If you follow a website, blog, podcast, or video channel, the best way to stay up to date about the content is by subscribing to the RSS feed. Then you will always get a notification as soon as new content is available. If you subscribe to a lot of websites, you will have to visit all of them separately when you are notified about the content. This is where RSS readers come in handy. An RSS reader aggregates content from multiple sources, such as news outlets, blogs, and other websites, into one place. This makes it easy for you to keep track of everything. So, you don’t need to visit multiple websites for reading articles.
What is an RSS feed?
RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. This is basically a simple and standardized content distribution method to stay up to date with the content of your favorite blog, website, or social media channel. Website owners and publishers also use RSS to notify their readers about their new content. RSS feed is basically a simple text file with only necessary information.
While several now use social media to get notified about the new content, the RSS feed still exists and millions of people use it. RSS feed is still a good way to look at a site’s new content. The availability of good RSS feed readers has also made it easy to catch up on the news and other content on the go.
Best RSS Reader Apps
In this article, I will talk about some of the best RSS reader apps. If you are looking for a good RSS reader app, check the list added below.
1. Feedly
Feedly is the best and free RSS reader app you can try. It comes with a clean, simple, and easy-to-use interface. This makes it easy to focus on your content. It can aggregate all the feeds into one, so you don’t need to look at different places. You can add notes to the content and also highlight important passages. This online free RSS reader offers a variety of layouts and your feeds are also sharable. You can also use it to stay uptakes with your YouTube channel subscriptions. You can also get keyword alerts from Google Alerts.
In the free plan, you can use Feedly on the web and on your smartphone. You can follow up to 100 sources and organize them into 3 feeds. If you want to follow more sources, need more features, and hide ads, you can subscribe to any of the subscription plans.
Key Features
- Simple, organized UI for easy navigation
- Leo AI to declutter feeds and prioritize content
- Supports YouTube channels, blogs, news, and newsletters
- Integration with other apps such as Evernote, Pocket, and OneNote
- Allows organizing content into themed collections
- Supports offline reading (premium feature)
2. Inoreader
Inoreader is another feature-rich and free RSS reader you can try. This lets you aggregate up to 150 different feeds for free. This feed reader focuses on content organization. So, you stay organized, you can group feeds in different folders and add tags to separate out individual articles. It also lets you search within your subscriptions. This tool lets you follow RSS Feeds, Blogs, Podcasts, Twitter searches, Facebook pages, and even Email Newsletters. You can make rules to manage your workflow and also monitor keywords.
The free version of Inoreader is enough for many people who follow less than 150 sources. If you want to follow more sources and want an ad-free experience, you can subscribe to available subscription plans.
Key Features
- Extensive content filters and rules
- Social media feeds and newsletters support
- Tagging and organizing content by folders
- Supports offline mode and archiving (premium feature)
- Dark mode for night reading
- Integration with popular services like Dropbox, Evernote, and Pocket
3. NewsBlur
NewsBlur is another interesting feed reader that lets you subscribe to feeds, read content, and save stories to read later. This RSS reader offers real-time RSS, you can read the original site’s content, share stories, tag stories, and more. It also lets you find stories across all your subscriptions. This tool can also save your searches and show how a story has changed over time. You can view content in a grid, list, or split payout. It also supports email newsletters, social media, and IFTTT.
In the free account, you can add up to 64 different feeds. If you go with the premium account, you can add unlimited feeds and get more features.
Key Features:
- Trains the reader to highlight the content you prefer
- Lets you read full stories from sites with truncated RSS feeds
- Supports sharing stories via social media or email
- Offers dark mode and story grouping
- Allows reading through original website view
4. The Old Reader
The Old Reader is also a good RSS feed reader to curate and read stories from different sources at one place. You can organize your feeds in folders and also move feeds from one folder to another using drag and drop. This RSS reader also has a social feature. You can connect your Google or Facebook account, and follow friends, and the tool will start showing you content recommended by your friends. You can also discuss a post with a friend using the shared folder feature.
The Old Reader is free to use for up to 100 feed subscriptions. If you need more subscriptions, post storage, ads-free experience, and full-text search, subscribe to premium.
Key Features
- Social sharing and following friends within the app
- Keyboard shortcuts for quick navigation
- Simple, no-nonsense UI
- Allows import/export of OPML files
- Unlimited subscriptions in the free version
5. Feeder
Feeder is known for offering an easy reading experience. This tool can manage most online sources in one place and offers an easy-to-digest reading experience. You also get notifications, so you don’t miss anything. This tool also has advanced filters to find relevant content. This RSS reader also lets you black out unwanted keywords and topics if you want. You can easily organize feeds in any order you like, or put them in elders. You can access Feeder on the web and also on your smartphone. It is also available as browser extension for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.
The free version with ads is available for free and lets you add 10 feeds. If you need more feeds and an ad-free experience, go with a Pro subscription.
- Real-time updates for instant notifications
- Browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari)
- Feeds organized by priority
- Searchable content archives (premium feature)
- Supports team collaboration (premium)
Key Features
Conclusion
selection of the right RSS reader depends on your personal preferences and how you consume content. If you want an AI-powered experience, Feedly can be the perfect choice. Inoreader offers powerful customization for heavy users. For a simple, no-frills experience, The Old Reader is a good option.. Each of these apps offers a unique set of features, so try a few and see which one fits your needs the best.
