Comparison

HN Reader Pro vs stdout.

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

Head to head
About

HN Reader Pro

A streamlined reader for tech news, offering a comfortable dark mode experience. It displays top stories with integrated article and comment views, plus bookmarking for easy saving. Stay connected with the tech community.

Highlights
  • Dark mode for comfortable browsing
  • Integrated article and comment viewing
  • Bookmark functionality
  • Top stories display
  • Tech community engagement
Features
Read full description

A sleek Hacker News reader with dark mode for comfortable browsing. Features top stories, integrated article and comment viewing on a single page, and bookmark functionality for saving interesting content. Stay informed and engaged with the tech community effortlessly.

About

stdout.

Features
Read full description

stdout. is a native iOS client for Hacker News, built from the ground up with SwiftUI. It goes far beyond content aggregation — offering a rich, interactive experience designed around how you actually read. DUAL THEMES Switch between two handcrafted visual modes. Zen offers warm, editorial typography with Georgia serif headlines. Terminal transforms the app into a retro green-on-black CRT aesthetic, complete with monospaced type and animated scanlines. OFFLINE-FIRST WITH SWIFTDATA Stories and comments are cached locally so the app loads instantly on launch. When your connection drops, you keep reading seamlessly with a subtle offline indicator. HOME SCREEN WIDGETS Add a Top Stories widget to your home screen in Small or Medium size. The widget updates every 30 minutes and matches your in-app theme. Tap any story to jump straight to it. NATIVE INTERACTIONS Long-press any story to save it to Favorites, share the link, or hide it from your feed. Pull-to-refresh and save actions are accompanied by haptic feedback for a tactile, responsive feel. IN-APP READING Story links open in a themed Safari View Controller with optional Reader Mode — no context switching to external apps.

Screenshots

HN Reader Pro4 screens
stdout.4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: HN Reader Pro at none against stdout.'s shown. HN Reader Pro also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.4 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence and in-app purchases 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

HN Reader Pro ships an update every 2 days, stdout. every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 4, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
HN Reader Pro versus stdout.: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHN Reader Prostdout.
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterEvery 4 days
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.4 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size22 MB5 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperLucas LimaHanshuo Tan

In-app purchases

None

HN Reader Pro

No in-app purchases

None

stdout.

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is HN Reader Pro free?
HN Reader Pro is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is stdout. free?
stdout. is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do HN Reader Pro or stdout. have ads?
stdout. shows ads; HN Reader Pro does not.
Which is updated more often, HN Reader Pro or stdout.?
HN Reader Pro ships an update every 2 days, and stdout. every 4 days. Most recently, HN Reader Pro was updated on October 4, 2026 and stdout. on October 8, 2026.

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