on September 22, 2026 and NetNewsWire on September 23, 2026.

Other comparisons