Frequently Asked Questions

Table of Contents

What is Electric Pants?

Electric Pants is a mindful RSS reader designed to help you break free from endless scrolling. Subscribe to feeds from your favorite websites, blogs, and news sources — and when you’ve read everything, you’re done. No algorithms, no infinite scroll, no doom.

Why the name “Electric Pants”?

The name is a deliberate play on “doom” — as in doom scrolling. We believe your time should flourish, not disappear into an algorithmic void. Electric Pants helps your reading time bloom into something meaningful instead of draining away.

What feeds does Electric Pants support?

Electric Pants supports:

  • RSS feeds — The classic web syndication format
  • Atom feeds — Another popular feed format
  • Reddit communities — Subscribe to your favorite subreddits as feeds

If a website has a feed icon or mentions RSS/Atom, Electric Pants can likely read it.

How do I add feeds?

  1. Open Electric Pants
  2. Tap the + button
  3. Enter the URL of a website or feed
  4. Electric Pants will automatically detect and add the feed

You can also paste a direct feed URL if you have one.

Can I import my existing feeds from another reader?

Yes! Electric Pants supports OPML import, the standard format for feed collections. Export your feeds from your current reader as an OPML file, then import it into Electric Pants through Settings.

What is the “All Caught Up” screen?

Here’s something most apps deliberately hide from you: an ending. When you’ve read all your articles, Electric Pants shows you an “All Caught Up” screen — a satisfying moment that signals you’re done. Your time is yours again.

This is finite by design. Most social apps use infinite scroll to trap you. We do the opposite.

Is Electric Pants free?

Yes, Electric Pants is completely free with all features unlocked. No subscription, no premium tier, no features held hostage. If you love the app and want to support its independent development, optional one-time sponsorship tiers are available — but they unlock nothing because nothing is locked.

How can I support Electric Pants?

If you’d like to support the app’s continued development, you can purchase an optional sponsorship from Settings. There are three tiers: Silver ($0.99), Gold ($4.99), and Platinum ($9.99). These are one-time purchases that don’t unlock any features — they’re purely a way to say thanks and help keep updates coming.

Which platforms is Electric Pants available on?

Electric Pants is available for:

  • iPhone (iOS 17.0+)
  • iPad (iPadOS 17.0+)

It’s a native app built with SwiftUI for the best possible experience on Apple devices.

Do I need to create an account?

No. Electric Pants requires no account, no sign-up, no email address. Just download the app and start adding feeds. Your reading is your business.

Is my data private?

Absolutely. Electric Pants is private by default:

  • No data collection — We don’t collect any personal data
  • No tracking — No analytics tracking your reading habits
  • No account — Nothing to tie your activity to an identity
  • Local + iCloud storage — Data syncs via your iCloud, not our servers
  • Anonymous diagnostics only — We collect crash reports via Datadog to fix bugs (no personal data)

Your feeds, your device, your privacy.

Does Electric Pants work offline?

Yes. Articles you’ve already loaded are available offline. Pull to refresh when you’re back online to fetch new content.

Does Electric Pants sync between devices?

Yes! Electric Pants syncs automatically via iCloud. Your feeds, folders, and read states stay in sync across all your iPhone and iPad devices. No account or setup required — just sign in to iCloud on your devices and it works automatically.

How do I organize my feeds?

Electric Pants lets you create custom folders to organize your feeds:

  • Group feeds by topic (Tech, News, Hobbies)
  • Assign custom colors and icons to folders
  • Access folders quickly from the tab bar

You can also leave feeds ungrouped in your main timeline.

Can I read Reddit feeds?

Yes! Electric Pants has built-in support for Reddit communities. Just add a subreddit URL and it will appear in your timeline alongside your other feeds. Images, videos, and galleries all display beautifully.

What makes Electric Pants different from other RSS readers?

Electric Pants is built around a philosophy of mindful reading:

  1. Finite by design — Most apps want to trap you. We show you when you’re done.
  2. No algorithms — You choose what you read. We don’t manipulate your feed.
  3. Beautiful simplicity — Clean card layouts, dark mode, focused reading.
  4. Privacy-first — No account, no tracking, no data collection.
  5. Completely free — No subscriptions, no premium features locked away.

We’re not trying to maximize your “engagement.” We’re trying to help you read what matters and then get on with your life.

Who is behind Electric Pants?

Electric Pants is built by Electric Pants in San Francisco. We make apps that respect your time and attention.

How can I get help or provide feedback?

Email us at hello@electricpants.com. We read every message and typically respond within 1-2 business days.

We welcome feedback, bug reports, and feature suggestions!