A read-it-later app overcomes some challenges you may face every day, such as being overwhelmed by open tabs on your browser and having too many interesting articles to read. Although you may consider bookmark managers for the task, read-it-later apps have much to offer in terms of features and convenience.
These read-it-later apps are some of the best tools to save articles, videos, and other web content for later. That said, what you end up using will depend on your needs and preferences.
1. Pocket
Pocket is one of the well-known read-it-later apps, and it's easy to see why, as it's available on almost every platform. You can even use its extensions to save articles from your browser. This read-it-later app has a clean and user-friendly interface, making it a great option if you want something uncomplicated with a shallow learning curve.
Once you save an article in Pocket, you can choose to read it in its original web view or in the app's Article View, which is cleaner and distraction-free. That's not all; you can also customize display settings like the font size and style and the background color to suit your preferences. You can even save your articles to read offline, which comes in handy when traveling or having a spotty internet connection.
Pocket has a text-to-speech function, so you can listen to articles instead of reading them if that's your preference. You can also add tags to articles to help organize your content, making it easy to find what you're looking for later on. And if you want to share an article with someone, Pocket makes it easy to do so via email or social media.
Price: Free, premium version available
Devices: iOS, Android
2. Instapaper
Often compared to Pocket, Instapaper is one of the most popular read-it-later tools out there. This app has built up a loyal following among users who appreciate its simple interface and offline reading feature. And like Pocket, it is compatible with a wide range of browsers and devices, so you can always access your saved articles.
Instapaper lets you customize how articles look so that you can tailor the reading experience to your preferences. For example, you can adjust the font size, line spacing, and margins to your liking. You can also choose from various themes, including a dark mode for nighttime reading. And if you want to listen to articles instead of reading them, Instapaper can do that too.
Highlight important passages to return to later, or take notes to remember more of what you read. Plus, you can create folders to sort your articles and save them for offline reading. Once you have finished reading an article, you can archive it or delete it from your list.
Price: Free, premium version available
Devices: iOS, Android
3. Readwise Reader
Readwise Reader streamlines your reading by bringing all of your articles, books, and highlights from various sources into a single location. Reader includes a fantastic text-to-speech feature that can read your saved articles back to you using a computer-generated voice that is surprisingly natural-sounding. This feature is particularly useful for anyone who wants to revisit their favorite passages or catch up on reading while on-the-go.
Readwise lets you import highlights from almost any reading source, review the part through a daily email or the app, and progressively recall more and grow your knowledge over time. Reader handles all your documents from web articles like Instapaper and Pocket, to newsletters, PDFs, ebooks, and more.
Price: Free, premium version available
Devices: iOS, Android
4. PaperSpan
This read-it-later app provides a friendly user interface and reading experience. It achieves this by stripping away all the unnecessary clutter from articles and leaving you with a clean, distraction-free version that's easy on the eyes. That way, you can focus on your articles and not get sidetracked.
When you first open PaperSpan, you're greeted with a minimalistic interface that's refreshingly uncluttered. Once you find an interesting article you'd like to read, simply share it with the app or copy and paste the link, and PaperSpan will reformat the article into a beautiful and easy-to-read layout. If you prefer to listen to articles instead of reading them, you can do so with PaperSpan's text-to-speech function.
You can also use this app to organize your articles into folders, take notes, and highlight passages. Do you want to know how many articles you have read or how much time you spent reading? No problem—PaperSpan has a built-in stats tracker that can give you all the relevant information.
Price: Free, premium version available
Devices: iOS, Android
5. Matter
Matter is a read-it-later app with a twist—in addition to articles, it can save other types of content like videos, podcasts, and social media posts while letting you add your newsletter subscription. So if you come across something interesting that you want to read or watch later, Matter is the app for you.
When you first sign up for Matter, you're given a tour of the app and its features. After that, you can choose to connect to your Pocket or Instapaper account to import your reading lists, or you can start from scratch. You can add content to Matter in several ways, including sharing it from your browser or other apps. With Matter, you can also listen to your articles, take notes, and highlight passages.
Furthermore, you can subscribe to individual writers and newsletters to add and save their latest content directly to your feed. To achieve this, Matter lets you create an email address that you can use to sign up for new subscriptions and get the latest content delivered right to your dashboard. Alternatively, you can connect your Gmail account to Matter to add your existing subscriptions.
Price: Free
Devices: iOS
6. Refind
Refind is a read-it-later app that doubles as a "personal research assistant" and content discovery tool. It helps you find content based on your interests and save it for later reading.
When you first sign up for Refind, you're asked to choose your interests from a list of topics. Refind uses this information to curate a feed of articles and videos it thinks you'll find interesting. You can also set your focus on the most important topics to see more content related to those.
Whether you are into deep dives or summaries, Refind has you covered. You can use its Explore tab to find new content, from trending articles of the day to in-depth guides on specific topics. You can also follow your favorite publications and content creators to get their latest articles delivered directly to your feed.
When you find something you want to read later, just add it to your Reading list. Refind also picks seven links tailored just for you daily, so you never run out of content to read. While this tool does most of the heavy lifting by researching and finding content, you can still import articles from the web just like any other read-it-later app.
Price: Free
Devices: iOS, Android
If you consume a lot of content online, you absolutely need to find and use one of the best read-it-later apps.
What are Read-it-later apps?
Read-it-later apps are a great way to return to the interesting articles you don’t currently have the time to read. These apps allow you to archive articles for future access.
Which is better: Instapaper or Pocket?
Instapaper is the more aesthetically pleasing option, with more font customization and speed-reading features. Pocket, with its text-to-speech feature, is best for those who want audio aid.
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