Penji vs AskCalStateLA
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Penji
Connect with campus support services like tutoring, advising, and mentoring. Schedule appointments, join drop-in hours, and find study groups to enhance your academic journey. This app provides a modern, mobile-first experience for accessing university resources.
- Schedule tutors and mentors
- Attend drop-in hours
- Register for group sessions
- Find study groups
- Access advising resources
- Remote-friendly support
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Penji is the central hub for tutoring, advising, and other support resources on campus. We partner with support centers at your university, allowing them to provide a modern, mobile-first, and remote-friendly experience for scheduling tutors, mentors, and coaches. Book appointments, attend drop-in hours, register for large-group sessions, meet study groups, and more, all from the app. As recent students ourselves, we know how important friends, tutors, and mentors can be in developing your interest and confidence in different subjects. We hope Penji encourages you to take advantage of these resources more frequently. Each university is different, so sign up to see what your university offers in Penji. Enjoy!
AskCalStateLA
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Welcome to the Ask Cal State LA chatbot, developed to answer the most frequently asked questions about the University. Your participation will help improve the accuracy of the information. For official policies and dates, always refer to the University web pages for current information.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Penji at every 9 days against AskCalStateLA's every 3 months. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Penji ships an update every 9 days, AskCalStateLA every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Penji | AskCalStateLA |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (1.2K ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 92.6% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 1.2K — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 34 MB | 52 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Penji, Inc. | California State University, Los Angeles |
Bugs and requests
Penji
Reported bugs
2 issues- Unusable on iPad
- Tutors not showing as available
Requested features
2 requests- Add voice/call features
- Improve messaging and notifications
AskCalStateLA
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Penji
No in-app purchases
AskCalStateLA
No in-app purchases
