# O'Reilly vs CivicBeacon

O'Reilly and CivicBeacon both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 83% of CivicBeacon's written reviews are positive against 46% of O'Reilly's. CivicBeacon also leads on update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.5). O'Reilly's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 5) and ratings volume (34K vs 12). On price, rating, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. CivicBeacon sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. O'Reilly asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for O'Reilly against 4.7 for CivicBeacon. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: O'Reilly has 34K ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 46% of O'Reilly's written reviews are positive against 83% of CivicBeacon's.

O'Reilly ships an update fortnightly, CivicBeacon weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | O'Reilly | CivicBeacon |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (34K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/oreilly/id881697395/reviews) | [4.7 (12 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/civicbeacon/id6744340787/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **34K** | 12 |
| Positive reviews | 46.0% of reviews | **83.3% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Freemium** |
| Size | 64 MB | 68 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.5 | **16.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [O'Reilly Media, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/312570215) | [Civic Beacon LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1807184533) |

## What reviewers say

### O'Reilly

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/oreilly/id881697395)

Access a vast library of expert-led books, videos, and courses on business and technology trends. Learn online or offline, sync progress across devices, and personalize your reading experience. Discover and organize content with playlists for easy access.

**Highlights:** Offline access to books, videos, and courses, Cross-device progress syncing, Content discovery and playlist creation, Personalized text display and night mode, Search across all learning materials, External keyboard support

**Features:** iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great resource for learning
- 👍 Excellent content and library
- 💡 Helpful features like playlists
- 🚀 Offline reading and downloads

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy app with crashes and issues
- 👎 Poor reading experience and navigation
- 🔒 Frequent login issues
- 👎 Inconsistent sync across devices

**Reported bugs**

- Frequent crashes and freezes
- Unreliable downloads and offline access
- Login issues and loss of progress
- Inconsistent behavior across updates

**Requested features**

- Improved bookmarking and note-taking
- Customizable text formatting and layout
- Better search and content discovery
- Seamless sync across devices


### CivicBeacon

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/civicbeacon/id6744340787)

Stay informed about government decisions affecting your life. Track legislation, connect with representatives, and understand complex policies with clear summaries. Empower your voice in local and national politics.

**Highlights:** Track local and national legislation, Smart search for bills, Explore recent Congress sessions, View representative profiles and bills, Clear, jargon-free bill summaries, Connect with elected officials

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

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Civic Beacon Supporter ($2.99/mo) | $2.99 | per month |
| Civic Beacon Supporter ($5.99/mo) | $5.99 | per month |
| Civic Beacon Supporter ($9.99/mo) | $9.99 | per month |
| CivicBeacon Pro | $9.99 | per month |
| CivicBeacon Pro | $69.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is O'Reilly free?

O'Reilly is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is CivicBeacon free?

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

### Which has better reviews, O'Reilly or CivicBeacon?

O'Reilly and CivicBeacon are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 34K and 12 ratings respectively.

### Do O'Reilly or CivicBeacon have ads?

Neither O'Reilly nor CivicBeacon shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, O'Reilly or CivicBeacon?

O'Reilly ships an update fortnightly, and CivicBeacon weekly. Most recently, O'Reilly was updated on October 19, 2026 and CivicBeacon on October 9, 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.*