Newsify vs Vienna RSS (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Vienna RSS grades higher than Newsify: 3.0 against 2.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Newsify grades higher on platforms. Vienna RSS grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Newsify
RSS reader with a newspaper-style layout for Apple devices and web
Which one is for you
Pick Newsify if
- Fits if you want your feeds laid out like a newspaper page, pictures and all
- Works for Feedly users who want an Apple app for it
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're on Android or Windows, as there's no app and the FAQ says Android isn't planned
- Not for you if ads in your article list would bug you and you won't pay $2.99 to remove them
- Tight if your feeds only carry summaries, since automatic full text needs Premium
- Pricey if you want full-text search, mute filters or faster updates, which all need Premium at $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year
- Watch out: Feedly is the only third-party sync service listed, and the web reader needs a Newsify account
Pick Vienna RSS if
- Fits if you read feeds on a Mac and like a mail-style layout
- Works for people who sync through FreshRSS, Inoreader or BazQux
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you use Windows, Linux or a phone, because it's macOS only
- Not for you if you run an older Mac, as 3.11.x needs macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or newer
- Watch out: it has no sync of its own, so syncing needs another service that supports the Open Reader API
How we grade them
| 2.8GPANewsifyGood | 3.0GPAVienna RSSVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPremium is $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year, which is $2.50 a month: just above the $2.42 line for the cheapest quarter of reading apps here, so an ordinary price. The reading itself is free, so what you're paying for is extras. If only the ads bother you, Remove Ads is listed separately at $2.99. | AFree under Apache 2.0, with no paid plans listed, against a $2.50 start for the cheaper quarter of reading apps. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe free app does the real job and one person could live on it: feed reading, sync through Newsify, Feedly or iCloud, offline reading with images, themes and article search. What you put up with is ads in the article list, and full text and mute filters staying locked. Premium has a 7-day trial. | AThe whole app is free and nothing is held back. |
| Features | BIt covers the feed-reading job: newspaper, large, table and split layouts, three ways to sync, offline reading with images cached ahead, a web reader, full text pulled from partial feeds, full-text search and mute filters. The last few of those sit on Premium, but nothing core is missing. | BDirect feed reading, a mail-style layout, plug-ins, custom display styles and Open Reader API sync. Nothing in the listing is missing for feed reading. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record, so we go on the listing: you install it, pick a sync option, and read. You don't even need an account, since it will sync through iCloud, and articles and their images download during sync. | BNo rating on record. Download it, add feeds and read, with nothing else to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BiPhone, iPad and Mac apps plus a web reader at newsify.co for Newsify accounts, and sharing out to Instapaper, Pinboard, Evernote and Buffer. No Android or Windows app, and Feedly is the only third-party sync service listed, so an A is out. | DmacOS only, and 3.11.x needs macOS 10.15 or newer. No iOS, Windows, Android or web version. |
| Best for | feeds laid out like a newspaper page | a free RSS reader for the Mac |
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: Newsify and Vienna RSS. How we grade
Price against what you get
Newsify starts at $2.50 a month when paid by the year and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Vienna RSS has no paid plan and scores 2.3.
Newsify scores higher, and starts $2.50 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other read-later and bookmark apps on the chart, 1 scores higher than Newsify for less, and none scores higher than Vienna RSS 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
- Vienna RSS is open source, according to its own site.
At a glance
| Newsify | Vienna RSS | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | $2.99 per month, or $29.99 per year (US App Store) | Free |
| Free plan | The app is free to download and use: feed reading, sync through Newsify, Feedly or iCloud, offline reading with image caching, themes and article search. Ads appear in the article list. | None |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of Newsify Premium, started from the app's settings | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Ben Alexander | ViennaRSS Project |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | vienna-rss.com |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Newsify
- There is no Android or Windows app, and the FAQ says an Android version is not planned.
- The free app shows ads in the article list; removing them takes Premium or a separate Remove Ads purchase listed at $2.99.
- Automatic full text, full-text search, mute filters and faster updates all require Newsify Premium.
- The web reader needs a Newsify account, and Feedly is the only third-party sync service listed.
Vienna RSS
- It runs on macOS only; no iOS, Windows, Android or web version is listed.
- Releases 3.11.x need macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or newer, per the README.
- Syncing needs a separate service that supports the Open Reader API; Vienna has no sync of its own.
Key features
Newsify
- Newspaper-style article lists
- Article lists can be shown as a newspaper-like page, a large view, a traditional table or a split view on iPad, with thumbnails when the feed supplies them.
- Three ways to sync
- Sync through a Newsify account or Feedly, or use the app without an account and sync through iCloud. Multiple accounts can be added on iOS and macOS.
- Offline reading
- Articles and their images are downloaded during sync for reading offline on iOS and macOS. Only the feed content is saved unless Premium's full-text caching is used.
- Web reader
- People with a Newsify account can also read their feeds in a web browser at newsify.co, in addition to the iPhone, iPad and Mac apps.
- Automatic full text
- Premium fetches the full text of most partial feeds automatically, saves it for offline reading and lets search cover the full text. Summaries through Apple Intelligence are a beta Premium feature.
- Newsify Account Plus
- With Premium, a Newsify account gains mute filters, receives new items up to 10 times faster and keeps more feed history.
Vienna RSS
- Direct feed reading
- Connects straight to the sites you track and reads RSS, Atom and JSON feeds without needing an account.
- Mail-style layout
- Scan article summaries in a list, then open a single article in a simplified browser view for deeper reading.
- Open Reader API sync
- Syncs with cloud services using the Open Reader API. The README lists BazQux, FreshRSS, FeedHQ, Inoreader and The Old Reader as tested.
- Plug-ins
- XML-based plug-ins add menu and toolbar actions, and the vendor says one can be built by editing a property list file.
- Custom display styles
- Articles can be shown in different styles, each an HTML template plus a stylesheet, and new ones can be written.
Plans
Newsify
Free$0
Feed reading with Newsify, Feedly or iCloud sync, offline reading with image caching, themes and article search, with ads in the article list.
Newsify Premium$2.99
per month; $8.99 for 3 months or $29.99 per year
Automatic full text saved for offline reading, more images, full-text search, mute filters, faster updates, no ads and priority support.
Vienna RSS
Free$0
The whole app is free and released under the Apache 2.0 license; no paid plans are listed.
Ways to pay less
Newsify
- Annual discount
About 16% off with the yearly plan
The US App Store listing gives Newsify Premium as $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year, so a year paid up front costs about 16% less than twelve monthly payments.
Vienna RSS
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Newsify or Vienna RSS?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Vienna RSS is cheaper to start with: it is free, against $2.50 a month when paid by the year for Newsify. Newsify starts at $2.99 per month, or $29.99 per year (US App Store), and Vienna RSS is free.
Which has a free plan, Newsify or Vienna RSS?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Newsify and Vienna RSS have a free plan.
Which platforms do Newsify and Vienna RSS run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Newsify lists a web app and an iOS app. Both list a macOS 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.