Inoreader is an RSS reader that uses automation rules and filters to organize articles. Rules sort content, filter noise, and tag items. Filters eliminate duplicates and irrelevant content before processing.

By the end of this article, you'll understand Inoreader, rules, and filters.

## Why Inoreader Exists

RSS feeds enable subscribing to sites and automatic updates, but managing many feeds can be overwhelming. Traditional readers list unread articles and need manual organization, which works for few feeds but becomes difficult at scale.

Inoreader automates RSS management with rules that sort articles, filters relevant content, and organizes itself.

## What Inoreader Is

Inoreader is an RSS feed reader with automation that subscribes to feeds, receives articles, and automatically applies rules to organize content. It scales efficiently, handling hundreds of feeds and automatically updating unread counts.

Think of it like email for web content: accept articles from feeds, and rules organize them automatically before you see them.

### What Rules Are

Rules are automation workflows organizing content by user-defined conditions, with three parts each.

**When:** The scope where rules apply—articles, a folder, or a subscription.

**If:** Trigger conditions match articles by keywords in titles or content, author names, URL patterns, or attachments, using regular expressions and combined with AND/OR logic.

**Then:** Actions that automatically tag, star, mark as read, send to external services, broadcast, or email articles. Multiple actions can apply to the same rule.

Rules automatically run on articles as they arrive, evaluating conditions and applying actions in the background to organize content before you see it.

### What Filters Are

Filters are simpler than rules: they show or hide content based on conditions, mute unwanted updates, or display matching articles. Duplicate filters eliminate similar content across feeds.

Filters run in the background to keep your unread counter accurate and prevent duplicate triggers, serving as the first layer of organization that removes noise before rules process the rest.

Think of filters as spam filters for RSS that remove noise like duplicates and irrelevant content, showing only what matters. Rules organize the rest into folders, tags, and actions.

### Folders and Tags

Inoreader groups feeds with folders like "Tech News" and categorizes articles with tags such as "tutorial," "news," or "opinion."

Rules automatically assign articles to folders or tags based on content, enabling self-building organizational structure without manual sorting. The folder-and-tag system, with rules, creates a self-organizing information system.

## Key Relationships

Inoreader connects to several related concepts in information management:

**Traditional feed readers** show articles and require manual organization. Inoreader automates this based on your rules. Traditional readers work for a few feeds but struggle at scale.

**Social media aggregators** rely on algorithms to determine your feed. Inoreader lets you set rules, giving you control over organization. You know your preferences, not just algorithm guesses.

**Information architecture** principles organize and retrieve information systematically. Rules define content flow, while the folder-and-tag system creates an automated taxonomy. These principles apply whether you're organizing RSS feeds or structuring [software engineering knowledge]({{< ref "a-list-of-software-engineering-blogs" >}}).

**Personal knowledge management** workflows use Inoreader to collect and organize content for later processing. Rules can automatically send articles to other tools, creating a pipeline from collection to processing.

## Trade-offs and Limitations

**Benefits:** Rules automatically organize content, surface relevant content, and match your interests. Rules can also send articles to external services.

**Costs and limitations:** Rules need understanding conditions, actions, and regex. As interests change, rules must update. Keyword matching isn't perfect; articles can land in wrong folders or get filtered out. Advanced features require a Pro plan ($7.50/month) or higher. Your system is in Inoreader; switching platforms needs manual migration.

**When not to use:** If you subscribe to fewer than ten feeds, manual organization might be easier. For unorganized reading, a simpler feed reader may suffice. If you can't afford the subscription, you'll miss automation features. If you rarely check feeds, automation offers less benefit.

## Common Misconceptions

**Inoreader is just another feed reader.** Automation rules are fundamentally different, organizing articles automatically based on your criteria, not just displaying them.

**Rules are too complicated.** Rules use a three-part structure (when, if, then) accessible to non-technical users. The most useful rule is simple keyword matching.

**Automation means you don't need to read articles.** Rules organize content, but you still need to read articles. Automation saves time on organization, not on reading.

**Inoreader replaces other tools.** Inoreader is great for collection and organization but isn't a substitute for note-taking apps, bookmark managers, or research databases. It functions as one layer in a personal knowledge management system.

**All feeds work the same way.** Different feeds vary in structure, update frequency, and content quality, so rules must consider these differences.

## Conclusion

Inoreader is an RSS feed reader that preprocesses articles. Rules evaluate content, filters remove noise, and folders organize remaining items. It self-organizes based on your rules.

## Next Steps

Now that you understand what Inoreader is, here's where to learn more:

* **Explore Inoreader.** The [Inoreader website](https://www.inoreader.com/) provides information about features and capabilities.
* **Understand rules.** The [Inoreader Rules Documentation](https://www.inoreader.com/blog/2015/03/inoreader-how-to-save-time-with-rules.html) explains how automation rules work conceptually.
* **Learn about filters.** The [Inoreader Filters Documentation](https://www.inoreader.com/blog/2023/06/streamline-content-discovery-with-filters-and-rules.html) covers how filters reduce noise in your feed.
* **Understand pricing.** The [Inoreader Pricing page](https://inoreader.com/pricing/feature/rules) shows which plans include rules and filters.
* **Put it to practice.** You can use Inoreader to subscribe to and organize content from the blogs in [A List of Software Engineering Blogs]({{< ref "blog/list-x/a-list-of-software-engineering-blogs" >}}). Most software engineering blogs provide RSS feeds that you can subscribe to in Inoreader, then use rules to automatically organize articles by topic, tag them by technology stack, or filter for specific keywords that match your interests.

## References

* [Inoreader Rules Documentation](https://www.inoreader.com/blog/2015/03/inoreader-how-to-save-time-with-rules.html), explaining how to create and use automation rules
* [Inoreader Filters Documentation](https://www.inoreader.com/blog/2023/06/streamline-content-discovery-with-filters-and-rules.html), covering content and duplicate filters
* [Inoreader Pricing](https://inoreader.com/pricing/feature/rules), showing which plans include rules and filters
* [Inoreader Mobile Apps](https://inoreader.com/blog/2020/06/rules-and-filters-are-now-available-on-inoreader-for-android-and-ios.html), confirming rules work on mobile devices