Top 10 Most Widely Read Newspapers in Egypt

Egypt has the biggest and most vibrant media industry in North Africa. The mass media in Egypt is highly influential especially in determining trend of events in the country, setting agenda and playing the watch dog roles in the society. The Egyptian press also impacts the Arab World, and this is attributed to its large audience, including the exposure of audience members in the Arab-speaking world to the media in Egypt.

Egypt has the most vibrant newspaper industry in North Africa, and one of the biggest in Africa. The print media landscape in this country is dominated by Arabic language newspapers, though there are English and French language newspapers too. The Daily News Egypt is among the biggest English language newspapers in Egypt while Le Progres Egyptien is the most popular and most widely read french language newspaper in the country. Some other Arabic newspapers such as Watani, Al-Aharam and Al-Masry Al-Youm have French language versions online. Watani also has an option for its stories to be read in English. These newspapers are all existing in a highly competitive environment striving for the attention of very enlightened audience members. Here’s a list of biggest newspapers in Egypt.

Al-Ahram

Al-Ahram is one of the oldest newspapers in Africa. It was founded on the 5th of August 1875. It is the most widely circulating Egyptian daily newspaper, and the second oldest after al-Waqa’i`al-Masriya. It is majority owned by the Egyptian government. In view of the many varieties of Arabic language, Al-Ahram is widely considered an influential source of writing style in Arabic. This newspaper has a huge audience base across the entire Africa, the Middle East and other parts of the world where there are Arab speaking audience. Its strong online presence has further strengthened its position as one of the leading Arabic newspapers in the World.

Al Wafd

Founded in 1984, Al-Wafd is the daily newspaper published by the Wafd party in Giza, Egypt.

Akhbar El Yom

Akhbar El Yom is another popular and widely read newspaper in Egypt. It is an Arabic language weekly newspaper published in Egypt.

Al-Masry Al-Youm

Al-Masry Al-Youm is among the leading privately owned daily newspapers in Egypt. It was first published in June 2004. It is published in Arabic as is its website, almasryalyoum.com. This newspaper also has an English version online. The English version of the newspaper’s website was introduced in 2009 as the Al-masry Al-youm English Edition. It later evolved into Egypt Independent. It is among the most widely read English newspapers in Egypt.

The Daily News Egypt

Daily News Egypt is among the biggest English-language dailies in Egypt. It was established in 2005 and relaunched in June 2012. Under former owner Egyptian Media Services, it was distributed with the International Herald Tribune as a supplement. It is still well sought-after in Egypt, especially among English speaking audience members in the country. Its online presence has also increased the newspaper’s audience base beyond readers in Egypt.

El Fagr

El Fagr is an Egyptian independent weekly newspaper, based in Cairo. It has a very strong website which has expanded its readership base.

Watani

Watani is another popular newspaper in Egypt. It is a weekly Sunday newspaper published in Cairo. The word “Watani” is Arabic for “My Homeland”. The newspaper was founded in 1958 by Antoun Sidhom. It has a strong internet present where readers access variety of stories.

Le Progres Egyptien

Le Progrès Egyptien is the biggest French language newspaper in Egypt. It was established in 1893. The newspaper is owned by Al Gomhuria, a pro-government newspaper in Egypt. The paper is based in Cairo. It is published by Dar Al Tahrir Publishing and Printing company. The online edition is accessed by diverse readers even beyond Egypt.

Al Gomhuria

Al Gomhuria is an influential state-owned Egyptian Arabic language daily newspaper. It was first published in 1954. After it was founded, it became the leading media outlet of the new regime in Egypt at that time. The newspaper was published using the facilities of Wafd party’s newspaper Al Misri, which had been closed down by the regime. Al Gomhuria is one of the popular publications in Egypt.

El Tahrir (Tahrir News)

El Tahrir is one of the most popular newspapers in Egypt. It is a privately owned Classical Arabic 18-page daily which was founded on July 1, 2011. The publisher is published Ibrahim El Moellam. The newspaper was named after the Egyptian Tahrir Square which is famous as a venue for demonstrations in the country, especially against the government.

Youm7

Youm7 is another very vibrant privately owned daily newspaper in Egypt. It began as a weekly newspaper when it was first published in October 2008. It gradually evolved into a daily newspaper since May 2011. The newspaper is published in Arabic. The paper was twice selected by Forbes Middle East as having the most effective news website in the Middle East. Its strong website contributed in expanding the audience base of the publication even beyond the shores of Egypt.

Al Dostor

Al-Dostor (also Al-Dostour and Al-Dustour) (Arabic: الدستور‎, lit. ‘The Constitution’, Egyptian Arabic: [eldosˈtuːr, edːosˈtuːr]), is an independent Daily Egyptian opposition newspaper.

Al Messa

Al Messa is an Arabic daily newspaper published in Egypt. It was founded on October 1, 1956.