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smartnews.com

11 technologies
VerifiedGrowingVisit2.3M/mo$105M56811 Tech25 Leads
Deep Dive

SmartNews: The Unbundled News Giant

How a Japanese startup cracked the $100M revenue code by decoupling news from ideology

In a world where news apps are either partisan echo chambers or sterile aggregators, SmartNews found a third path: treating news as a utility, not an ideology. With 2.3M monthly visits and a $104.6M revenue run-rate, they've built a news app that feels more like a personalized TV guide than a newspaper.

$104.6M
annual revenue
2.3M
monthly visits
55%
direct traffic
568
employees

"SmartNews doesn't sell news—it sells attention management in a world of information overload."

The Unbundling Strategy

SmartNews' genius lies in what it *doesn't* do. While competitors like Flipboard chase curation and Apple News doubles down on premium subscriptions, SmartNews operates as a pure aggregator. Their 3,000 media sources aren't partners—they're feed sources. This creates a massive defensive moat: no single publisher can threaten their model because they're not dependent on any exclusive relationship.

The Japanese Foundation

The 71.5% traffic from 'undefined' (likely Japan) reveals their secret weapon: they built a news product for a non-Western market first. Japanese users consume news differently—less ideological, more practical. This shaped their algorithm to prioritize utility over engagement bait. The result? A 55% direct traffic rate that Western apps would kill for, showing users come back by habit, not by notification spam.

The tech stack tells another story. Built on Next.js with Tailwind CSS and heavy use of Lazy Loading, SmartNews prioritizes performance over visual flair. They're not trying to win design awards—they're trying to load news faster than the competition. The 2.2M backlinks are a testament to their SEO moat: they rank for everything from 'smartnews' to 'クロスワード' (crossword), capturing both branded and generic search intent.

  • Revenue model: Primarily ad-based with some premium features, not subscription-dependent
  • Traffic composition: 55% direct, 25% organic—this is the holy grail of retention
  • Global footprint: Despite Japanese dominance, they've built a US presence with dedicated growth leadership
  • Product focus: Weather, virus info, and entertainment alongside hard news—meeting users where they are
Doesn't create original content
3,000 sources = impossible to replicate
No exclusive partnerships with major publishers
Algorithm-first approach = scalable to any market
Less polished UX than Apple News
Utility-focused = higher retention than ideology-driven apps

The News Utility Play

SmartNews is building the OS for news consumption, not just another news app. Their $410M funding validates that aggregation, not creation, wins at scale.

What tech stack does Smartnews use?

18 detected
Error Tracking1
Web Standards1
Frontend Frameworks1
Tracking & Analytics7
G
Google Analytics
G
Google Tag Manager
G
Google Tag Manager
G
Google DoubleClick
G
Google Analytics
G
Google AdSense
G
Google APIs

How much traffic does Smartnews get?

Traffic & Engagement

2.8M
Monthly Visits
-0.5%
2.0
Pages/Visit
3:00
Avg. Duration
55%
Bounce Rate
Monthly Traffic Trend-9%
3.1M
Oct 2025
Oct
2.9M
Nov 2025
Nov
2.8M
Dec 2025
Dec

Rankings

#19,671
Global Rank
#1,592
Japan Rank

Backlinks & Authority

2.2M
Backlinks
7.4K
Ref. Domains
51
Authority Score
Low
Penalty Risk
Backlinks Trend-5%
2.4M
Jul 2025
Jul
2.4M
Aug 2025
Aug
2.4M
Sep 2025
Sep
2.4M
Oct 2025
Oct
2.4M
Nov 2025
Nov
2.2M
Dec 2025
Dec

Search Traffic

Organic
190.2K

Top Organic Keywords

#1クロス ワード
49,500 vol13.2%
#10八代 亜紀 ヌード
165,000 vol2.8%
#1スマート ニュース
110,000 vol1.6%
#4広陵 高校 野球 部 いじめ
33,100 vol1.3%
#2スマート ニュース アプリ
14,800 vol1.1%

Where is Smartnews's audience located?

🇯🇵Japan76.3%
🇺🇸United States20.9%
🇨🇳China0.5%
🇬🇧United Kingdom0.4%
🇮🇳India0.3%

Device Distribution

Desktop20.3%
Mobile79.7%

What keywords does Smartnews rank for?

5 keywords
1smartnews21.3K vol$1.39
2スマートニュース16.8K vol
3smart news5.1K vol$1.29
4クロスワード15.1K vol
5スマニュー3.0K vol$0.72

How is Smartnews's SEO?

Meta Tags

title19 chars

スマートニュース(SmartNews)

description114 chars

SmartNews(スマートニュース)は、政治や経済、エンタメ、天気、ウイルス情報のニュースはもちろん、あなたの知りたいジャンルのニュースまで3,000メディアの圧倒的情報量の中から最新情報をお届けする、無料ニュースアプリです。

languageJA

What is Smartnews's revenue?

$105M
Annual Revenue
568
-26%
Employees
$184K
Revenue/Employee
$410M
Total Funding
$2.0B
Valuation
#5,059
Growjo Rank
Tech Services
Tokyo, JAPAN
Headquarters

Who works at Smartnews?

Loading leads...

What do customers think of Smartnews?

smartnews.com

smartnews.com

0.0
0 reviews

Activity & Engagement

Reply Rate
0%
Avg. Reply Time
0.0 days

Contact Information

Address:
US

Reviews (0)

Filter by rating:

No reviews found. Reviews may not be available in the initial page load. Try refreshing or check the Trustpilot page directly.

Frequently Asked Questions about Smartnews

What is Smartnews's Revenue?
Smartnews generates approximately $105M in annual revenue. With 568 employees, that's $184,150 per employee. The company has raised $410M in total funding.
What does Smartnews do?
SmartNews(スマートニュース)は、政治や経済、エンタメ、天気、ウイルス情報のニュースはもちろん、あなたの知りたいジャンルのニュースまで3,000メディアの圧倒的情報量の中から最新情報をお届けする、無料ニュースアプリです。
How fast is Smartnews growing?
Smartnews has declined by 0.5% in the last 6 months according to traffic data. employee count has changed by -26% year over year.
How do people interact with Smartnews?
When visiting Smartnews, visitors view an average of 2.0 pages per visit, and spend around 3:00 on the site, and the bounce rate is 55.2%.
How do people find Smartnews?
2.7M people (93%) visit Smartnews directly. 190.2K (7%) find them through organic search.
Who uses Smartnews?
Smartnews's top market is Japan with 2.2M visitors (76.3%). United States is 2nd with 594.8K (20.9%). China is 3rd with 15.8K (0.5%).
What technologies does Smartnews use?
Smartnews uses 11 technologies across their website including Fonts, Error Tracking, Advertising. Key technologies include Google Fonts, Sentry, DoubleClick Floodlight.
Who are Smartnews's competitors?
Smartnews's main competitors include Flipboard. These companies operate in similar markets and compete for the same customer base.
What do customers think of Smartnews?
Smartnews has a Trustpilot score of 0.0 out of 5 (0 stars).

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About smartnews.com

SmartNews(スマートニュース)は、政治や経済、エンタメ、天気、ウイルス情報のニュースはもちろん、あなたの知りたいジャンルのニュースまで3,000メディアの圧倒的情報量の中から最新情報をお届けする、無料ニュースアプリです。

Company Overview

smartnews.com
Website
business_and_consumer_services
Industry
#29,457
Global Rank
2.3M
Monthly Visitors
11
Technologies
25+
Employees

smartnews.com Key Pages

Contact smartnews.com

Technology Stack

smartnews.com uses 11 technologies across their website including Google Fonts, Sentry, DoubleClick Floodlight, and more.

Fonts

Google Fonts

Error Tracking

Sentry

Advertising

DoubleClick Floodlight

Analytics & Marketing

Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics

Performance

Lazy Loading, Priority Hints

Web Standards

Twitter Cards

Traffic & Audience

2.3M
Monthly Visits
75%
Bounce Rate
2.0
Pages/Visit
1:42
Avg. Duration

smartnews.com receives approximately 2.3M monthly visitors and ranks #29,457 globally. The website has a bounce rate of 75% with visitors viewing an average of 2.0 pages per visit. Users spend an average of 1:42 on the site.

The majority of smartnews.com's traffic comes from undefined, undefined, .

Frequently Asked Questions

What is smartnews.com?
SmartNews(スマートニュース)は、政治や経済、エンタメ、天気、ウイルス情報のニュースはもちろん、あなたの知りたいジャンルのニュースまで3,000メディアの圧倒的情報量の中から最新情報をお届けする、無料ニュースアプリです。
What technologies does smartnews.com use?
smartnews.com uses 11 technologies including Google Fonts, Sentry, and 5 more. View the full tech stack analysis above.
How popular is smartnews.com?
smartnews.com receives approximately 2.3M monthly visitors and ranks #29,457 globally. Traffic is growing by 19.6% month-over-month.

Related Searches

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This page provides publicly available information about smartnews.com. Data is collected from various public sources and may not always be up to date. For the most accurate information, please visit smartnews.com directly at https://smartnews.com.