NYC Ferry vs NYUBus
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
NYC Ferry
This app offers a comfortable and enjoyable way to commute and explore New York City. It provides paperless ticketing, live scheduling with real-time updates, and a trip planner to discover new routes. Receive personalized notifications and consider an unlimited pass for frequent travel.
- Paperless ticketing
- Live scheduling
- Real-time updates
- End-to-end trip planner
- Push notifications
- 30-day Unlimited Pass
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Commuting made comfortable with NYC Ferry. Come see just how easy (and enjoyable) your journey can be. Here are 5 great things you can expect from the NYC Ferry app: Help NYC “go green” with paperless ticketing! Buy and use tickets directly from your phone. Take the stress out of your commute with live scheduling and real-time updates. Get ready for an adventure! Explore NYC with our end-to-end trip planner. Stay ahead of the game with push notifications for the routes that matter to YOU. Love to ride? Take advantage of our 30-day Unlimited Pass! Available in-app only. NYC Ferry (operated by Hornblower) proudly serves New Yorkers in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and The Bronx along the East River. Our state-of-the-art vessels offer you a better commuting experience—all for the same price as a subway ride!
NYUBus
Track active shuttles in real-time and view scheduled departures. Stay informed about important alerts as they happen, making your commute easier.
- Real-time shuttle tracking
- Scheduled departure views
- Alert notifications
- Commute planning
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NYU Shuttles made easy. Track active shuttles. View scheduled departures. Know about alerts as they happen. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
NYC Ferry and NYUBus both sit at 4.9 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of NYUBus's written reviews are positive against 58% of NYC Ferry's. NYUBus also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 weeks). NYC Ferry's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (55K vs 46). On price, rating, 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.
NYC Ferry holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NYC Ferry has 55K ratings behind it against 46, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 58% of NYC Ferry's written reviews are positive against 100% of NYUBus's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
NYC Ferry ships an update every 6 weeks, NYUBus fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | NYC Ferry | NYUBus |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (55K ratings) — better | 4.7 (46 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 58.4% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 55K — better | 46 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 121 MB | 106 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hornblower Cruises & Events | Tin Lon Chiu |
Customer experience
NYC Ferry
NYUBus
Bugs and requests
NYC Ferry
Reported bugs
5 issues- App freezing and crashing
- Inaccurate schedules and route information
- Payment processing errors
- Compatibility issues with newer devices
- Login and account management problems
Requested features
5 requests- Improved trip planning and route optimization
- Real-time service updates and delay notifications
- Ability to change account information
- More ferry routes and increased frequency
- Better integration with other transportation apps
NYUBus
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
NYC Ferry
No in-app purchases
NYUBus
No in-app purchases
