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ReviewsIs Feedly actually free?
How free72/100
Value6/10
How these scores work
Free Score (0–100) follows a fixed rubric: cards up front, auto-billing, hard time cutoffs, withheld core features, and paying with your data or attention all deduct points. 90–100 truly free · 70–89 free forever · 45–69 squeezed · 15–44 trial mechanics · under 15 fake or gone. Value (0–10) is editorial: real-world worth of the free offering measured against its paid equivalent. Full rubric on the methodology page.
Yes — a real permanent free tier: 100 sources, 3 folders, solid apps. But search inside your own feeds is paywalled, which stings once your archive matters, and the upgrade prompts are constant.
What it’s worth
Pro is ~$72-96/year; casual readers genuinely don't need it.
What you get free
- Follow up to 100 sources in 3 folders
- Web and mobile apps that sync
- The basic magazine-style reading experience
In practice: the mainstream RSS reader's real free tier — comfortable for casual following, deliberately cramped for power users.
Drawbacks
- No search on free
- 100-source cap
- Sponsored cards and persistent upsells
Also paywalled
- Search within your feeds
- Notes, highlights, and AI filtering (Leo)
- Integrations (Evernote, IFTTT, Zapier) and hiding sponsored cards
Free facts
| Verdict | Free Forever |
| Card required | No |
| Auto-bills | Only if you subscribe to Pro |
| Account | Required |
| Limits | Up to 100 sources in 3 folders; search and AI features are paid |
| The real cost | Nothing at the free tier. Pro starts around $6-8/month. |
The catch
100 sources sounds like plenty until it isn't, and not being able to search your own feeds is the squeeze that converts people. Sponsored cards appear in the free reading flow.
The smart play
- Prune dead feeds to stay under the 100-source cap
- Pair the free tier with your browser's find-on-page instead of paying just for search
More info — tap to expand
Is RSS still worth using?
More than ever — it's the algorithm-free way to follow sources directly. Every reader listed here consumes the same open feeds, so you can switch readers without losing anything.
Last checked: July 2026 · Verdict: Free Forever — a real permanent free plan. signup and fair limits — but no clock and no card.
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