# New Scientist vs TruNorthApp

New Scientist and TruNorthApp both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of TruNorthApp's written reviews are positive against 69% of New Scientist's. TruNorthApp also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). New Scientist's advantage is ratings volume (5.6K vs 2) and chart position (#82 vs unranked). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. New Scientist sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and TruNorthApp sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

TruNorthApp holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: New Scientist has 5.6K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of New Scientist's written reviews are positive against 100% of TruNorthApp's.

New Scientist ships an update every 2 months, TruNorthApp every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | New Scientist | TruNorthApp |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.8 (5.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/new-scientist/id671845403/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/trunorthapp/id6775301458/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **5.6K** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 68.7% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | **#82** | — |
| Size | 36 MB | 163 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [New Scientist Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1259836343) | [Aron Rosenfield](https://appshunter.io/developer/6775301460) |

## What reviewers say

### New Scientist

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/new-scientist/id671845403)

**Currently charting:** #82 Top Grossing · Magazines & Newspapers, #112 Top Grossing · News, #131 Top Free · Magazines & Newspapers (US App Store)

Access award-winning journalism on science and technology. Read daily news, watch videos, and listen to podcasts covering topics from AI to quantum physics. Log in with your subscription for full access.

**Highlights:** Daily news updates, Latest issue access, Science videos, Weekly podcast, Audio articles

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (11)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 Month Subscription | $9.99 | per month |
| 3 Month Subscription | $49.99 | per 3 months |
| 1 Year Subscription | $99.99 | per year |
| 12 Month Subscription | $179.99 | per year |
| August 30 2014 | $1.99 | one-time |
| October 04 2014 | $1.99 | one-time |
| July 16 2016 | $1.99 | one-time |
| September 03 2016 | $1.99 | one-time |
| October 01 2016 | $1.99 | one-time |
| November 19 2016 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Essential Guide 10 | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Fascinating and informative content
- 🚀 Accessible and easy to read
- 🤓 Covers a wide range of scientific topics
- 📚 Valuable source of up-to-date science news

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy app with login and subscription issues
- 🔒 Difficult to manage subscriptions and access content
- 💰 Expensive subscription fees
- 🙄 Forced subscription model and lack of transparency

**Reported bugs**

- App fails to recognize active subscriptions
- Downloading and accessing content is unreliable
- Frequent crashes and performance issues
- Inconsistent user experience across platforms

**Requested features**

- Add dark mode option
- Improve navigation and ability to resume reading
- Implement better syncing and cross-device access
- Provide more customization options for text size and font


### TruNorthApp

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/trunorthapp/id6775301458)

This app provides objective company ratings based on public records, allowing you to align your purchases with your personal values. It features a barcode scanner for quick in-store decisions and offers personalized scoring.

**Highlights:** Objective company grading, Personalized value matching, In-store barcode scanner, Auditable scores from public data, 12,000+ companies tracked

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| TruNorth Pro · Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| TruNorth Pro · Annual | $14.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is New Scientist free?

New Scientist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is TruNorthApp free?

TruNorthApp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, New Scientist or TruNorthApp?

TruNorthApp is rated higher. New Scientist averages 4.8 out of 5 from 5.6K ratings, while TruNorthApp averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do New Scientist or TruNorthApp have ads?

Neither New Scientist nor TruNorthApp shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, New Scientist or TruNorthApp?

New Scientist ships an update every 2 months, and TruNorthApp every 2 weeks. Most recently, New Scientist was updated on October 29, 2026 and TruNorthApp on October 6, 2026.

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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.*