AppCorpus
Market US

Scientific American

by Springer Nature America, Inc.

iPhone · iPad

Active Last checked 30 Aug 2026

Quick verdict

What it is
Store information collected; independent summary not yet available.
At a glance
  • From $5.99/mo
  • Free to download
  • In-app purchases

Categories and search queries

Official categories

AppCorpus categories

Key functions

Function Availability Access Scope Evidence
Free app Yes Free Store published
In-app purchases Yes Limited free Store published

Screens

App Store

15 store screenshots

Scientific American ipad screenshot 1
Scientific American ipad screenshot 2
Scientific American ipad screenshot 3
Scientific American ipad screenshot 4

Pricing & paywalls

App Store

  • Scientific American - 1 year Subscription — $5.99/month
  • Scientific American - 1 year Subscription — $34.99/year ($2.91/mo)
  • Scientific American - 1 year Subscription — $49.99/year ($4.16/mo)
  • Scientific American August 2013 issue — $5.99
  • Scientific American February 2013 issue — $5.99
  • Scientific American issue for November 2014 — $5.99
  • Scientific American issue for September 2015 — $5.99
  • Scientific American January 2014 issue — $5.99
  • Scientific American October 2012 issue — $5.99
  • Scientific American September 2013 issue — $5.99

Ratings & reviews

App Store

4.8 10149 ratings · App Store

  1. 5/5Great content but not the app

    Love the content in general. However the app is problematic: recurrent problem over several iOS and different iPhones, I have to delete the app every month for my account to recognize my subscription. “Restore subscription” never works. Otherwise love the content and will keep the subscription despite the monthly hassle! Update: Looks like above issue was fixed. Also, the app stays at the exact page where I left it when I come back to the app after closing it (used to take me to the home page). 5 stars! Thanks

    ZakZQ · 30 Aug 2026

  2. 4/5App is quirky

    Below is a review I wrote about 2 years ago. I still have problems with the app not retaining my subscription information. -— Seems like both the website and the iPad app have had problems for a couple of years that have not been addressed. I got an e-mail verifying my renewal today that contained a link to my subscription. Using that link, I got a page that said, "We have moved," and gave another link to get to the magazine. Since SciAm just sent me that link, why haven't they updated it to take me to the address that they've move to? Additionally, on the iPad app, I have to re-registered my subscription if I have accessed it for a few weeks. After I do that, I have access to the digital issues, but I don't understand why I have to keep re-registering. This annoying problem has been true for previous versions of the iPad app. Despite these problems, I think the SciAm content is great and it has kept me as a long-term subscriber.

    profmiket · 30 Aug 2026

  3. 1/5Worse Again and Again

    Once again I had to re-authorize which is not a smooth process. When I complained last time I was told they want you to reauthorize every thirty days. These people are really greedy, obnoxious idiots. Review September 2019. Password lost again. Cannnot restore. These guys are true incompetent morons. They are able to charge my credit card but not actually able to deliver what I paid for. They seem to have fixed the disappearing password problem. After a week or two and several tries I eas able to get back in. The interface still seems less smooth than it could be. Even Newer Review Restore does not work. They should change the name to “Incompetent American” New review: They supposedly made it better. Not really. It worked for a few months and then lost my subscription. It still won’t hold the password and won’t restore. Some of the issues I can read and others want me to subscribe. The way you view the content when it does work is strange and irritating. They will not respond to requests for help. They have my $99 and I have an app that does not work. I do at least get the paper version. Old review: Irritating and unusable. If it was free it would be a waste of time. Get the paper version. Hard to believe how bad it is.

    S in Austin · 30 Aug 2026

  4. 1/5Don't subscribe to Sci Am through Apple

    The Scientific American app is great. But you should not subscribe through Apple. You should only subscribe through the Scientfic American we site. The reason is that subscribing through the web site gives you access to Sci Am on all platforms, including the IOS app, but not the other way around. If you subscribe through Apple, your subscription is not recognized on the web site, and you cannot access the huge amount of additional timely material that they provide there. This restriction makes no sense, because both subscriptions are the same price. But you get so much more by subscribing on the web site. This is not made clear in the app store description. Very frustrating, and not something I would expect from Scientific American.

    drjefferson · 30 Aug 2026

  5. 1/5who took the since out of Scientific Magazine

    Been reading SA since around 1975. It was this magazine that inspired me to create and learn. Now, the publication is almost exclusively about global warming and how horrible western civilization is. This is constant and a large portion of EVERY issue If I wanted confirmation bias on left wing politics, I would subscribe to Time magazine. Other tha pure science, the only way to solve global warming is through population reduction. This is a difficult task as all humans have rights. Pointing fingers a people like a bunch of snowflakes and support presidential candidates is not what the publication used to be about. No one is going to inspired to be an engineer or scientist reading SA. Unless you think that taking an environmental studies class makes you a scientist. Ahhh, the end of an era. My subscription will not be renewed.

    mbarnick · 30 Aug 2026

Privacy & accessibility

App Store

Privacy

  • Data Not Linked to You — Analytics — Diagnostics — Crash Data Developer declared
  • Data Not Linked to You — Analytics — Diagnostics — Performance Data Developer declared
  • Data Not Linked to You — Analytics — Identifiers — User ID Developer declared
  • Data Not Linked to You — Analytics — Usage Data — Product Interaction Developer declared
  • Data Not Linked to You — Diagnostics Developer declared
  • Data Not Linked to You — Identifiers Developer declared
  • Data Not Linked to You — Usage Data Developer declared

Accessibility

No accessibility labels collected yet.

Versions

App Store

  • 1.0
  • 1.1

    Bug fixes: - Addresses a critical bug with iOS 6.1 New Features: - Background downloading - download issues in the background, while doing other activities. - Bookmarking - bookmark your favorite articles for later reference.

  • 1.2

    iOS7 support and bug fixes

  • 1.2.1

    iOS7 support, iPad 1 support, bug fixes

  • 1.3

    This version supports iOS 6, iOS 7 and iOS8. iOS5 and iPad1 support has been discontinued.

  • 1.4

    Fix to help improve download problems on slower connections

  • 1.41

    - Fix to help downloads on slower connection speeds - Update icons / splash screen - Updates default app title on library view

  • 2.0

    - Now available on iPhone + Tablet (iOS 7+) - Text resizing for articles - Add to scrapbook: Tap the star icon to save your favorite articles from any issue

  • 2.0.1

    - Added new help screens - Added forgot password link - Style changes for image captions - Various bug fixes

  • 2.0.2

    Improved archiving and download functionality - Automatic archiving of issues after 3 months - Press and hold on downloaded issue cover to access option to archive Added push notifications Various bug fixes

  • 2.0.3

    - Optimization for iPhoneX users to improve the usability - New edition labels on the buttons within the storefront - New filter bar to highlight filters found in your feed.

  • 2.0.4

    Support for Firebase Analytics

  • 2.1

    Exciting news! Scientific American is consolidating our Scientific American and Scientific American Mind apps to bring app users a more enriching and easier experience. This means that regardless of the subscription you have, only one app is necessary to access your subscription. For existing in-app subscribers to Scientific American, your subscription will renew automatically at the same price you paid for your app-only subscription.

  • 2.2

    Minor bug fixes and performance improvements.

  • 2.3

    New toolbar design for easier navigation

  • 2.4

    - New toolbar design for easier navigation - Performance improvements

  • 6.0

    -Updated look and feel to app sections and magazine issues -Performance improvements

  • 6.1

    Bug fixes and performance improvements

  • 6.2

    Bug fixes and performance improvements

  • 6.3

    Bug improvements and fixes.

  • 6.4 · 9 Jan 2025

    Bug fixes and performance improvements

Alternatives

Availability by market

Data quality & evidence

Page completeness
Live store listing
Last verified
30 Aug 2026
Sources
App Store

Report a correction