Khaleej Times vs Risala Update
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Khaleej Times
Access real-time news updates and in-depth coverage of business, sports, and lifestyle. This app offers personalized notifications, offline reading, and easy sharing of stories. Stay informed about local and international events with a trusted source of journalism.
- Breaking news alerts
- Personalized news feed
- Offline reading mode
- Easy story sharing
- Customizable news alerts
- Gold, silver, forex rates
- Accurate prayer timings
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Stay informed with the Khaleej Times app, backed by over 40 years of trusted journalism as the UAE's first English-language newspaper. Get real-time updates on breaking news and in-depth coverage across business, sports, and lifestyle. With personalised notifications and a sleek, easy-to-use design, Khaleej Times keeps you connected to what’s happening in the UAE (and beyond), wherever you are. Download now and experience why millions turn to us for the news that matters most. · Never miss a story: get breaking news and important developments on the go · Personalise your app by following authors, locations, and topics of interest with one tap · Read news at any time using the offline mode · Share stories easily · Customise news alerts · Know the latest gold, silver, and forex rates · Get accurate prayer timings
Risala Update
This news app amplifies the voices of Malayali expatriates, fostering a mass movement and influencing ideologically informed politics. It's recognized as a radical medium for building a new cultural order.
- Amplifies expatriate voices
- Drives political discourse
- Fosters cultural change
- Radical information medium
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Risala has been in the forefront in making Malayali expatriates’ voices heard and has grown into a mass movement in a short span of time: thanks to Malayali expatriates.The role of Risala in the formation of an ideologically informed politics is undeniable. Media experts and critics note the prominent place of Risala in the new information order as a radical medium to build a new cultural order.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Risala Update at 94% against Khaleej Times's 51%. Risala Update also leads on ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). Khaleej Times's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.3) and ratings volume (483 vs 4). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Khaleej Times holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Khaleej Times has 483 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 51% of Khaleej Times's written reviews are positive against 94% of Risala Update's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Khaleej Times ships an update monthly, Risala Update every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Khaleej Times | Risala Update |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (483 ratings) — better | 4.3 (4 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 50.9% of reviews | 94.1% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 483 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 138 MB | 30 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Khaleej Times | Jahfar Sadique CN |
Customer experience
Khaleej Times
Risala Update
In-app purchases
Khaleej Times
No in-app purchases
Risala Update
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Khaleej Times free?
Is Risala Update free?
Which has better reviews, Khaleej Times or Risala Update?
Do Khaleej Times or Risala Update have ads?
Which is updated more often, Khaleej Times or Risala Update?
Other comparisons
