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Five Great RSS Reader Alternatives To Google Reader

This article is more than 10 years old.

Now that Google is shutting down Google Reader, the search for a replacement begins. As we noted last night, there is little chance Google will preserve Reader no matter how loud the protests get. So, if you are dependent on Google Reader and unsure what you'll do without it, here are five solid alternatives you may want to consider:

The Old Reader Maybe one day this reader can remove the word “Old” from its name. Founded after Google decided to remove social elements from its Reader in 2011, The Old Reader looks to recapture some of that old magic. Now, with Google Reader set to shut down, The Old Reader may be the RSS Reader that most closely resembles the disappearing product. If you switch to The Old Reader, be warned that there is no mobile interface and that importing your current feeds might be tricky at the moment. Still, 45,000 new users have signed up for The Old Reader since Google’s announcement last night, a good sign that it will live on.

Check out Rob Fishman’s BuzzFeed story for more on the old Google Reader's social capabilities.

Feedly Long viewed as a friendly front-end to Google Reader, Feedly wisely built the technology to exist as a standalone product in anticipation of a Google Reader shutdown. That said, Feedly has a deep understanding of Google Reader’s functionality and should be able to preserve the experience albeit in a slightly different (and perhaps better) interface.

Check out Business Insider’s tour of Feedly for deeper look into how the app works.

Newsblur Simple, fast and closely resembling Google Reader, Newsblur is another good alternative to consider. Search Engine Land’s Gary Price, a long time user, gave it a great review: “I have been a user of the completely Web-based Newsblur since 2011 and have been nothing but impressed,” he wrote. “It’s easy to use, dependable, fast, and gets the job done. Plus, it has a ton of features for those who want them. I use several."

Check out Price’s review of Newsblur for more detail.

Reeder This app is for Mac only, but its beautiful design makes it worth including here. Reeder is plugged into Google Reader, but announced on Twitter that it would survive the shutdown. One of the nice things about Reeder is that it lets you download articles for reading offline. One catch: It’s not free.

Digg Google Reader will remain functional until July 1, 2013, so if you’re willing to wait a bit, Digg might be a good option. While their product is not built yet, Digg announced in a blog post today that their already-in-place plans to build a reader would be moved to the top of their priority list due to Google’s announcement. “We hope to identify and rebuild the best of Google Reader’s features,” they wrote, “but also advance them to fit the Internet of 2013." This could be a great alternative, but it’s anyone’s guess if it will be finished before Google Reader goes dark.

Update: Check out Digg's reader page here. For further reading, Mat Honan at Wired has the inside scoop.

For a more extensive list of Google Reader alternatives, check out this This Google Spreadsheet from the Online Journalism Blog.

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