Comparison

The Bulwark vs Pickaxe Player

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

Head to head
About

The Bulwark

Access exclusive news, analysis, and commentary from pro-democracy experts in an ad-free environment. Enjoy features like read-to-me, saved articles, personalized feeds, and audio versions of shows. Engage with a community dedicated to liberal democracy.

Highlights
  • Ad-free reading experience
  • Listen to articles on the go
  • Save articles and shows
  • Personalized 'For You' feed
  • Audio-only show versions
  • Adjustable text size and dark mode
Features
Read full description

The Bulwark App is for Bulwark+ members and features an ad-free environment to read, watch or listen to your favorite Bulwark commentators. The app was designed with members in mind and includes new features to enhance your subscriber experience: • Read to me - listen to articles on the go • Save articles or shows for later • A “For You” feed where you can follow what you love • Audio-only versions of all our shows • Resize text • Switch to dark mode • Dedicated Read tab • Dedicated Watch & Listen tab Bulwark+ is powered by Substack. Use your Substack profile to sign in to the app to get unfettered access to everything we publish and engage with The Bulwark community in the comments. About Us The Bulwark is home to Sarah Longwell, Tim Miller, Jonathan V. Last, Sam Stein, Catherine Rampell and more. We are the largest pro-democracy bundle on Substack for news and analysis. The Bulwark was founded to provide analysis and reporting in defense of America’s liberal democracy. We publish written articles and newsletters. We create podcasts and videos. We publish political analysis from experts. We’re supported in this effort by a community built on good faith who know that the only way through is together.

About

Pickaxe Player

Features
Read full description

You decide what plays next. Pickaxe Player builds your Up Next from Listening Blocks — ordering rules you set once — so every session starts exactly where you want it, not where an algorithm guesses. Stack blocks in the order you want your day to sound: morning news up top, current events next, long serials to finish. Each block arranges its own episodes — grouped by show or interleaved, oldest or newest first — and refreshing brings in new episodes without losing your place. LISTENING BLOCKS Standing rules that keep Up Next arranged your way. Pick the shows, choose the order, drag blocks to rearrange your day. New episodes slot in where your rules say they belong. A QUEUE THAT ALWAYS COMES FIRST Want something specific right now? Add it to the Queue and it plays before everything else. Reorder by hand anytime — the plan works around what you place. PRIVATE FEEDS, FIRST-CLASS Members-only RSS plays like any other show. Feed URLs and tokens stay on your device and are sent only to the feed's own server. LOCAL-FIRST. NO ACCOUNT. There's no sign-up and no cloud. Subscriptions, progress, and rules live on your device, and feed refreshes are built to preserve your progress, queue, and played states. THE ESSENTIALS Background audio, lock-screen and headphone controls, playback speed, and adjustable skip intervals. PRIVACY No accounts, no analytics, no tracking. The app doesn't collect data, so there's nothing for anyone else to see. Full policy: https://player.pickaxe.media/privacy

Screenshots

The Bulwark4 screens
Pickaxe Player4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is chart position: The Bulwark at #65 against Pickaxe Player's unranked. On price, ads, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard1 real difference · 10 level
The Bulwark versus Pickaxe Player: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe BulwarkPickaxe Player
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (2.9K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews92.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings2.9K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreemium—
Best chart rank#65 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size27 MB6 MB
Age rating17+12+
DeveloperCenter Enterprises, Inc.Tampa Bay Coders

In-app purchases

None

The Bulwark

No in-app purchases

None

Pickaxe Player

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is The Bulwark free?
The Bulwark is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pickaxe Player free?
Pickaxe Player is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do The Bulwark or Pickaxe Player have ads?
Neither The Bulwark nor Pickaxe Player shows ads.

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