NetNewsWire
A fast, free RSS reader that brings the sites you choose to you.
Instead of Google News, algorithmic feeds
Screenshot from netnewswire.com, taken 2026-10-23, shown to help you recognise the tool. It belongs to its maker. Ask us to remove it.
There is a kind of retirement in which a programmer stops working for money and keeps programming anyway, and Brent Simmons's version of it is NetNewsWire, which he first released in 2002 and has spent his time since retiring making as good as one free app can be, away from any commercial pressure. It reads RSS feeds, the old open plumbing of the web, so you decide what shows up and in what order, with no algorithm, no feed ranking and no ads. It runs on Mac, iPhone and iPad.
Your subscriptions import and export as standard OPML files, so leaving is easy. NetNewsWire scores a 5 on footprint, self-direction and longevity and a 4 on lock-in, power and delivery.
It loses points only because it runs on Apple hardware alone, which ties a convivial tool to an expensive platform.
Using it means a list of the sites you picked, in the order you chose, with nothing added to it.
- Reads RSS, so you choose what shows up, with no algorithm or ads
- Imports and exports subscriptions as standard OPML files
- Made by one developer, Brent Simmons, since 2002
What stands out
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Side by side. NetNewsWire vs Google News
For comparison, we also reviewed Google News (15/30) as a benchmark.
