This article accompanies our
big list of GNU/Linux & FLOSS RSS feeds so you can choose suitable reader
for your desktop. Here I list
Firefox,
Thunderbird,
Akregator,
Liferea,
Blam, and
Evolution with some details of each. It's possible later for me to update this list, because there are still many other good readers
. I hope you enjoy this!
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1. Mozilla Firefox (and Derivatives)
You might be surprised if Firefox has RSS reader ability. It's preinstalled, very simple to use, and united to the browser. You reach news feeds via Bookmarks Toolbar. To add new feed, visit a valid rss url > press Subscribe button.
- Origin: Mozilla Project
- Available in repo: yes
- Command to install: sudo apt-get install firefox
- Tray icon on Unity: no
- Internal browser: yes
- Multitab interface: yes
- Ubuntu built-in: yes
- Import/export feeds: no
- Adblock: yes, via addons
- License: Mozilla MPLv2
- Website: https://www.mozilla.org
- Notes: Firefox has many derivatives such as Debian Iceweasel, GNU Icecat, and so on and they're have RSS ability too.
2. Mozilla Thunderbird
Thunderbird is a feature-rich mail client with RSS reader ability. It's preinstalled on Ubuntu and more convenient as complete reader than Firefox.
- Origin: Mozilla Project
- Available in repo: yes
- Command to install: sudo apt-get install thunderbird
- Tray icon on Unity: yes
- Internal browser: yes
- Multitab interface: yes
- Ubuntu built-in: yes
- Import/export feeds: yes, OPML/XML format
- Adblock: yes, via addons
- License: Mozilla MPLv2
- Website: https://userbase.kde.org/Akregator
3. Akregator
- Origin: KDE Project
- Available in repo: yes
- Command to install: sudo apt-get install akregator
- Tray icon on Unity: no
- Internal browser: yes
- Multitab interface: yes
- Ubuntu built-in: no
- Import/export feeds: yes, OPML/XML format
- Adblock: yes
- License: GNU GPLv2
- Website: https://userbase.kde.org/Akregator
4. Liferea
Liferea is a feature-rich desktop RSS reader for GNU/Linux. It works with RSS feeds and also can
play podcasts directly. It's integrated with Unity desktop well (see picture). If you like GNU/Linux podcasts like
mintCast or
Linux Action Show, I recommend Liferea for you.
- Origin: Liferea Project
- Available in repo: yes
- Command to install: sudo apt-get install liferea
- Tray icon on Unity: yes
- Internal browser: yes
- Multitab interface: yes
- Ubuntu built-in: no
- Import/export feeds: yes, OPML/XML format
- Adblock: no
- License: GNU GPLv2
- Website: https://lzone.de/liferea
5. Blam
Blam is the most minimalist stand-alone RSS reader here. It can do basic tasks such as importing OPML, reading feeds, but it can't store feeds (at version 1.8.9) so you should update from zero every time. If you want very simple RSS reader that just works, Blam is for you.
- Origin: GNOME Project
- Available in repo: yes
- Command to install: sudo apt-get install blam
- Tray icon on Unity: no
- Internal browser: yes
- Multitab interface: no
- Ubuntu built-in: no
- Import/export feeds: yes, OPML format
- Adblock: no
- License: GNU GPLv2
- Website: https://github.com/GNOME/blam
6. Evolution (using RSS Plugin)
Evolution is a professional mail client just like Thunderbird. And as you can guess it has RSS reader ability too. If you love GNOME, accustomed to Evolution in daily life, using its RSS plugin is recommended.
- Origin: GNOME Project
- Available in repo: yes
- Command to install: sudo apt-get install evolution evolution-rss
- Tray icon on Unity: no
- Internal browser: yes
- Multitab interface: yes
- Ubuntu built-in: no
- Import/export feeds: yes, OPML/XML format
- Adblock: yes, via addons
- License: LGPLv2/v3
- Website: https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Evolution
