Newspapers.com is a paid archive of historical newspapers, not a current news service

Newspapers.com is a subscription database run by Ancestry.com that lets you search and read digitized newspapers from the United States and some other countries, going back to the 1700s. You pay a monthly or annual fee to access the full archive. It is not a way to read today's news — it is a research tool for finding articles, obituaries, birth announcements, and historical records from papers that stopped printing decades ago or are no longer available in print.

The service is most useful if you are doing genealogy research, looking for historical information about a specific person or event, or trying to understand what was happening in a particular place at a particular time. If you want current news, you need a different subscription.

Key Takeaways

  • Newspapers.com charges a monthly subscription fee, with discounts available if you pay for a full year upfront.
  • The archive includes millions of digitized newspapers from across the United States, dating back to the 1700s, plus some international titles.
  • You can search by name, date, location, and keyword, and download or share articles you find.
  • A free trial period is usually available before you commit to paying, so you can test whether the archive has what you need.
  • If you have an Ancestry.com subscription, you may be able to access Newspapers.com through that account at a reduced rate.

Subscription pricing and payment options

Newspapers.com offers a monthly subscription and an annual subscription. The monthly option costs more per month than the annual option, but you can cancel anytime without penalty. The annual option requires you to pay for the full year upfront but gives you a lower per-month cost. Both options renew automatically unless you cancel before the renewal date.

Ancestry.com sometimes bundles Newspapers.com with other products — for example, an Ancestry subscription that includes access to both family trees and historical records may also include Newspapers.com. If you already subscribe to Ancestry, check your account settings to see whether Newspapers.com is included or available at a discount.

Newspapers.com offers a free trial that lasts a set number of days. During the trial, you have full access to search and read articles. The trial converts to a paid subscription automatically if you do not cancel before the trial ends, so mark the cancellation deadline on your calendar if you want to avoid being charged.

What you can search and how the archive is organized

The Newspapers.com archive contains millions of pages from newspapers published across the United States. The collection includes major city papers, small-town weeklies, and specialty publications. Coverage is strongest for the 1800s and early 1900s, though many papers continue into the 1980s and beyond. Some international newspapers are also included, but the focus is on American publications.

You can search by name, date range, newspaper title, location, and keywords. The search engine returns results ranked by relevance, and you can narrow results by filtering for specific newspapers or date ranges. Once you find an article, you can read it in the browser, download it as a PDF, or share a link to it. Downloaded articles are yours to keep; you can save them to your computer or print them.

Not every newspaper page is fully searchable. Older papers with poor print quality or damage may be readable as images but not text-searchable. Newspapers.com notes which pages are image-only so you know whether a search result is based on text or just on metadata like the publication date and page number.

Who finds Newspapers.com most useful

Genealogy researchers use Newspapers.com constantly. Birth announcements, marriage notices, obituaries, and death records in old newspapers often contain details you cannot find anywhere else — maiden names, parents' names, exact dates, and cause of death. If you are building a family tree, searching Newspapers.com for each ancestor's name across multiple decades can turn up dozens of references.

Local historians and people researching specific events also rely on the archive. If you want to know what happened in your town in 1952, or what the newspaper said about a historical event, Newspapers.com lets you read the actual reporting from the time. Journalists, authors, and students use it for historical context and primary-source material.

If you are just looking for current news or want to read a specific modern newspaper, Newspapers.com is not the right tool. Most newspapers offer their own digital subscriptions or paywalls for current content.

How to start a free trial and what to do before it converts to paid

Visit Newspapers.com and look for the free trial offer on the homepage. Click through and enter your email address and payment method. You will not be charged during the trial period, but Newspapers.com needs the payment information on file so it can charge you automatically when the trial ends.

Before you start the trial, decide what you want to search for. Test a few searches during the free period to make sure the archive has the newspapers and time periods you need. If you decide the service is not useful for you, cancel your subscription before the trial ends. You can cancel through your account settings or by contacting Newspapers.com customer service.

If you do not cancel before the trial ends, your payment method will be charged automatically for the subscription plan you chose. Set a phone reminder for a few days before the trial ends if you think you might forget.

Comparing Newspapers.com to other historical newspaper archives

Newspapers.com is the largest and most widely used historical newspaper database, but it is not the only one. The Library of Congress runs Chronicling America, a free archive of American newspapers from 1789 to 1963. Chronicling America has no paywall and no subscription, but the search tools are less powerful and the collection is smaller than Newspapers.com.

Some state libraries and historical societies maintain their own newspaper archives, often free to residents or available through a library card. Local libraries sometimes have subscriptions to Newspapers.com or other databases that you can use for free as a cardholder. Before you pay for a Newspapers.com subscription, ask your library whether they offer access.

Ancestry.com itself includes some historical records and documents, but Newspapers.com is the specialized tool for newspaper content. If you subscribe to Ancestry for genealogy research, adding Newspapers.com often makes sense because the two services complement each other.

Downloading, sharing, and using articles you find

When you find an article on Newspapers.com, you can read it in your browser, download it as a PDF file, or copy a link to share with someone else. Downloaded PDFs include the article text and the original newspaper page image, so you have both the readable version and proof of where it came from.

If you are using articles for genealogy research or family history, downloading and organizing them by person or date makes it easier to build your records. If you are publishing or sharing research, citing the newspaper name, date, and page number — all of which Newspapers.com provides — gives your sources credibility.

Sharing a link to an article requires the other person to have their own Newspapers.com subscription to read it. If you want to share the content with someone who does not subscribe, download the PDF and send that instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use Newspapers.com for free?

Newspapers.com offers a free trial period, usually lasting several days, so you can test the archive before paying. After the trial ends, you need a paid subscription to access the full database. The Library of Congress's Chronicling America is a free alternative, though with a smaller collection and fewer search features.

Does Newspapers.com include newspapers from my state or town?

The archive includes thousands of newspapers from across the United States, but coverage varies by region and time period. Search for your town's newspaper name on the Newspapers.com website to see whether it is in the collection and what years are available. If the paper you want is not there, try Chronicling America or your state library's archive.

What happens if I cancel my subscription?

You stop being charged after your current billing period ends. You lose access to search and download articles once the subscription expires. Any PDFs you downloaded before canceling remain on your computer. You can restart a subscription anytime by signing back in and choosing a plan.

Can I share my Newspapers.com login with family members?

Newspapers.com's terms of service restrict sharing login credentials. If multiple family members want to use the service, each should have their own subscription. Some families split the cost of an annual subscription, but technically each person should have their own account.

How far back do the newspapers go?

The oldest newspapers in the Newspapers.com archive date to the 1700s, though most extensive coverage begins in the 1800s. Coverage is strongest from the 1850s through the 1950s. Some newspapers continue into recent decades, but Newspapers.com is primarily a historical archive, not a current news source.