# ParkMate (NZ) — user reviews > 158 indexed App Store user reviews of ParkMate (NZ) by Advam Pty Ltd, rated 4.20/5 from 73 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/parkmate-nz/id950420961/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/parkmate-nz/id950420961.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 50 · 4★ 7 · 3★ 3 · 2★ 3 · 1★ 10 ## What do users think of ParkMate (NZ)? Overall sentiment: negative **Pros** - 🚀 Quick and easy parking sessions - 💡 Useful map feature to find nearby parking - 👍 Decent user interface **Cons** - 🐛 Unreliable license plate recognition - 💰 Exorbitant and unclear pricing - 🤯 Clunky and unintuitive user experience - 🕰️ Difficult to stop/end parking sessions - 🔒 Security concerns with payment information **Commonly reported bugs** - Parking sessions not ending properly, leading to overcharges - App freezing and crashing issues - Login and account management problems - Compatibility issues with newer devices **Most requested features** - Allow setting of end time or max duration for parking sessions - Provide regular parking session reminders - Improve GPS integration and street identification - Simplify the parking start/stop process ## Newest reviews (17 of 158) ### 2/5 — Not great to sign up *2026-07-19* My brother who lives in NZ sent the app to me as I’m here for work with a rental car. Sign up essentially makes the app for NZ users only. Mobile verification with no alternative email option seems like some pretty basic stuff has been missed here… **Developer response:** Thanks for your feedback, ParkMate does allow most international numbers to sign up. If you're experiencing issues please contact us at support@parkmate.co.nz and we'll take a look. ### 1/5 — Rubbish *2026-03-27, version 2.19.1* Used the app and got overcharged because I didn’t end my parking session immediately upon leaving car park. ### 1/5 — A nightmare to use *2026-03-25, version 2.19.1* Very difficult to use the app to pay for parking. Last week I found out you can select your carpark, authorise payment via your credit card (takes a couple of minutes to get payment to work) get a receipt for the payment transaction and you get a parking penalty ticket a few days later. Turns out the money was credited to my Parkmate account and they did not pay for the parking! ### 1/5 — Useless for non-NZ residents *2026-03-22, version 2.19.1* Even after many tries, to a german telephone number it shoes „Error sending SMS“ No information about why or how to fix the problem. ### 1/5 — Error sending sms *2026-03-13, version 2.19.1* Seems to be useless, when youre not a resident in nz. Tried to sign up multiple times and always got „error sending sms“. ### 1/5 — Terrible *2026-03-10* If you forget to pay through the app, there’s no notification nothing. And you get stung with a $85 fee. And because they use 20th century letters in the mail, if you don’t receive their letter, you have no idea about it, you get an additional $20 late fee on top. Avoid these criminals at all cost. Why have an app which monitors your parking, but doesn’t send a simple reminder after 15 minutes? Because they want to shaft you $85 which is insane for a $5 parking space for 12 hours. Outrageous conduct. **Developer response:** Thanks for your feedback, we are currently in the process of rolling out a new notification feature, which will send you helpful reminders when arriving at selected sites, find out more here - https://parkmate.co.nz/parkmate-arrival-departure-notifications/ ### 1/5 — Useless *2026-03-08, version 2.19.1* Registration does not work. Does not send sms. ### 2/5 — Locations *2026-03-05, version 2.19.1* How about location numbers or QR codes on your signs? Don’t want to be guessing and hoping I don’t get a ticket ### 1/5 — UX IS TERRIBLE *2026-03-02, version 2.19.1* It’s slow and laggy on a modern iPhone 16 pro. It’s the only App on my phone that is confusing to use. ### 4/5 — Cost *2026-02-11, version 2.18.1* Good app. Have sometimes had trouble with payment stalling but could have been internet connection. ### 1/5 — Don’t as for reviews *2026-01-24, version 2.18.1* Very annoying. Also trying to find the right car park doesn’t work. I typed in the address on the sign and it didn’t show up. ### 1/5 — Wish I did not have to use it *2026-01-22, version 2.18.1* Confusing to use, will be deleting when finished with this park and will not park in places where it is the only option again. ### 1/5 — Rip off *2026-01-21, version 2.16.1* What a ripoff, parked here to visit Les Mills for an hour, $13. Like what the heck ### 2/5 — Laggy *2026-01-17, version 2.16.1* The app is useful but the new version is very laggy on iPhones. Please do Sth about it. ### 4/5 — $10 credit from referral *2026-01-17, version 2.16.1* i didn’t get my bonus $10 credit when a friend signed me up ### 1/5 — Payment *2026-01-16, version 2.16.1* Over priced and I forgot to stop the time an hour ago ### 1/5 — Set End Time or Max Duration *2025-12-29, version 2.16.1* The app is used by gym members at Les Mills, and allows free parking for a couple of hours out so while people are at the gym.. However, the automated license plate recognition is unreliable, and members are then often billed for a maximum parking stay, even though they've already left after a normal workout. It should be easy for the ParkMate team to allow us to set an end time or maximum duration when starting a parking session. This would help avoid runaway parking sessions. At the very least, the license plate recognition should pick up that people have left in all cases, not just cases where it's used to start a session. The fact we currently can't do anything to reduce cases of runaway maximum session billing makes us all think that the parking company would rather continue incorrectly charging fees instead of setting up a system that accurately ends or limits parking durations. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — LPR sometimes works *2026-06-07, version 2.20.2* Poor at LPR ### 1/5 — Lack of info *2026-06-04* Gives no option to select plan or clear understanding what you are being charged for when you start the session! **Developer response:** Thanks for your feedback, please note we have prepurchased options for set session lengths with set pricing, please reach out to us at support@parkmate.co.nz and we can give you step by step instructions if needed. ### 1/5 — Credit facility *2026-06-02, version 2.20.2* I went to Park today and you would not let me use my credit facility that I have with you ### 1/5 — Rip off *2026-05-14, version 2.20.2* $8.50 for 11 minutes? If it’s a timed app then charge per minute ### 1/5 — Changes *2026-05-12, version 2.20.2* These guys can’t go 1 week without raising the carpark price. Time to find a new building to park in. ### 1/5 — Cuts off early bird parking early *2026-04-22, version 2.19.1* Early bird cuts off at 9:30am but app cuts off earlier ### 1/5 — Can’t register *2026-04-15, version 2.19.1* Zéro ### 1/5 — Garbage app *2026-04-06, version 2.19.1* The app gets stuck, is unresponsive, pure garbage. Plus, some "genius" developers hardcoded allowed email domains, so I can't use my email because someone doesn't like it. On top of that they limit the phone number length and new numbers are invalid. Seriously, hire someone who actually knows something, what did you hire, the cheapest and most useless devs you could get? Deleted the account and uninstalled this garbage. ### 1/5 — Warning: NO GRACE PERIOD *2026-04-03, version 2.19.1* The extra 38 seconds it took me to click End on the app cost me $5.00 ### 1/5 — Wrong charges *2026-04-02, version 2.19.1* It says on the signs that it is $4 per hour paid through park mate. You charge me $6 through ParkMate an hour. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — To make life easy *2026-04-07, version 2.19.1* When arriving straight away you could see how to pay , and no hassling with different machines ### 5/5 — Easy to use *2026-03-07, version 2.19.1* Takes the effort out of parking, just drive up, select and walk away ### 5/5 — HB Hospital Memorial car park *2026-02-09, version 2.18.1* Great service but finding the car park meter on the map was not very clear. ### 5/5 — Lombard parking during the week! For Te Matapihi Wgtn Central Library! *2025-10-09, version 2.16.1* Quick, love it! Parking made easy to use and access. ### 5/5 — Ideas *2025-01-24, version 2.13.1* Need bigger signs of the zone where we park so we don’t have to go and find parking meter to read tiny print of zone number. Need 20 min reminders of parking so if we leave and forget to stop it, we can get a prompt. ### 5/5 — Good *2024-07-25, version 2.11.3* Very pleased with the app . Haven’t had a problem before with it ### 5/5 — Works well *2024-02-29, version 2.10.1* I forgot to turn it off though 🤣 ### 5/5 — Rego *2023-03-11, version 2.6.1* It would be helpful if two or more people can share the app using the same rego. ### 5/5 — Review *2022-09-27, version 2.3.2* Love this app and use it with ease most of the time Thankyou … However the recent update booted me out and I could not use app while in town .. required more complicated password retrieval etc at home ..resulted in a $40 ticket😏 was pretty annoying ! ### 5/5 — Park cites *2022-09-14, version 2.3.2* I do find this app not as good as other one. Can’t see my car and it is guess work what park cite you have --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-25.*