Newsreel vs Ground News
If you've given up on your news feed, you've probably heard of Ground News. Ground News shows how thousands of outlets cover a story. Newsreel is a news platform where journalists publish their own work.
Pick Ground News if you want to see how many outlets cover a story, how they lean, and what one side is ignoring. You can browse stories on its website without paying, and paid plans add deeper tools. Pick Newsreel if you'd rather read journalists you can name, with no ads, and see the actual arguments on a contested story. Plenty of people use both.
We make Newsreel. The Ground News facts below come from its website and its App Store listing, as of October 25, 2026.
Newsreel and Ground News side by side
Checked October 25, 2026
| Newsreel | Ground News | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year. It's a paid membership. | Website stories open without a subscription. The subscribe page lists Vantage at $8.33 a month, billed annually. The App Store lists Pro ($0.99 a month or $9.99 a year), Premium ($3.99 a month, or $29.99 to $49.99 a year) and Vantage ($9.99 a month or $99.99 a year). |
| Who it's for | People who have given up on the news and want to read people they trust. | Readers who want to compare coverage across the political spectrum. |
| Who writes the content | Vetted journalists and subject-matter experts publish on Newsreel directly. | Ground News doesn't write the news. It gathers coverage from more than 50,000 sources. |
| Format | Stories in formats made for a phone, from writers you can name. | Story pages that group coverage from many outlets, with a left, center and right breakdown and a daily briefing. |
| Bias and perspective tools | Perspectives gathers the actual arguments people are making about a contested story. | Bias and factuality ratings averaged from AllSides, Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check. Blindspot flags stories one side is missing. |
| Ads | None on the platform. | Ground News says it makes no money from ads and its only revenue is subscriptions. Linked articles open on publishers' own sites. |
| Ranking | Nothing ranks your feed for outrage. | "We don't use algorithms to shape what you see. You choose the stories." |
| Platforms | iPhone, Android and the web at app.newsreel.co. | Website, iPhone, Android and a browser extension. |
| Standout feature | Perspectives, which puts the arguments on a contested story side by side so you can weigh them yourself. | Blindspot, plus ownership and funding details for outlets. |
Where Ground News is better
- It covers far more outlets. Ground News pulls from more than 50,000 sources and shows how many on each side covered a story.
- It rates the sources. You get bias and factuality ratings for each outlet, averaged from three outside rating groups, plus ownership details.
- Blindspot flags stories that one side of the spectrum, or your own reading habits, has missed.
- You can start without paying. Stories on its website open without a subscription, and its cheapest App Store plan is $0.99 a month. Newsreel is a paid membership.
- Its browser extension works while you read other sites.
Where Newsreel is better
- You read original reporting from people you can name. Ground News sends you to other outlets' articles.
- Perspectives shows what people are actually arguing on a contested story. A lean rating tells you where an outlet sits on the spectrum, but it can't tell you what each side's case is.
- There are no ads anywhere on Newsreel. Ground News doesn't sell ads either, but its links open on publishers' sites, which have their own ads and paywalls.
- You read one clear story instead of sorting through dozens of versions of it.
- The National Association for Media Literacy Education named Newsreel its 2025 Resource of the Year.
On Newsreel, every story carries the name of the person who wrote it.
How to use both
The two answer different questions. Ground News tells you who's covering a story and how they lean. Newsreel tells you what happened and what the arguments are.
When a big story breaks, open Ground News to see the spread of coverage and check for a Blindspot. Then read the Newsreel story from a journalist you follow, and open Perspectives to see the arguments laid out.
For more options, see our guides to the best Ground News alternatives and the best news apps.
Read the news from journalists you can name
Newsreel is a news source for people who have given up on the news, where vetted journalists and subject-matter experts publish and build their audience. Read it on your phone or at app.newsreel.co. $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year, with no ads.
Get the Newsreel appFrequently asked questions
Is Ground News free?
You can browse stories on the Ground News website without paying. The deeper tools are in paid plans. Its subscribe page lists Vantage at $8.33 a month, billed annually, and its App Store listing shows Pro, Premium and Vantage plans starting at $0.99 a month.
How much does Ground News Vantage cost?
The Ground News subscribe page lists Vantage at $8.33 a month, billed annually. The App Store lists it at $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year.
Does Ground News write its own news?
No. Ground News gathers coverage from more than 50,000 sources and shows how outlets across the spectrum cover the same story. On Newsreel, journalists and subject-matter experts publish their own work directly.
How does Ground News rate bias?
Ground News says it doesn't rate bias or factuality itself. Its ratings are averaged from three outside groups, when available: AllSides, Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check.
What is the difference between Ground News and Newsreel?
Ground News is an aggregator. It sorts other outlets' coverage by lean and flags what one side is missing. Newsreel is a news platform, on your phone and at app.newsreel.co, where journalists publish their own work with no ads. Its Perspectives feature gathers the actual arguments on a contested story.
How much does Newsreel cost?
Newsreel is a paid membership at $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year. There are no ads on the platform.
Sources (checked October 25, 2026): ground.news/subscribe; ground.news; ground.news/about; Ground News on the App Store (in-app purchase prices and a developer reply on ads). Newsreel facts: our news apps guide and download page.