CGTN vs Sixth Tone
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CGTN
Access global news from a unique perspective with diverse, balanced, and objective content. This app offers breaking news, in-depth stories, and livestreams in five languages, along with a rich archive of articles, audio, and video.
- Global news coverage
- Content in 5 languages
- Breaking news notifications
- Rich audiovisual content
- In-depth stories and features
- AI and AR products
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CGTN is committed to providing worldwide audience with a wide range of global news from a different perspective. The app prioritizes user experience with intricate details. It brings diverse, balanced and objective content for global users, and presents a true image of China and world from multiple perspectives. The latest version of the CGTN app supports five languages: English, Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian. It features a wide array of original content, including breaking news, in-depth stories and livestreams. The app also hosts a comprehensive archive of original articles, audio, video, and TV shows covering topics across politics, business, technology, science, sports, nature, culture and others. It gives you access to all the trusted information you need on the go. Features: – Exclusive coverage of China and world news, original TV shows and feature stories, continuous updates about worldwide events – Content in five languages: English, Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian – Rich audiovisual content, including videos, podcasts, livestreams and TV shows – Enhanced reading experience – Notifications to ensure you never miss breaking news and exciting features – Search for related and hot news to deepen understanding – Like, save and share your favorite stories on social media – AI and AR products – No ads. No in-app purchases. Download the CGTN app to join millions of our subscribers and enjoy personalized, hassle-free news and audiovisual content.
Sixth Tone
Access in-depth news, features, and visual storytelling about contemporary China. Explore diverse perspectives, expert opinions, and multimedia content. Stay informed with daily highlights and special projects.
- Daily news highlights
- In-depth features
- Commentaries and opinions
- Visual storytelling
- Interviews with key figures
- Collaborative projects
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The Sixth Tone app brings you people-focused news, features, commentaries, and visual storytelling about contemporary China. Main features of the app: Daily Tones are daily news and highlights from across China. News are timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing from a vast range of sources, these articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context. Features are articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants. Voices & Opinion are contributions from individuals with unique perspectives to share. Hear from everyone, from experts and commentators to those whose voices are rarely heard. Multimedia are visual stories that get up close and personal with contemporary China. A mix of short videos, documentaries, photography, and data visualization. Sixth Tone × features translations, cross-publications, and collaborative projects from Sixth Tone’s external partners. Special Projects showcase the collaborative efforts of Sixth Tone’s newsroom on diverse topics. Q & A features in-depth interviews with the minds and makers shaping today’s China. Your questions, answered. Announcements are the latest news about Sixth Tone as well as its events, projects, and other initiatives.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Sixth Tone at 4.9 against CGTN's 4.4. Sixth Tone also leads on review sentiment (78% vs 54%) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.0). CGTN's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and device support (5 vs 2). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and in-app purchases 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.
Sixth Tone holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 395 and 146 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of CGTN's written reviews are positive against 78% of Sixth Tone's.
CGTN ships an update every 5 weeks, Sixth Tone every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CGTN | Sixth Tone |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (395 ratings) | 4.9 (146 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 54.2% of reviews | 77.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 395 — better | 146 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 137 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 17+ |
| Developer | China Global Television Network Corp. | 上海东方报业有限公司 |
Customer experience
CGTN
Sixth Tone
Bugs and requests
CGTN
Reported bugs
5 issues- App crashes when opening certain articles
- Live TV channel playback not working
- Russian text not displaying correctly
- Landscape mode not supported on iPad
- Notifications not working as expected
Requested features
5 requests- Add dark mode option
- Improve search and filtering capabilities
- Optimize app for tablet devices
- Implement offline content download feature
- Allow customization of notification settings
Sixth Tone
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
CGTN
No in-app purchases
Sixth Tone
No in-app purchases
