Hacko for Hacker News vs HackerWatch
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hacko for Hacker News
This client offers a unique way to navigate Hacker News discussions, keeping comments readable at any depth. Enjoy smooth navigation, custom boards, search, and a reading list for an enhanced experience.
- Alternative comment tree display
- Maintains comment readability
- Swipe navigation
- Custom boards
- Search functionality
- Reading list
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It's a Hacker News client that uses an alternative way of displaying the comment tree. Advantages over traditional interfaces: - Comment width doesn't get narrower no matter how deep in the tree you are - You always see the parent of the comment you're currently reading - Swiping allows you to move in and out of subtrees with animated transitions that you fully control - You can easily skip subtrees that don't interest you by simply scrolling As a result it's easier to maintain the context and to keep track of where you are in the Hacker News discussion tree. There are also: custom boards, search, in-thread search, anchors, reading list, recent items. Enjoy your Hacker News reading experience! Developer is not affiliated with Hacker News (https://news.ycombinator.com/) in any way.
HackerWatch
Stay updated with the Hacker News community directly from your wrist. Browse top stories, read comments, and view original articles with this Apple Watch companion app. Easily share interesting content with others.
- Browse top stories
- Read comments
- View original articles
- Share content
- Apple Watch companion
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Attention Hacker News readers! Introducing HackerWatch - the ultimate Apple Watch companion for staying connected to the Hacker News community. Quickly browse top stories, read comments, and view original articles - all from your wrist! Found something share-worthy? Easily send it to your fellow tech enthusiasts. Best of all, HackerWatch is completely FREE! Download now and never miss a beat in the world of tech.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: HackerWatch at none against Hacko for Hacker News's 5. HackerWatch also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 67%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Hacko for Hacker News's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 7 months) and ratings volume (31 vs 3). On price, ads and device support 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. Hacko for Hacker News sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. HackerWatch asks for nothing beyond the download.
HackerWatch holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hacko for Hacker News has 31 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Hacko for Hacker News's written reviews are positive against 100% of HackerWatch's.
Hacko for Hacker News ships an update fortnightly, HackerWatch every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hacko for Hacker News | HackerWatch |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (31 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 31 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 7 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 10 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Andrii Sievrikov | Dakota Kim |
Customer experience
Hacko for Hacker News
HackerWatch
In-app purchases
Hacko for Hacker News
- Tip - Regular Tip$0.99
- Tip - Big Tip$3.99
- Premium$5.99
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- Tip - Large Tip$6.99
- Tip - Huge Tip$9.99
HackerWatch
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Hacko for Hacker News free?
Is HackerWatch free?
Which has better reviews, Hacko for Hacker News or HackerWatch?
Do Hacko for Hacker News or HackerWatch have ads?
Which is updated more often, Hacko for Hacker News or HackerWatch?
Other comparisons
