Google News Alternative: Aplomb vs Google News
Google News is the best free news aggregator: thousands of publishers, Full Coverage of each story, and it runs everywhere. Its limits are that algorithms decide what you see, partly from your Google activity, and that it never labels the lean or reliability of a source. If you want to see bias, Ground News or AllSides are better alternatives. If you want short videos from a fixed list of vetted newsrooms, Aplomb is the alternative.
Disclosure: we make Aplomb, one of the apps on this page. We apply the same criteria to it as to every other app, we don't rank it first by default, and we never give it a score. Read our editorial policy.
On this page
How Google News Picks Stories
Google says computer algorithms decide which stories show up in Google News and in what order. Some sections are the same for everyone who uses the same language and region: Headlines, Full Coverage and Newsstand. Others are personalized: For you, Following and Local use your Google News settings and your past activity on Google services, including YouTube.
What Google News Does Well
- Free, on iPhone, Android and the web.
- A very wide range of publishers, from national papers to local outlets.
- Full Coverage gathers many outlets' articles on the same story, a good way to read beyond one source.
Where Google News Falls Short
- No bias or reliability labels on its sources.
- Rankings come from algorithms you cannot inspect, partly based on your activity on Google.
- It mixes reporting with opinion and commentary from a very wide range of sites.
Aplomb vs Google News
| Google News | Aplomb | |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Articles | Short vertical videos, plus an AI summary of each of the day's main stories, written only from the articles of the newsrooms covering it |
| Sources | Thousands of publishers | About thirty newsrooms vetted against six published criteria |
| Who picks the stories | Google's algorithms, partly personalized | The official videos those newsrooms publish; you can hide any outlet |
| Bias information | None | Trust tier on every story; ratings from three raters on each source profile |
| Account | Google account for personalization | No account |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Platforms | iPhone, Android, web | iPhone and Android (coming soon); videos also on the website |
Choose Google News for breadth and local news. Choose Aplomb if you would rather watch a short, curated feed where every story names the newsroom behind it. Aplomb does not replace a full aggregator: it has far fewer sources and no articles.
Prefer short videos from vetted newsrooms? Try Aplomb, free.
Other Google News Alternatives
- Ground News: groups coverage of each story and labels outlets with ratings averaged from AllSides, Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check. Ground News review.
- AllSides: free left, center and right headlines side by side.
- Apple News: editors plus algorithms, with magazines in Apple News+; Apple devices only. Apple News+ subscription.
- SmartNews: free with ads, with a political spectrum view on politics stories. SmartNews alternative.
More News App Comparisons
Google News Alternative FAQ
What is the best Google News alternative?
It depends on what you miss. For bias ratings on every outlet, Ground News or AllSides. For an editor-curated feed with magazines on Apple devices, Apple News. For short videos from vetted newsrooms only, Aplomb.
Is Google News biased?
Google says computer algorithms decide which stories appear and in what order, and some sections are personalized from your settings and past activity on Google services. Google News does not label the political lean of its sources, so it's hard to tell how balanced your feed is.
Who picks the stories in Google News?
Algorithms, according to Google's help center. Headlines and Full Coverage are the same for everyone with the same language and region; For you, Following and Local are personalized.
Is Google News free?
Yes. Google News is free on iPhone, Android and the web. Some articles it links to sit behind the publisher's own paywall.
