Comparison

Kanso RSS vs Ferry

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

Head to head
About

Kanso RSS

Features
Read full description

WHY "KANSO" Kanso (η°‘η΄ ) is a Japanese idea of simplicity fewer ornaments, more breathing room. This app applies that to news: not a noisy timeline, but a calm shelf where typography, paper-like surfaces, and gentle spacing keep the focus on what you choose to read. WHAT YOU GET β€’ Add RSS and Atom feeds, organised on shelves you name. β€’ Today: what’s new across everythingβ€”filter by unread, all, or saved. β€’ Saved articles with optional folders so β€œread later” stays tidy. β€’ A reader built for long-form reading, with thumbnails you can tune. β€’ Sign in to sync feeds, saved items, and settings across your devices (when enabled). KANSO PLUS (OPTIONAL) β€’ Unlimited feeds (free tier includes up to 12 feeds). β€’ Handwriting / ink on more articles (free tier includes up to 5 ink articles). β€’ Quiet Focus: a calmer reader chrome when you want fewer distractions. β€’ Page watch: when a site has no RSS, follow it as a lightweight link feed from the page (background refresh about weekly; timing isn’t guaranteed). If you want RSS without the rush, Kanso is the quiet corner for your reading list. Privacy Policy: https://tompaape.nl/kanso-rss-privacy Terms of Use (Apple Standard EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Ferry

This news reader prioritizes important stories by tracking their coverage across the web, surfacing trending topics, and offering private, offline reading. It organizes content with smart folders and syncs across devices.

Highlights
  • Story ranking by web coverage
  • Private by design, no account needed
  • Offline reading with full text and images
  • Smart folders with custom rules
  • Cross-device sync via iCloud
  • Discover trending topics by category
Features
Read full description

Ferry reads your feeds and puts the story that matters on top. Most readers list what you follow by arrival, so the newest post wins whether or not it is the one to read. Ferry watches how widely each story is being covered across the web and ranks by that: a story ten of your sources ran sits above the one that just came in. Open the app and the first thing you see is the thing worth your time. PRIVATE BY DESIGN There is no account to create and no identifier of any kind. Ferry's server knows what sort of device asked for the day's stories and nothing else β€” not which feeds you follow, not what you open, not how long you read. Nothing is profiled, and the ranking is the same for everybody. ONE STORY, EVERY TELLING Under a headline Ferry tells you how many feeds carried the same story. Tap it to see them all, and read the one you trust or compare them side by side. On an iPhone with Apple Intelligence, Ferry can also sum up where the coverage agrees and which outlet breaks from the rest β€” worked out on the device from those headlines alone, so nothing is sent anywhere and nothing is invented. DISCOVER WHAT YOUR FEEDS MISSED Discover shows the stories the whole web is talking about, by topic, with every outlet that ran a story on one row and a count of how many did. Tap through to read any telling of it, or follow the source that ran it best. YOUR FEEDS, ANY WAY YOU LIKE β€’ Read on this device: no account. Add sites by URL or import an OPML file and Ferry fetches them directly. β€’ Already use FreshRSS? Sign in and your subscriptions and read state stay in step. Inoreader, BazQux and The Old Reader are coming soon. β€’ Folders, a Today view, a Later queue, and a home-screen widget. FOLDERS THAT FILL THEMSELVES Smart folders collect articles by rule β€” title contains, source is, topic is, up to ten rules, all or any β€” and stay in sync across your devices through iCloud. READ ANYWHERE β€’ Offline: after each refresh Ferry fetches the full text and pictures of recent articles, so a tunnel or a plane is not a blank page. β€’ Search from every screen, and find any headline from Spotlight. β€’ A daily summary at a time you choose, listing what is waiting in your feeds. β€’ Send an article to GoodLinks, Anybox, Flyleaf, Instapaper, Readwise, Raindrop.io, Pinboard, wallabag or Safari's Reading List. β€’ The reader shows the article's own text, at your text size. ONE APP, EVERY SCREEN iPhone, iPad and Mac, with the same library. On the Mac, three columns: sources, stories and the article you are reading, all at once. FERRY PLUS Ferry is a complete reader for free: unlimited feeds, folders, offline reading, search, the widget, iCloud sync between your own devices, Discover's top stories and three smart folders. Ferry Plus adds five things: the Trending order in your own feeds, the page behind every coverage count, every Discover topic arranged your way, unlimited smart folders, and reading stats. Free for fourteen days, then $19.99 a year or $2.49 a month β€” or one payment for life. Nothing in the free tier expires. Ferry Plus is available as an auto-renewing subscription (monthly or yearly) or as a one-time purchase for life. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and you can manage or cancel them in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://api.ferryrss.com/privacy

Screenshots

Kanso RSS3 screens
Ferry4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Ferry at 18.0 against Kanso RSS's 26.2. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Kanso RSS sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Ferry sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Kanso RSS ships an update every 8 days, Ferry every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference Β· 7 level
Kanso RSS versus Ferry: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterKanso RSSFerry
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviewsβ€”100.0% of reviews
Update frequencyEvery 8 daysEvery 5 days β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetizationβ€”Freemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac β€” better
Requires iOS26.218.0 β€” better
Further details β€” not scored
Size18 MB16 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperTom PaapeApoorv Bhawsar

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Kanso RSS

Subscriptions2
  • Kanso Plus (Monthly)$2.991 Month
  • anso Plus (Yearly)$17.991 Year
One-time1
  • Kanso Plus Lifetime$49.99
3 purchases

Ferry

Subscriptions2
  • Ferry Plus β€” Monthly14 Days trial$2.491 Month
  • Ferry Plus β€” Yearly14 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Ferry Plus β€” Lifetime$49.99

Questions

Is Kanso RSS free?
Kanso RSS is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ferry free?
Ferry is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Kanso RSS or Ferry have ads?
Neither Kanso RSS nor Ferry shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Kanso RSS or Ferry?
Kanso RSS ships an update every 8 days, and Ferry every 5 days. Most recently, Kanso RSS was updated on October 28, 2026 and Ferry on October 29, 2026.

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