Fraidycat vs FreshRSS (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Fraidycat and FreshRSS share a 3.0 GPA, both are free, so the choice depends on whether you care more about ease of use, where Fraidycat grades higher, or features and platforms, where FreshRSS does.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on value for money and the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Which one is for you
Pick Fraidycat if
- Fits if you want to keep up with a few people more than with every post they write
- Works for a computer-only reader who is happy with a small free tool
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a phone app: mobile apps are only on the wish list
- Not for you if you want a tool that is kept up: the extensions were last released in May 2021 and the desktop apps in September 2020
- Watch out: the Mac, Windows and Linux apps have no online sync
- Watch out: Twitter, Instagram and SoundCloud pages are read by scraping, so they may break when those sites change
Pick FreshRSS if
- Fits if you want your feeds on a server you control and will look after it
- Works for households or groups, since one installation serves several users
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you've never set up a web server, because it needs PHP 8.1, a database and you to maintain them
- Not for you if you want an official phone app, as native apps are third-party clients using its API
- Not for you if you want the makers to host it, since hosted instances come from independent providers at their own prices
- Watch out: the README says a few features don't work in a mobile browser
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAFraidycatVery good | 3.0GPAFreshRSSVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree to download and run, with no paid plan listed anywhere on the site. The reading category's middle price is $4 a month. | AFree and substantial: AGPL software with no paid plan anywhere, in a category whose middle plan is $3.33 a month. All you pay for is the server. Hosted instances exist, but they come from independent providers at their own prices. |
| Free plan and trial | AEverything is free, with no paid tier on the site. | AFree outright, with nothing held back, because there is no paid tier to hold it back for. One install even serves several users, so a household can share it. |
| Features | CIt follows people, not posts, across many source types, with importance levels and tags. That is a smaller job than a full reader, and the site lists mobile apps and keyword filters only as things it would like to add. | BIt covers the whole job: websites, podcasts and video channels, search with saved queries, custom tags, themes and extensions, feeds scraped out of pages with XPath for sites that publish none, instant updates where a source supports WebSub, and OpenID Connect logins. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. You install an extension and start adding people, with little to set up. | DYou host it yourself, which is what pins this down: a web server, PHP 8.1 or newer, a PostgreSQL, SQLite, MariaDB or MySQL database, and then keeping the lot patched. Fine if servers are your hobby, a wall if they aren't. |
| Platforms and integrations | CBrowser extensions and desktop apps for Mac, Windows and Linux only, with no phone app, and the desktop apps have no online sync. | BWeb only, and the README admits a few features don't work in a mobile browser, but Google Reader and Fever compatible APIs bring in third-party apps on Android, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows. There's a command-line interface too. |
| Best for | following people across sites without a feed | running your own RSS reader on your own server |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Fraidycat and FreshRSS. How we grade
Price against what you get
Fraidycat has no paid plan and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. FreshRSS has no paid plan and scores 2.3.
On this chart the two sit in the same place: the same score for the same starting price. Of the other read-later and bookmark apps on the chart, none scores higher than Fraidycat for less, and none scores higher than FreshRSS for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- FreshRSS is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Fraidycat also covers bookmarks.
In commonFree planOpen sourceRSS reader
At a glance
| Fraidycat | FreshRSS | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Everything: the site lists no paid plan. | Free software under the GNU AGPL 3 license, installed on your own server. The project has no paid plan; hosted instances come from independent providers. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Kicks Condor | FreshRSS community |
| Price read from | fraidyc.at | freshrss.org |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Fraidycat
- The extensions were last released in May 2021 and the desktop apps in September 2020, according to the site.
- The Mac, Windows and Linux apps are marked as having no online sync.
- The site lists mobile apps and keyword filters only as things it would like to add.
- Pages for Twitter, Instagram and SoundCloud are read by scraping, so they may break when those sites change.
FreshRSS
- You install and maintain it yourself: it needs a web server, PHP 8.1 or newer and a PostgreSQL, SQLite, MariaDB or MySQL database.
- The project runs no hosted service of its own; public and managed instances come from independent providers with their own prices.
- Reading in a native app depends on third-party clients that connect through the Google Reader or Fever API.
- The README says the web interface works on mobile browsers except for a few features.
Key features
Fraidycat
- People, not posts
- The main page lists each follow as a two-line summary of their recent activity, rather than a feed of individual posts.
- Many source types
- Reads RSS, Atom and JSON Feed, plus Twitter, Instagram and SoundCloud by picking details out of their pages. It also finds the feeds for Pinboard, YouTube and Reddit.
- Importance levels
- Each follow is set to real-time, daily, weekly, monthly or yearly, which controls how often it is checked and whether it stays on the main page.
- Tags
- Follows are grouped by tag, and a tab bar on the main page filters the list by tag.
- Sync through your browser
- Follows sync between computers by way of the browser's own sync, with no central Fraidycat server.
FreshRSS
- Feeds, podcasts and video channels
- Follows websites, podcasts and video channels in one place, imports and exports OPML, and receives instant updates from sources that support the WebSub standard.
- Web scraping and generated feeds
- Creates feeds for sites that offer none by scraping pages with XPath or reading JSON documents, and can generate new feeds from your own filters.
- Search, saved queries and tags
- Articles can be searched, searches can be saved as queries for quick access, and custom tags organize what you want to keep.
- Multi-user with several login methods
- One installation serves several users and offers an anonymous reading mode, with login by web form, HTTP authentication or OpenID Connect.
- APIs for mobile and desktop apps
- Google Reader and Fever compatible APIs let third-party apps on Android, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows sync with a FreshRSS server. A command-line interface is included.
- Themes, extensions and sharing
- Themes and extensions from a dedicated repository customize the reader, and selections of articles can be reshared as HTML, RSS or OPML.
Plans
Fraidycat
Free$0
The Firefox and Chrome extensions and the desktop apps, with no paid tier listed.
FreshRSS
FreshRSS$0
The complete aggregator, self-hosted on a web server with PHP and a PostgreSQL, SQLite, MariaDB or MySQL database.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Fraidycat or FreshRSS?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Fraidycat and FreshRSS are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Fraidycat or FreshRSS?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Fraidycat and FreshRSS have a free plan.
Which platforms do Fraidycat and FreshRSS run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Fraidycat lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps and a browser extension and only FreshRSS lists a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.