Readly UK Reviews 2,150

The new app is terrible!!

This new update is absolutely useless. The support team are no help whatsoever. Please reinstate previous functions!

Since the recent update, the search function within individual magazines has disappeared - this has made using the app pointless and painful for me. Pls re-instate, or I will cancel my subscription. Awful!!

EDIT: I have emailed their support desk AGAIN, as requested. But don't expect any response or the problem to be solved. They have, so far, been spectacularly useless at giving an adequate response or replying at all.

Since Cafeyn took over, it's become unusable. If you're thinking of taking out a subscription, don't. It's become impossible to search for anything accurately, which is such a shame as it used to be so reliable. I've tried MANY TIMES discussing my issue with them but now they are totally ignoring me - and the issues remain unsolved. It's highly likely, after many years of loyal custom from me, that I'll be leaving.

Since Cafeyn merger two weeks ago, I am less satisfied with the experience. The website no longer works on my managed office system. Since my role depends on research this is a major inconvenience. The layout of the new website is not immediately intuitive and I have to work hard to find what I want. Cancellation of subscription is under consideration

WHAT HAS HAPPENED!
been a subscriber for 9 years, was a great app, was forced to download a new app, which now won't let me sign in! Tried to talk to them via webchat, which was useless, managed to reset my password via website rather than app, app won't accept new password, so tried to cancel subscription all together, met with a message stating "Cancelling your subscription isn't possible right now, but you'll be able to do so within the next few days" after some research i found someone else had mentioned this in a review 4 or 5 days ago! So hardly a few days! I should be able to cancel when I want, not wait for them to tell me!

** EDIT Readly, Your support are still ignoring my requests to cancel! Absolutely no help whatsoever!
Contacted bank to now cancel their end!

I have loved this App and introduced dozens of users. I detest the "new" version it is really horrible and virtually unusable, why change what works so well? I would cancel my subscription but my wife assures me it must go back soon! In the meantime no more recommendations.

The new app is a disgrace and should never have been released to end users, subscription payers. I hope someone on their development team is currently looking for a new job!

I cancelled my subscription in March as I was never really reading anything.
I got the confirmation email. Then today, I got an email, saying thank you and welcome to Readly. I am now paying again.
I hate this company

The new app is terrible!!

The new app is beyond useless. Please reinstate previous functions!!

Used a Readly free trial in 2023 and cancelled before the end of the free trial, thus was never charged. Suddenly in April 2026 I have been charged a monthly subscription fee despite never returning to this website or reactivating my account at any time, they are claiming I did this in February 2026 with 2 months free and are refusing to grant a refund as I "didn't cancel in time" before the first charge. This is a huge red flag around their data and processes, and I will be disputing the charge with my bank. No confirmation emails were sent to tell me I had allegedly resubscribed, otherwise I would have flagged this immediately as a breach.

Do not trust this service, and if you do cancel your subscription be sure to also delete your entire account once done.

EDIT - the reply from the business does not account for the fact I did not take out this subscription. I did not resubscribe therefore did not agree to any free trial t&c, and did not receive any form of confirmation email that my account had been reactivated otherwise I would have immediately cancelled and requested deletion of all of my customer data.

Additionally, they advised in the reply I should contact their support team, I had already done this and they refuse to acknowledge the main crux of the issue is that I did not do this and continue to refer to the T&C which I did not accept. They also keep telling me to look in my account for receipts, when all it shows is a banner saying "subscription taken out February 2026" - this is not a receipt. They offered a free month, which is useless compensation when the whole problem is that I don't use this service in the first place and that's why I want my money back.

I stand by the review, do not trust the company with your billing information.

Previously excellent but awful since the app upgrade. Missing pages, inability to download articles, no longer able to do puzzles interactively within individual papers/magazines, archives now only available for the previous year. I will be cancelling my subscription if these facilities are not reinstated soon.

What a disaster this merger has been. Since the merger with Cafeyn and supposed upgrade of the app nothing has gone right. They have absolutely destroyed what was a very solid app and fantastic service. The content has been reduced, despite this move apparently giving more buying power. Profiles are all now merged - so if you have multiple profiles on your account the content is appearing on each profile or being deleted. None of your favourites are staying in place and there is no auto-download of favourites any longer. It's a complete mess. Probably the biggest issues are the deafening silence from Readly now. Absolutely NO customer support at all or message/holding statement out to say they are addressing the massive number of issues. You can see on the reviews the complaints are numerous, and people are losing any faith in the company or app.

The recent 'update' has trashed the app. It's not the same experience at all, just some pdfs of magazines and newspapers, no longer interactive, no longer able to extract individual articles, no longer able to search for subject matter, favourites have been lost, and no longer able to use the app for crosswords etc. It's now complete rubbish, all joy has gone from using it. It was a pleasure to use, but is now just a useless mess.
Edit following Readly's reply: Readly state that "We understand how important these features are and appreciate you highlighting the impact this has had on your experience" If they actually understand those features are important why on earth have they removed them in this new version? They are obviously talking nonsense, they clearly have no appreciation of the features they removed - or why people are upset. This is dreadful customer service.

I've been a user of Readly for some years and so I was disappointed to find the recent merger/buyout has resulted in it not being available on Fire. It lacks the original functionality and has deleted all my saved magazines. I decided to cancel my monthly subscription only to be told they won't let me me. It's appalling service. Lucky for them the lowest rating is one star. It's gone from a service I would have given 4* to, to this. My original intention was to return once they'd sorted their problems. Now I won't.

The new app appears to be a backward step. I now have to insert a pin to unlock content, even though my profile is shown as being an adult. It keeps referring to change the settings within profile, have done this on the account web page several times, but there is nowhere in the new app to do this.
The most irritating feature, or the lack of it, is not having an auto-download feature. The old app was set up to automatically download whenever I opened the app up to new editions of my favourite e-zines!
I do NOT want any more notifications coming through on any devices, saying that there is a new edition of your magazine, and then have to go searching for it. I just want it to auto-download and then let me decide whether I want to read it or not.

Previously a brilliant user experience…after this ‘upgrade’ it is much worse. I emailed them to ask what had happened to automatic downloads…and they have been scrapped. Now before travelling you must go to each individual publication and download each edition…even if it is a ‘favourite’. An upgrade that makes the user experience more complicated is not an upgrade.

Since relaunch, Readly is hopeless.
Not worth having.

UPDATE: Response says contact support. I already did that and got nothing but an automated response, partly in French. I don't speak French.
Managed to cancel day before next payment would be taken.
*********************

Trying to cancel my subscription, can't do it on the app, and when I try to cancel on the website it simplay says you CANNOT but try again in a few days and we'll reimburse you if you've lost money by delay - I see other reviews from February 2026 saying they cannot cancel; is multiple months what they mean by a few days? Avoid unless you want to pay increasing amounts for a time you cannot control. I joined in 2018 when Readly was fresh and glitch free (in my experience) but it's somehow gone backwards. Change of ownership or developers, I don't know, but something has gone rotten in Readly and there is a bad odour when a company says you have no control over your own money. I'll be trying to cancel via my bank.

Since the update the app has been awful. Whenever I search it shows ‘we don’t have any content in your set language, checked setting set to English?

Whenever I do manage to find a magazine they no longer have as many back issues.

I went to cancel my subscription and found you cannot cancel subscriptions at the current time!! When I signed up for this i was informed you could cancel your subscription at any time. This is totally unacceptable.

I have cancelled my payments via PayPal.

For goodness sake Cafeyn admit that you've got it wrong and return the Readly app to what it was originally. Your loyal subscribers of many years standing can't all be wrong. This new app is a disaster and if you don't take action I feel that you won't have enough subscribers left to run a viable business