Popular Feed Readers Compared: Best RSS Readers in 2026
Which is the best RSS reader? In 2009 we compared eight popular feed readers, led by Google Reader, Bloglines, NewsGator and Netvibes. All four have since shut down, Google Reader most famously in 2013. RSS itself survived, and in 2026 feed readers are enjoying a comeback as people look for a calm, algorithm-free way to follow sites. Here is our updated comparison of the best web, desktop and mobile feed readers.
Quick answer: The most popular feed readers in 2026 are Feedly and Inoreader for most people, NetNewsWire for free use on Mac and iPhone, Feedbin and NewsBlur for a paid ad-free service, and FreshRSS or Miniflux if you want to host your own. All let you import your subscriptions with an OPML file.
Table of Contents
What is a feed reader?
A feed reader, also called an RSS reader or news aggregator, collects new articles from the websites you subscribe to and shows them in one place, newest first. You do not miss posts buried by social media algorithms, and you never need to give sites your email address.
Best feed readers compared
| Reader | Type | Free plan | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feedly | Web, iOS, Android | Yes, up to 100 feeds | Easy start, AI filtering on paid plans |
| Inoreader | Web, iOS, Android | Yes, with limits | Power users, rules and search |
| NetNewsWire | Mac, iPhone, iPad | Free and open source | Apple users who want simplicity |
| Feedbin | Web, apps | Paid only | Clean, ad-free reading, newsletters |
| NewsBlur | Web, iOS, Android | Yes, limited | Training filters, open source |
| The Old Reader | Web | Yes, limited | Google Reader fans |
| FreshRSS | Self-hosted | Free | Running your own reader |
| Miniflux | Self-hosted or hosted | Free to self-host | Minimal, fast reading |
What happened to the 2009 feed readers?
- Google Reader – closed in July 2013. Feedly and Inoreader grew from its users.
- Bloglines – one of the first web readers, shut down after several changes of owner.
- NewsGator – closed its consumer readers and FeedDemon in 2013.
- Netvibes – the personalised dashboard closed its consumer site in 2025.
How to choose a feed reader
- Number of feeds: free plans often cap subscriptions. Count yours first.
- Devices: check there are apps for every device you use, or a good mobile web version.
- Extras: some readers can follow newsletters, YouTube channels, Reddit and Mastodon accounts too.
- Export: make sure you can export an OPML file so you can switch later.
How to subscribe to a website’s feed
Paste the website address into your reader’s add or search box; most readers find the feed automatically. WordPress sites usually have a feed at the site address followed by /feed/. Readers who prefer email can subscribe that way instead; we wrote about moving FeedBurner email subscribers when FeedBurner changed.
Tips for site owners
Keep your RSS feed working, show full or meaningful summaries, and protect your content from scrapers. Read how to stop RSS feed scraping.
How to move your feeds to a new reader
Switching readers takes only a few minutes. In your current reader, look for an export or OPML option, usually under Settings or Import and export, and download the file. Then open your new reader, choose Import OPML and upload that file. Your subscriptions and folders come across, though read and unread status and saved articles usually do not. If you are leaving a service that is shutting down, export early, because the export option often disappears on the closing date. Keep a copy of your OPML file with your other backups so you can rebuild your reading list anywhere.
FAQ
Is RSS still used in 2026?
Yes. Podcasts run on RSS, most blogs and news sites still publish feeds, and feed readers are popular again with people tired of social media algorithms.
What is the best free RSS reader?
Feedly and Inoreader have good free plans. NetNewsWire is completely free on Apple devices, and FreshRSS is free if you host it yourself.
What replaced Google Reader?
Feedly and Inoreader attracted most former Google Reader users. The Old Reader copies its look closely.
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I went for a cloud-based cross platform tool in the end – Flowreader from https://flowreader.com/
I added some more alternatives at and a tutorial at
i need full version of nero-9 so please send iy to my mail
I am so done of arriving at a webpage to comment and seeing weird comments. Cant they discover anything wiser to do with their time? How about a remark referring to 8 Popular Feed Readers Compared Tell it as you interpret it – that is the honest way.
Sorry, this is a test to reply comment directly in PIMShell.
PIMShell can enable you to directly view and post comments in Google Reader, so you need not open the original web page any longer. And your posted comments will be saved automatically. You can also subscribe to comments. If there are some new comments, PIMShell will fetch them automatically.
RSS feeds & readers are playing big role in web nowadays. The information you have deeply described is very useful.
Google reader is best feed reader and manager I am also using Feeddemon which is the best feed subscription manager.
Also net newswire is there for Mac from Newsgator itself.
FeedDemon 3 which is in beta version now (release candidate 3 actually) will support synchronaising with google reader. That is great feature i think.
Am using FeedDemon for more than a year and am fully satisfied with it.
Thanks for the comparison any way
You say that Google Reader is not ‘Mobile Phone Ready’ but there is a reasonable mobile version of the reader available by going to https://www.google.com/reader/about/ on your mobile device.
So which one is the best? I use FeedReader and Google Reader.