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Substack App Complaints & User Negative Comments 2024
Substack app received 70 complaints, negative comments and reviews by users. Have you ever had a bad experience using Substack? Can you share your negative thoughts about substack?
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Substack for Negative User Reviews
✓ Poor AccessibilityIt’s insane that I can’t increase the text size in this app. I like reading on my iPad, but the font is so small it gives me a headache. I can’t even use system text size settings because they only affect the headings. Not to mention the notification spam if I comment on a busy post. I want notifications for new posts and direct replies, but not for every single comment left on someone else’s post..Version: 1.2.15
✓ Made a mistakeTried yo look and understand stack as a couple of writers interested. It was a mistake as i was led down the garden path and now get emails and notifications from hundreds. How do I escape this mess without changing my email. Most of stack is now spam..Version: 1.2.15
✓ Wonderful but faultyThis is my absolute favourite app and I’ve been waiting a long time as Substack is such a remedy to the horrible Meta owned nonsense. However the chat feature is buggy and I can’t see where on the app to notify you guys so I am writing it here in the hopes you can respond and sort it. At that point I will update this review to 5 starts. In the chat feature for a publication that I am a paid subscriber to, once a specific chat is closed (subscribers can no longer comment), you can still continue to read through comments left. All good - except some comments, when you click ‘read more’ simply will not open. I hope you update this and get it sorted soon. And fair enough, this is still in its early days and I truly love what you’re doing. Keep doing it! Please let us know where to report faults straight from the app in future!.Version: 1.2.6
✓ Can’t write; also email spamThere appears to be no way in app to create an actual article/essay post. Is this a desktop-only feature? I thought we were past the days of desktop-only features… Disappointing! Also, I can’t stand there being no feature that lets me completely turn off email notifications. The “smart notifications” feature is a JOKE, as I still get lambasted with double notifications (app and email) for literally everything. Trying to turn off email alerts for users also forces you to unsub from them. What moron designed this totalitarian system? I’ve had to set my email provider to filter ALL Substack mail as Spam at this point. Disappointing!.Version: 2.0.8
✓ Clean UI, Doesn’t Support Basic FeaturesA shame that such a good looking app doesn’t support straightforward features like app-only notifications, footnotes, and more..Version: 2.0.0
✓ Couldnʻt Get It To WorkI liked the idea of the app but couldnʻt get in..Version: 1.3.5
✓ Won’t open with emailWhen I attempt to sign in with a link sent to my email, the app never opens up. Not sure what I’m missing here with all the other good reviews - I can’t even get it to open.Version: 1.1.1
✓ Doesn’t workDownloaded the app, it made me sign in with my email, then emailed me a link, I hit the link and all I got was an endlessly spinning circle. Deleted the app, re-downloaded with the same none result. Troubleshooting FAQs gave no hint as to how to resolve the issue so I give up..Version: 1.3.7
✓ Want to write but having trouble might be I last posted in FebruaryThe Substack is unwilling to let me write the paper.Version: 1.3.0
✓ Upset-as can’t unsubscribe to paid subscribersThis is ridiculous. Now I have to download Substack to my laptop as I can’t make these changes on my phone where I have the Substack app I want to unsubscribe from some of my paid subscriptions. I enjoy reading on Substack. But this is nonsense..Version: 1.2.15
✓ Poor interfaceAfter downloading the app it became apparent that there’s a huge floating orange button that stays no matter where you go on the app or what news you’re reading. It’s a huge orange distraction i can do without, sorry I won’t be using this app again until this changes..Version: 1.2.9
✓ Needs an email/app toggleReally useful app, but it really needs an easy off switch for emails. I want to read a lot of people’s work but don’t want to have all those people’s works in my inbox. They’ll get buried under emails from people I need to hear from and contribute to the clutter of my inbox! Also, Apple’s stock mail app doesn’t do a great job of displaying the emails. Since this app works pretty well, I’d rather just read in the app. However, the only option that is close to a “turn off emails” option is “Get notified in app or email not both.” Which just seems vague and unhelpful. It seems to work like this: if I don’t see the latest from a writer in the app, I get the latest from the writer as an email in my inbox. If I do see the latest in the app then I don’t get the email in my inbox. I THINK THIS IS HOW IT WORKS. It is not clear! That said, having a nice, obvious, toggle switch that has the words “turn of emails” next to it would be super helpful for those of us who don’t want to get there inbox inundated with newsletters every day. Thanks!.Version: 1.3.1
✓ Clean UI. Does not respect your privacy.While I love the app, it has a clean UI and a pleasant UX to it by elegantly showing that the interface concept of “less is more” can work work effectively. Unfortunately, I do not like how privacy-invasive the app is. It collects far too much data about you, it’s data that wouldn’t (and couldn’t) be gathered by reading the email newsletters, so Substack is getting greedy for user info with the app. Once I saw what data of mine the app gathers I immediately deleted it and went back to using email newsletters that don’t invade my privacy. This was so close to being great, but due to privacy invasions, this counts as a fail, Substack..Version: 1.0.1
✓ Barely unsubscribableThought I had unsubscribed from Seymour I couple months ago but continued to be charged on credit card. So I cancel the credit card. It will be replaced and sub stack will never have access to it.Version: 2.0.3
✓ Header uploading is virtually impossible with no support optionsThe new updates have made it essentially impossible to upload a header for your account. Even upon editing an image to fit the proportions. Images that previously worked are now not allowed, and from a coding perspective it seems completely nonsensical. For such a simple feature to be so impossible to navigate is beyond frustrating and the lack of options or remedies is insult to injury. Makes me want to find a new place to house my publications. Please consider letting us upload images outside of the required 1100px x 220px, and if they stretch so be it. Or at the very least allow the images that MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS to upload. Edit: After reading other reviews my highest advice is to fire your wildly incompetent coders, they are destroying your website and app and I will now definitely be finding a new place to upload my work. Sad to see a decent platform be demolished by crap tech hires..Version: 2.0.9
✓ Even with the latest update the share feature doesn’t workWhen I try to save an article to PDF or save it anywhere using share feature images are always missing still. Using the 12.9 iPad Pro with the latest software updates please fix.Version: 2.0.8
✓ DisappointedI was really excited to see there was finally a Substack app and I was really pleased with the experience of the app until I realized I wasn’t receiving all my posts into my inbox. I’m baffled by this but it turns out that rather than including your whole feed inside the app it only shows posts that were sent as emails. making this a essentially a sandboxed email app rather that a Substack specific feed reader. This means that you will be completely aware of any posts your subscriptions post to the web only. And in turn this means that if you want to read ALL of your feed the app (what a crazy idea!) you need to go to each subscription individually to check for any posts not sent as email. Nobody is going to do that. Nobody sane. The funniest part is that the “beta” version of Reader on the web DOES show all post in your feed. So until this is resolved I will be deleting this app and sticking with the web..Version: 1.0.1
✓ Website is better.Ok, so the content is pretty good. But it’s so obvious to me that the website is so much better, in design and just those little things that add up. I find the app much harder to use, so here are the things that I don’t like about the app that is on the website. 1. The “+” button is GONE. Still haven’t figured out the new way to start a new post on the app. 2. The app can’t support all the italics, bolds, crossed out bits and just makes them normal. When I put in sarcasm, I cross it out to make it clear. Doesn’t work on the app. 3. The app makes the buttons look… rubbish. Sometimes it’s just a hyperlink, not an actual button. 4. The layout, the design, the (everything) is better on the website. You can access stats, and just so much more stuff. I’m sorry this is getting so long so I’ll just close up the review and say: MAKE THE APP AS GOOD AS THE WEBSITE!!! Thank you if you took your precious time to reas this! 🙏.Version: 1.2.15
✓ Just annoyingI was subscribed to a few Substacks prior to downloading, but opening the app opened up with a dozen more that I‘d never heard of. Unsubbed from them all in safari (apparently not possible within the app?) but then had 20+ emails confirming each new subscription and unsubscription. What a ridiculous marketing strategy - why??!.Version: 1.1.4
✓ Functionality-free AppThe content is good. The app is terrible. Can’t even sign up to paid subscriptions within the app (have to manually open browser and log in web site). If I was an author on the site, I’d be very unhappy.Version: 2.0.3
✓ NO zoom feature.I like the content being hosted on Substack, but why make it such a chore to read. Any reading app has to have the ability to zoom the text size to make the interesting but lengthy articles easier to read. Come on. This is basic stuff, developers. Hence only 3*..Version: 2.0.11
✓ Awful payment settingsFirst, you can’t manage subscriptions or cards from the app. Thats quite inconvenient. But what’s worse is the app directs you to the substack website, which on iOS safari will not let you remove any credit cards. I had an expired card and couldn’t remove it. Incredibly poor user experience. Wasted fifteen minutes trying to delete my card on file. For the PM - I was trying to update a card on a subscription page and kept getting captcha. Then once captcha complete I couldn’t change card. So my old (expired) card was still there. I’d hit submit, get a decline, then could enter a new card. BUT hitting submit would trigger another captcha request but the captcha would not reappear. And what’s even worse is the AI chatbot not only tells me it is possible but refuses to connect me to a live support agent. Worst customer support ever..Version: 2.0.8
✓ Awful UXI’ve come onto the app looking to find writers in the topic areas that I’m interested in (tech mainly). The app is difficult and non-sensical to navigate. at the beginning, it just gave me a list of writers that I’ve never heard of to follow… which is just silly, because how am I supposed to choose anything when I’ve never heard of any of these writers. I can’t believe it doesn’t let you choose topic to follow, and then bring writers in from that. Then when I do go and select a bunch of writers (having to randomly selects based on what they’ve called themselves, hoping that they are good ones, because I have no reviews or anything to help me navigate that)… The only thing I’ve left in my inbox with is the crap that made me select at the beginning (some sort of rubbish editors picks). None of which I’m interested in. And all the writers that I just went and clicked on are not appearing in my inbox! Unbelievably frustrating. So massively inferior to Medium. I’m not sure why anyone would use this vs Medium. And no. I don’t work for Medium. I just hope someone at Substack reads this. Also, why am I not paying for membership? Perhaps if you guys had sensible membership subscriptions, you wouldn’t have to go to crowdfunding to raise $2 million..Version: 1.2.12
✓ Cannot manage paymentThis app need more account management feature, this should be explicit.Version: 1.3.1
✓ UnderwhelmingSo Substack, I want to see (1) posts in the fonts and background colors I see in browsers (presumably chosen by the authors), and (2) landscape mode enabled, especially for landscape-format videos! Until these two things are possible, I won't be using the app, okay?.Version: 2.0.2
✓ Update confusingLoved the app before the update that reorganized my feed. Absolutely hate that it isn’t most recent first. Time exists. stop trying to get rid of it. I promise I will find more things to devote time and attention and money to when my feed is chronological. It’s just so much more enjoyable and less infuriating and more straightforward and on and on I could go. Also why does it update itself and kick me out of anything I'm doing if I respond to a text and try to go back to what I was reading/listening to? I can’t even find it sometimes? Help! Fixing bugs is great and adding capabilities is great but making it impossible for me to keep track of stacks I'm following is frustrating. I want the last version back.Version: 2.0.3
✓ Can’t adjust really small font sizeThis app is a mixed bag but has promise. On the “needs improvement” side: the app only uses a random serif font that appears to be 10 points in size (maybe 9), with text in single space. Neither the font size nor the type are adjustable. It’s a poor reading experience. And … this is a reading app! It’s job is to produce a great reading experience. Which it decidedly does not do. Hopefully future improvements will include letting the reader adjust the font size, have greater line spacing and let the reader choose from fonts. These are all pretty common for reader apps. On the good side: the app’s business logic and organization work flawlessly. It’s nice to be able to see articles from my various Substack subscriptions organized in chronological order. This works well. So, the apps does the hard things well (management and presentation of content from various subscriptions) and does a quite mediocre job on the garden variety UI stuff that most reading apps already do. Hopefully they will improve that in future updates..Version: 1.0.1
✓ Nowhere to report an issue in the appI like the app and the ability to save my articles, but the read progress doesn’t persist. I couldn’t find anywhere in the app or on your website where I could report the issue, so unfortunately that means I have to do it here in the form of a bad review. Please add an issue reporting feature in the app and fix the bug mentioned above..Version: 1.3.5
✓ Haste makes waste by mistakes!Good morning. I may have been mistaken and misjudged. Trust for internet articles is coming along slowly for me and my house. With all of the false narrative, alternate truths, fake news, scams of various descriptions, and misinformation being fed from what may on the surface seem reliable sources is it any wonder our world is as it presents itself to the hungry or hangry individual attempting to peek out from below the wreckage today? I am only one of those beaten up and scarred people who has been made to face fears of failing at life whose expectation was once somewhat brighter due to the ignorance of younger years. Well hello from the rubble. Maybe I was wrong and made a mistake which now needs correction! I choose to trust this medium of Substack..Version: 2.0.9
✓ New to app review?Being prompted to review an application after only a few days worth of spare time usage, from a guy that isn't very internet savvy; may be a part of the development process of platform? I've only recently come to know of SubStack, through contacts on other platforms. I don't fully understand the organization of the "library topics", yet; I find it comparable to setting a toddler loose in a public library, that has no clue to how the books are organized... though I've managed to find a few items of general interest to me by happenstance browsing. I can say, when looking for my contacts by name (searching), I have no problems finding exactly where I need to get to, thus far. As I'm not very familiar with the platform yet, I'm not displeased, but I haven't found any form of "how to use this platform", or instructional, "tips and tricks" page yet either? I'm sure at a later time I may be prompted for another review? Hopefully by then, I'll be able to deliver a better review?.Version: 1.2.0
✓ Deceptive conductJust set up the account and app. NOWHERE on the App Store or the setup does say it’s a paid app. Started reading an article which then stalled saying need to start a 7 day free trial and then pay STILL didn’t say how much Not happy Jan , on principle won’t be subscribing.Version: 1.2.15
✓ Bug fix neededSubscriber count doesn’t toggle off in the app like it does on desktop..Version: 1.3.4
✓ Free Trial? Check your CC statement or they will charge youSubstack continued to charge me for months after I did a free trial. I cancelled and even changed my CC number but they somehow got me new card details and continued charging me. I provided CC statements proving the charges and the card number and they basically denied they were charging me. Had to open a fraud file with my provider and cancel my card. Beware before you give them your card info and make sure to check your statement each month to make sure they are not fraudulently charging you..Version: 1.3.5
✓ Better through emailI check my emails on my laptop. I enjoyed the convenience of hearing robert Reich’s podcast by clicking on the email. I don’t like the extra steps needed going through Substack. I also don’t like the female robot voice reading his work either. He has his own form of inspirational speech. Please make all of his recordings available through clicking on email. Substack should be available on MacBook Pro. I have it on my iPhone, but I don’t like switching my earphones to my phone. My laptop continues to be my workhorse. I view my iPhone as an entertainment device, but listening to Mr Reich is a part of my work routine, as pleasurable as it is…. Thank you. Also, commenting should also be made more easily available on my laptop too, btw. This was the original sin. Now I have to login through my iPhone, which knocked my rating down yet another star….Version: 1.2.4
✓ Web subscription not sync with iOS appWeb subscription says Paid, iOS app says not paid. Deleting the app..Version: 2.0.7
✓ Horrible updateThis review is for the app, not the service. The update is very odd and confusing. Home page has mix of horizontal and vertical scrolling (I really dislike this). Inbox shows me newsletters from last 2 days then jumps back to nearly a year ago. I just want the newsletters I subscribe to in order by most recent, please..Version: 2.0.2
✓ The website is betterGreat service, ok app. The app presents all the articles in the same boring style. Why not respect the authors stylistic choices as you do on web?.Version: 2.0.6
✓ Love the content but so hard to useLove the content I am reading but my god the app does not make sense. Cant subscribe to paid content in the app and doesn't link out to / create a smoothe journey to subscribe. Struggling to find new content I like, not sur the algorithm is that good..Version: 2.0.10
✓ Editing drafts on-the-go?It would be such a great little app if there was something in it for the writers too, like being able to edit drafts on the go, or make posts on the go. Some of us don’t like to travel with our laptops, and instead, travel with a phone or maybe even just an iPad. Just a thought! Love Substack. I have fully transitioned my food blog on to this space. I just need a little more from the app as a creator!.Version: 1.3.5
✓ Needs to have parity with their web siteThe app is fine, and I would use it more if it did all of what the web site does. The feature I miss most when using the app is the ability to collapse comment threads in the comment section. There are usually long threads, and I often collapse them so I can move on to the next comment without having to scroll through pages of replies. This is not a small omission because even when in the app, I will close it and go to the web site to read comments. The other feature I miss in the app is the ability to scale up the text using pinch-to-zoom. My eyesight isn’t great, and sometimes I like to make the text larger to make it easier to read. As far as I know, the app does not support this. Even just a setting to change the font size would work. The only thing the app does better than the web site might be notifications. Also, the web site has a feedback problem when you click like on a comment where sometimes it works but there is no visual feedback. That does not happen in the app. But, overall, the app is not as functional as the web site, and so for that reason, I don’t see much reason to use it..Version: 1.2.0
✓ Support violencePromoting hate speech in the platform is no good..Version: 2.0.9
✓ Not loving most recent update! Housekeeping is way too hard to find!Mostly love the app and the things I get to read. But the housekeeping stuff (credit cards, notifications) is too hard to find . . . . Since we each have a profile, it should be easily found from there - especially since choices are applied to everything attached to the person/profile! Glitches galore emerging: ALL in Inbox is a month old; everything froze the past few days is flagged as saved though I didn’t flag it bon the other hand, at least I see it somewhere! Give us a way to choose the order of our inbox (oldest to newest or newest to oldest, but definitely NOT RANDOM or mosh mash!). And GIVE US ACCESS TO DIRECT PROBLEM REPORTING. Support doesn’t help if I’d doesn’t answer OUR questions!!!!.Version: 2.0.0
✓ Was great until v2Suddenly got a lot worse. I get notifications for certain comments on some articles but not others, and the inbox/articles are all over the place - used to be sorted from new to old. Now they’re just random. I can’t find anything including the articles of those whom I pay to follow. Bring it back to how it was..Version: 2.0.0
✓ App is not great for content creatorsLove the Substack platform but this app is geared towards the readers/viewers and browsers. This App is NOT great for creators I.e. editing posts etc..Version: 2.0.8
✓ MY LOW VISIONCurrently enjoying the app, but unable to and large the typeface on my iPad Pro, which makes it more difficult to read the small print. It would be great if you could make it so that I could enlarge the typeface as I read with my open fingers open the fingers. Please could you advise if this is possible? Otherwise all very good thanks very much. Regards, Alan,..Version: 2.0.3
✓ Failure update - from basic level to frustratingIt was a basic app to start - that’s fine, it’s the content - but now it localises the content you’re following into a block at the top and ‘stuff we think you might like’ dominates the screen - I looked for a feedback button but there was nothing on the website which tells you everything you need to know about product management..Version: 2.0.0
✓ Update has made this app terribleWhat happened to the simple feed? You could load the app a see the most recent articles for the writers you subscribed to. Now it is just a mess of suggestions and articles I read previously on other devices. There is no coherent presentation and search is just awful..Version: 2.0.0
✓ Wish I could pay a flat rateIt would be nice if I could pay a flat rate to access X number of paid articles a month, rather than having to manage multiple subscriptions..Version: 1.3.7
✓ Great app, but…… suffers from terrible performance. Just scrolling the feed is unbearably janky. It didn’t used to be like this, perhaps you have to use the app a long time to see the issue. As a dev myself I know you must be doing synchronous IO (Core Data queries perhaps?) on the main thread. Don’t do that! Please fix. 🙏🏻.Version: 1.3.1
✓ FrustratingThis app was great until about a month ago, and in the past couple of days it has become unusable. My Inbox now displays my non-archived items in what appears to be a near-random but maybe chronological (?) order. Currently, the item at the top of my inbox is an article from June 10, followed by an article from a day ago that I saved, them followed by more articles from various dates in June, then July, etc. I have no idea why it’s not displaying—AS IT HAS ALWAYS DONE—in reverse chronological order, but it now appears entirely impossible to have any workflow to process new items as they come in on a single feed, as opposed to going to each subscription and reviewing the articles there. (I just reopened the app, and it appears that each time I open the app, it pulls a few more earlier items in: Now the top items in my feed are from June 8!) Even the Saved tab starts back in June and I have no idea where to find recent items I’ve saved other than by going to individual subscriptions. I guess I’ll just have to go back to reading on Feedbin or Readwise Reader..Version: 2.0.0
✓ A good idea but needs attentionI somewhat like this app and would give it more stars but for one - fatal - flaw: the inability to Mark All Read. I recently subscribed to a long-running publication and now have several hundred unread articles clogging up my home page and notifications. If there is a way to Mark All Read, I can’t find it..Version: 1.2.15
✓ Go back to old app designNew app design hard to navigate. Also isn’t the joy of Substack that is has no Instagram style algorithm. Please add option to see a list of your followed subscriptions again..Version: 2.0.0
✓ Too much unwanted emailAlthough I am enjoying reading the articles by the author I signed up to read, I am not impressed by the amount of unwanted email I receive from Substack..Version: 1.3.4
✓ Good start but needs searchI love substack but am ambivalent about the app. The app has reduced my email inbox clutter, but the lack of a search-within-archive is a pain. When I received my subscriptions via email, I could easily search for and find a stack I needed to refer to, but in the app this does not yet seem possible: instead the search function delivers suggested substack providers to subscribe to, rather than the article I need. 5 stars to come once this lack of functionality is fixed..Version: 1.1.1
✓ Buggy appI’ve been using Notes on the app for under a month and twice it has become unusable. The app shuts down when I select the Notes tab. The first time this happened, I reported it and received a meaningless response from support that didn’t resolve the issue. However it appeared to be an issue with a single post, so when that post was pushed further down the page I was able to use the app again - I just couldn’t scroll to the post that initiated the shutdown. And today it’s doing the same thing. I tried viewing notes in a browser instead but since I have the app it just switches to the app and then shuts down. I wish they would pay attention to this issue since it makes the app useless for Notes, which is central to the Substack community experience..Version: 1.2.15
✓ Like the idea but definitely needs updatingI love the idea of a substack app. I can subscribe to various publications of my favorite writers and when I log into the app i can view all the recent posts all in one place. It’s kind of like creating your own newspaper or magazine, which is really awesome. So this really has potential Unfortunately, the app needs an overhaul. You can’t change your subscription in the app. Apparently not every publication is shown in the feed. I don’t believe you can search posts within a publication. As a writer, it would be immensely helpful to be able to edit drafts in the app. There is a feature to post directly from the app but it’s lacking so many options compared to the web version that I just don’t see the point of using it. It would also be nice to edit your publication and change settings through the app. I realize that having all those bells and whistles would probably require a “Substack Writer” app, but I think it’s really needed. Cause this app is trying to do a little of both but as a result it’s not doing either all that well..Version: 1.2.10
✓ Hooboy does this app need work!I downloaded and subscribed in order to support Chris Ryan’s work. First, instead of a password setup, Substack uses the “we’ll send you an email link to sign in” tedious nonsense. So got the link, set up a name and a picture, then searched for “Chris Ryan” “Ryan” Christopher Ryan” “Tangentially” and even searched “T”…. Not a single one of those terms came up with ANY results- his or anyone else’s! Maybe my security settings conflict with whatever Substack is doing in the background, but if whatever they are doing in the background is invasive enough to break their website then uh-oh. I have turned off content blockers, no difference in search results. Without the ability to search for content then Substack is pretty much worthless, hope they get some engineering attention on one of the most basic needs of such a site….Version: 1.0.9
✓ Great phone app, OK tablet appI prefer to read my subscribed Substacks in email, but I find the app super useful for finding previous posts, missed details, etc. However, it’s really only great on my phone. The iPad app is, well, it’s a giant iPhone app. No sidebar, no navigation, no taking advantage of the larger screen and additional input methods. Sure it’s fine for reading in portrait mode, but when you’re looking for something, trying to catch up on a bunch of subscriptions, etc., I find myself wanting something more akin to the Apple News app. Also, the “you haven’t enabled notifications” pop-over video you can’t close is annoying. Why not the standard “please enable notifications” dialog that every other app uses so I can tell it no right there?.Version: 1.3.5
✓ Interface is confusing and has put me offI really wanted to get involved but the none linear interface that doesn't make sense just caused me to feel lost. I am sorry to low star it but I have to move onto something else and I am disappointed having read that others have also said the same and yet the conflicting search and navigation is so alien, I can't see how I can function with it. I'll try again in a few months, maybe it'll change as it develops. If so the rating will go up..Version: 2.0.8
✓ Shocking app.I had a bad experience downloading this app today. I was encouraged to download the app through a newsletter that I subscribe to about Long Covid. However, when I downloaded the app and logged in, it, suddenly subscribed me to all these other random newsletters and my inbox had about 15 emails welcoming me to these other subscriptions, and encouraging me to pay money to view their other newsletters. Completely ridiculous!!! I signed up for this app only to read about Long Covid, I’m not interested in reading all these other random newsletters that they decided to subscribe me to. So I have deleted my account and deleted the app. Goodbye, you’ve lost me..Version: 1.2.6
✓ Good but missing a few thingsFor the most part I’m really enjoying the substack app. The UI is great, it’s easy to navigate between specific substacks or just look at your combined chronological feed, etc. I’m only giving three stars for now because there are a few features missing (or not working on my device? iPhone X, so not that old): - minimize comment thread! This exists on the main site, so hopefully it was just a small oversight (or it wasn’t considered a priority for release) that it’s not on the app … - minimizing a comment thread should send you to the next comment, rather that keeping your distance scrolled constant. This matters because oftentimes I’ll spend some time reading replies and then want to close the parent comment and move on to the next one, but the way minimizing works on the desktop site if you do that you’ll be in the middle of the replies to a later comment - if you tap the top of the screen and are sent back to the top of the article, it would be nice to be able to tap it again to return to where you were. As someone with aggressive thumbs this feature is a lifesaver elsewhere that it exists Again, the app is mostly great, but these three issues are huge for my enjoyment, so I’ll be leaving my review at 3/5 until they’re added..Version: 1.0.2
✓ A beginningThough, a long way to go. Even the mobile-reader feed has been down for a day or more. And notifications don't work. Plus, some of us increase the font size, but it throws off the design. This will be a 4 star someday, & beat the NYT, the Athletic, & the Globe & Mail are still 3/5. I use them, to just save to Safari's Reading List. This app is a 2/5 I'll keep paying while the journalists I pay, plus Safari's Reader View, 99.9% works on iOS. I'm already seeing rare issues, but I can cancel anytime, without a stressed-out human. For now..Version: 2.0.5
✓ Warning! Big problems.Update: as a writer using SubStack, I would not recommend that writers jump onto the SubStack platform until things get worked out. Stripe, the company that processes payments, charges 15%. That is outrageous and unacceptable, and they don’t tell you that up front. As stated before, there is NO way to contact any customer service. While there are some things I like about SubStack, I really regret having jumped into it at this point. Now that I have subscribers, there is no easy way to just stop. I think that’s what SubStack is counting on. Currently, the app is not working. There is NO customer service. You cannot talk to a human being if you encounter a problem. The thing I like about Substack is it’s simplicity. It’s a newsletter only, without extra nonsense. It’s great when it works. When it doesn’t work, I guess you just have to hope it does work again, eventually, somehow. I got the impression that SubStack was all about connecting readers and writers, and the whole concept seemed clean and honest. So far, it is not turning out that way..Version: 1.0.3
✓ Keeps getting worseSubstack took a fairly minimalist design and has added so many bells and whistles that the bloat makes it non-functional. Unfortunately they didn’t bother to include features that are useful to the reader. You still can’t edit comments within the app—have to go into safari. If a notification pointa to a comment in a thread, clicking will take you to top comment in thread. Again, you have to open safari to locate a specific comment downstream. And if you want to manage a subscription, the app will no longer open safari. You have to open safari and navigate to the Substack or at best manually copy and paste the link. We readers are nether the customer nor the product. Those roles are assigned to creators. We are just the saps who are paying the bill and the app shows this attitude. Seems shortsighted.Version: 2.0.0
✓ Strong app but needs offline supportWould be flawless but rather hobbled by the fact that new posts in inbox are not available offline..Version: 1.1.0
✓ Chews up batteryGreat UI, great content, but OMG does this app chew up my battery! Every time I’ve had it open for a bit, the battery graph in iPad OS settings looks like a cliff..Version: 1.2.10
✓ Sneaky User ManipulationThe app refuses to show me ‘subscription’ links in-app. It will only email me subscription links to my email address. I WANT to subscribe through the app because I love how apple manages subscriptions (one single page where i can press ONE button and cancel). In short this app is manipulating users to subscribe outside the apple ecosystem. Just charge me a surcharge instead substack….Version: 2.0.15
✓ Need help getting it to recognise me!I’ve recently started subscribing to several writers on Substack and am considering writing my own blog. Ive been using through my internet browser. I downloaded the app and tried to sign in using the same email I’m subscribed with. Unfortunately the app doesn’t recognise me as a previous user and won’t show my account or subscriptions. I’ve searched the Substack website high and low for a means of getting support and have had no luck. Frustrating. I really think I should be able to get in touch with someone if there’s no solution via the FAQs. Hoping you can help! Thanks..Version: 1.1.5
✓ Couldn’t start itI downloaded the app and tried repeatedly to open it. Kept getting message to check email to log in. Email came but never worked. I then gave up for while. Very annoying. Now works ok, and is easier than getting lots of emails..Version: 1.2.5
✓ Can't even log in without encountering a programming errorDownloaded the app, went to log in, and the input fields are incapable of pasting values from my password manager, which is one of the highest-rated and widely trusted ones. Whoever coded this app apparently doesn't even realize that many people use long character strings as passwords, and expect to be able to paste them from a password manager, not rekey them manually. If they don't even know that, then do I even want any app that they coded on my phone at all, given what else might be wrong with it via the coders not knowing any better? Update: I logged in anyway and began using the app. I wanted to check what it would cost to upgrade a certain subscription from free to paid. D--ned if there is any way --- any way AT ALL --- to find the super-hidden Easter egg that would let me manage my subscriptions, upgrade one of them to paid, and so on. If you find the deeply hidden menu controls that let the user do one of the most basic functions like managing their subscriptions, let me know! I gave up hunting after a while, in disgust at how bad this app is!.Version: 2.0.6
🙂 Substack Positive Reviews
Substack works most of the time. If it is not working for you, we recommend you excersise some patience and retry later or contact Substack.
⛔ Substack Problems
