News & Media · head to head
Apple News vs Readwise Reader
Apple News
News & Media
All the news you want. From sources you trust.
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Readwise Reader
News & Media
The read-it-later app for power readers
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Apple News has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Apple News apple News+ costs $12.99 per month in USD after the first month, or is included only via the $39.95 per month USD Apple One Premier bundle; Readwise Reader there is no free tier, only a 30 day trial
- They diverge on capability: Apple News covers Curated news feed, Readwise Reader covers Read-it-later.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Apple News and Readwise Reader actually diverge.
| Attribute | Apple News | Readwise Reader |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | On request |
| Pricing model | freemium | subscription |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Ios, Macos | Ios, Android, Web |
| Founded | 1976 | 2017 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (News & Media).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Apple News
- Curated news feed
- Premium magazines
- Audio stories
- Personalization
- Offline reading
- iCloud
- Apple One bundle
- Siri
Only in Readwise Reader
- Read-it-later
- RSS aggregation
- Newsletter inbox
- PDF support
- Highlighting
- Notion
- Obsidian
- Roam Research
Both cover
- Ios support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Apple News
- Daily news readingnot Readwise Reader
- Magazine subscriptionnot Readwise Reader
- News discoverynot Readwise Reader
- Staying informednot Readwise Reader
Readwise Reader
- Saving and reading articles, PDFs and newsletters in one placenot Apple News
- Reviewing highlights from books and articles over timenot Apple News
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Apple News
- Apple News+ costs $12.99 per month in USD after the first month, or is included only via the $39.95 per month USD Apple One Premier bundle
Readwise Reader
- There is no free tier, only a 30 day trial
- Reader is bundled into the full plan rather than sold separately, so it cannot be had at the cheaper Lite price
- The Lite plan at $5.59 a month billed annually is daily email review only, without the web app or tagging
- Paying monthly rather than annually raises the full plan from $9.99 to $12.99
Pricing, plan by plan
Apple News
Free- Apple NewsFree
- Free news articles
- Personalized feed
- Topic following
- Apple News+$12.99/month
- Premium magazines
- Major newspapers
- Audio stories
Readwise Reader
On request- Reader Lite$8.99/month
- Unlimited articles
- Highlighting
- RSS feeds
- Full$12.99/month
- Everything in Lite
- Readwise integration
- Spaced repetition
Which should you pick?
Choose Apple News if
- You need curated news feed.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Ios, Macos.
- You also want premium magazines.
Choose Readwise Reader if
- You need read-it-later.
- You work on Ios, Android, Web.
- You also want rss aggregation.
Questions people ask
- Is Apple News or Readwise Reader better?
- Neither clearly leads. Apple News starts at Free and Readwise Reader at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Apple News or Readwise Reader?
- Apple News has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Apple News and On request for Readwise Reader.
- Does Apple News or Readwise Reader run on more platforms?
- Apple News runs on Ios, Macos. Readwise Reader runs on Ios, Android, Web.
- Can I use Apple News for free?
- Yes. Apple News has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Readwise Reader starts at On request.
- What is Apple News best used for?
- Apple News is most often used for daily news reading, magazine subscription, news discovery, staying informed. Of those, daily news reading and magazine subscription are not what Readwise Reader is typically brought in for.
- What can Apple News do that Readwise Reader cannot?
- Apple News covers Curated news feed, Premium magazines, Audio stories, Personalization. Readwise Reader covers Read-it-later, RSS aggregation, Newsletter inbox, PDF support. Both handle Ios support.