# South Western Railway — Train tickets & travel updates

> Official app for UK train tickets, live times, and travel updates. (iPhone/iPad app by First MTR South Western Trains Limited.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/south-western-railway/id1104215511 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [First MTR South Western Trains Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1373654063)
- Category: Travel, Navigation
- Price: Free
- Rating: 4.70/5 from 1,224 App Store ratings · 278 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 16.6 · 133 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2016-06-03
- Data updated: 2026-08-27
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/south-western-railway/id1104215511/reviews.md

## What is South Western Railway?

Download the official South Western Railway (SWR) app to check train times and buy cheap train tickets on any train line in the UK* - and we don’t charge booking fees.

Why choose the South Western Railway app?

• Buy train tickets to and from anywhere across the UK*
• Save up to 51% with Advance train tickets
• No booking fees every time
• Get rewarded every time you buy direct with SWR. With over 100 rewards to choose from including days out, cheap theatre tickets, shopping discounts and much more!
• Get the cheapest SWR tickets. With our price promise if you see a cheaper price for the same train ticket travelling with SWR, we'll refund the difference
• eTickets -  download and store your tickets in your phone’s wallet for easy access                          

Live information

• Check Live Train Times Across the UK*
• View departure and arrival times for all National Rail services
• Check live train times, locations and where to be with platform details
• Save your frequent journeys for ease of checking again later
• Check onboard facilities and see how busy your SWR train is

Information to note:

 You’ll need to create an online SWR account or sign-in before you can purchase your train tickets.

* Excludes Northern Ireland

Got a question? Here’s our FAQs:

https://www.southwesternrailway.com/contact-and-help/faqs 

Need to get in touch? Find the best way to here: 

 https://www.southwesternrailway.com/contact-and-help 

Follow us:

• Message/ “tweet” us at: https://twitter.com/SW_Help
• Instagram
• Facebook
• X
• YouTube
• Google News

## Key features

- Buy UK train tickets
- No booking fees
- Advance ticket savings
- Rewards program
- eTickets for mobile wallet
- Live train times
- Platform details

## What do users think of South Western Railway?

Overall sentiment: negative

**Pros**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 📱 Convenient for storing and buying tickets
- 🗺️ Provides live departure boards

**Cons**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔒 Unreliable login and account management
- ⏳ Slow and unresponsive at times
- 🚫 Fails to load or sync tickets
- 💰 Expensive ticket prices

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Constant log-outs and inability to stay signed in
- Tickets not appearing in app after purchase
- Technical errors when trying to buy tickets
- App crashing on launch after updates

**Most requested features**

- Add tickets to Apple Wallet
- Improve communication during service disruptions
- Introduce a favorites/frequent journeys feature
- Allow saving of payment and railcard details

## Recent user reviews (10 of 278)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/south-western-railway/id1104215511/reviews.md

### 1/5 — App stinks

*2026-08-25, version 5.0.8*

I can’t login, I did the password reset and am stuck in a perpetual sign in, sign in , sign in. What’s worse is this is preventing me view my already purchased tickets. What’s worse a shambles.

### 1/5 — Awful

*2026-08-17, version 5.0.8*

Simply terrible. Logged out constantly meaning purchasing tickets is so painful. The UX is poorly thought through. A central
Function must surely be disruption on my journey but that avenue takes you off app to a clunky web site.

### 1/5 — Useless

*2026-08-15, version 5.0.8*

Can’t logon! App is stuck and suggests changing your password which is ridiculous. Hope they can run a train system better than develop software.

### 1/5 — Just the worst app

*2026-08-15, version 5.0.8*

the worst app update I've ever seen - logs you out multiple times a day, no Face ID, doesn't tell me about train delays, no templated ticket types when buying (like regular journeys at set times - you know, like a commute), so many clicks just to get a damn ticket. Absolute tosh

### 4/5 — Much better than previously

*2026-08-13, version 5.0.8*

Updated Aug 26. 

This used to be a good app but then changes made it hopeless. But now greatly improved. Remembering login and payment details are the major pluses. Also reducing the number of steps/screens to go through just to buy a ticket.  Still got things to learn from Amazon app/payment etc but much better than previously.

### 4/5 — Much better

*2026-07-29, version 5.0.8*

Much better now I don’t have to log in every single time. Would be good to add an expiry to tickets added to Apple wallet so they disappear when they become invalid. I now have hundreds of tickets in my wallet and it’s a pain to delete each one.

### 4/5 — Good app

*2026-07-28, version 5.0.8*

Intuitive app, easy to use. Just some glitches because it signs me out every time. That gets frustrating!

### 5/5 — The navigation

*2026-07-23, version 5.0.7*

The navigation on the app is bit difficult , it logs out and need to log out n every time to buy a ticket .

### 1/5 — Logon caught in a loop

*2026-07-15, version 5.0.7*

I have tried everything from reinstalling the app, rebooting phone, and clearing cache. The app won’t allow you to log on.  It’s caught in a loop. You submit your credentials and it sends you right back to the logon page.  Not useable.

### 5/5 — Nice app

*2026-07-14, version 5.0.7*

Good app, but add a swr map to it

## Frequently asked questions about South Western Railway

### What can I do with the South Western Railway app?

The app allows you to buy train tickets for travel across the UK, check live train times and platform details, and receive travel updates. You can also save money with advance tickets and earn rewards on your purchases.

### How do I buy train tickets?

To purchase train tickets, you will need to create an online SWR account or sign in. Once logged in, you can search for your desired journey and buy tickets directly through the app. eTickets can be downloaded and stored in your phone's wallet.

### Are there any booking fees?

No, the app explicitly states that it does not charge booking fees on any train tickets purchased. This means you can buy tickets directly without any additional costs.

### Can I get cheaper tickets?

Yes, the app offers savings of up to 51% with Advance train tickets. Additionally, it has a price promise: if you find a cheaper price for the same train ticket with SWR, they will refund the difference.

### What information is available for live travel?

You can check live train times for all National Rail services across the UK, view departure and arrival times, and get platform details. The app also shows onboard facilities and how busy your train is.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 5.0.8 — 2026-07-23

Improved session timeout and logging in
Enhanced disruption information
Recent journey searches improvement  
Bug fixes

### 5.0.7 — 2026-07-02

Improved disruption information 
Session timeout improvements
Bug fixes

### 5.0.4 — 2026-06-16

Improvements made to the Ticket Details.

### 5.0.3 — 2026-04-20

We have made some changes
New ‘sign in’ and registration screens
New payment window
New booking confirmation page

### 5.0.0 — 2026-03-26

We have made some changes
New ‘sign in’ and registration screens
New payment window
New booking confirmation page

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*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 2026-08-27.*
