Five Great Alternatives to Google Reader

By now, you'll all have heard the rather sad news that effective July 1, 2013, Google Reader will be shutting down. If you like to read blogs in an organized, easily digestible way (like we do), chances are you're a big fan of Google Reader (like we are). We're also willing to bet that you aren't looking forward to the legwork needed to find a solid replacement  - one that will allow you to keep up with your favorites in a way that doesn't resemble the old school method of bookmarking and checkingdaily for a new post. Luckily, we're here to help with that.

Even though Google Reader is going away, they've provided ample time for you to move your data (and a handy way to pack it up). And since Google Reader isn't the only RSS game in town, you have lots of options in your search for a replacement. In fact, some great alternatives have already been discussed around the web today (check out The FJP, Lifehacker, and CNET).

We'd like to share our favorites with you too, so here are our picks:

Your Typepad Dashboard. Sure, it's exclusively for reading Typepad blogs, but your Dashboard is the best place to see all your favorites in one place, along with other handy items, like comments that other people have left on your own blogs. Not following many Typepad blogs? Head on over to the Showcase to find a few new favorites and really get that Dashboard hopping.

Bloglovin'. Available on the web and your iPhone and Android phones, Bloglovin' is the fashionable darling of the RSS reader set. New posts are displayed in a clean, visually pleasing way, and they offer a super easy import option to make your move painless. The downside? They don't offer an option to move feeds into folders, which may be a deal breaker for super organized types.

The Old Reader. It's just like Google Reader used to be before a few beloved features were removed, so come get your warm fuzzies here if you're feeling nostalgic. They offer browser extensions for Chrome and Safari, and easy, drag and drop folder organization is a big bonus (a quick note: due to the number of folks moving over from Google Reader, they've throttled their import process, so some patience - or the will to add feeds manually - will come in handy).

Feedly. Currently syncing with Google Reader (and therefore using its API), Feedly are currently cloning the Google API, so your feeds will be transferred seamlessly and will continue to work as Google shuts down. Slick, easy to organize, and user-friendly, Feedly lets you choose different layouts, and organizes content by relevance. One tiny caveat - you'll need to download an extension for Firefox or Chrome to use it on the web.

Netvibes. Netvibes is a bit of a giant, allowing you to monitor all your apps, feeds, sentiments, Tweets and even enterprise systems — all in real-time. If you're into having everything in one place, then Netvibes' Dashboard might be perfect for you. Just make sure to select the Basic/Free level, or end up paying $499 per month for the privilege.

And there you have it - our top five! We hope our picks help make your transition away from Google Reader a smooth and easy one! Got questions? We might just have answers, so be sure to leave them in the comments! Your Typepad Team is always here to help.

Comments

[DFLH]

Thanks for your picks of RSS readers. But I didn't find the alternative for the functionality of Google Reader, wich made it possible (with some javascript) to make "starred items" in Google Reader show up in the sidebar of my Typepad blog. Please help?

[Melanie]

Chances are if you can't star the items in the feed reader, you won't be able to pull that data in to your Sidebar, which I agree is a disappointing loss. I know that there are some readers that support starring items, but I'm not totally sure about feeding that data in. What method are you using currently? We can definitely do some testing.

[DFLH]

I'm using javascript, wich you don't allow me to copy in this comment. So how would you do the testing? For me it's crucial to have the possibility to feed data from an rss-reader (like Google) in the sidebar of my weblog.

[Melanie]

If you can get a feed of the feed reader's data, then using a service like Feed2JS should work. Unfortunately, with Google Reader shutting down, their tools and options are going to shut down as well. I'm not aware of a service that allows you to feed its data into a blog like Google Reader does currently, but I'm sure that one will come along if it doesn't already exist. If you'd like, please feel free to open a Help Ticket in your account with more information and as we explore and use the services that come up, we can see and test the availability of those options.

[Lydia]

I've been using Net News Wire (free), and love it. You can organize into folders easily. Highly recommend it.