SFGATE launches ‘Friends of SFGATE,’ complete with ad-free app

For more than three decades, SFGATE has provided free access to award-winning journalism with an entirely ad-supported website. Those ads have helped fund the most-read newsroom on the West Coast, supported by 59 journalists in 23 different cities and five states across the American West. We now cover California top to bottom, coast to Sierra, plus have entire bureaus covering Los Angeles and national parks in California, the Pacific Northwest, Southwest and Big Sky Country.

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And while we’ll continue to keep the ad-supported version of SFGATE completely free, today we’re launching “Friends of SFGATE” for readers who want to support our newsroom but enjoy an ad-free reading experience.

Becoming a Friend of SFGATE unlocks access to our first-ever app, which offers entirely ad-free reading for $4.99 a month, plus tons more:

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• Interactive maps:Curated maps full of can’t-miss tacos, trails and tiny towns.
• Story bookmarks: Keep stories, maps and events you want to come back to later.
• Live events: Easily browse, save and access tickets to special SFGATE experiences, including forthcoming pop-up newsrooms in San Francisco and live storytelling events across California.
• California Mini Crossword upgrades: Think streaks and statewide leaderboards.
• Expanded audio offerings: In case you want to listen to the day’s top stories during your commute.
• Personalized notifications: Whether you want to keep reading about the SF Giants this season, or don’t, we give you the option to toggle any and all alerts.

Over the years, we’ve heard from a vocal contingent of readers, family and friends who want to be able to read our journalism every day uninterrupted. We’ve heard from neighbors who want journalism offered in more than just text form. And we’ve heard from people across our communities who simply want to be able to support our mission at a time when journalism in America is under attack. This app is to let you know we listened. Download the app and start your 7-day free trial now: iOS users, Android users.

Any issues at all, just drop us a line at [email protected].