Comparison

Shinkansen smartEX App vs 40hammocks

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Shinkansen smartEX App

Easily reserve Shinkansen seats, hotels, and activities. Enjoy discounts for early bookings and flexible changes. Access station and train service information, and use QR tickets or designated IC cards for seamless travel.

Highlights
  • Reserve Shinkansen seats
  • Book hotels and activities
  • Early booking discounts
  • Free reservation changes
  • Select seats from map
  • QR-Ticket and IC card boarding
  • Fingerprint authentication login
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

▼With the EX app, you can: - Reserve Shinkansen seats through the app easily - Discount for early booking - Reserve Shinkansen seats up to 1 year in advance - You can make as many changes as you need, free of charge, before getting on the train - Reserve a set of Shinkansen seats and hotel rooms! - Reserve activities, hotels and car rentals! - Select any seat from the seat map (*reserved seats only) - Information on services available in stations and trains - You can log in quickly by using fingerprint authentication. (only for compatible models) ▼ Main features - Membership registration - Purchase ticket/Reserve seats (time designation, train name designation, easy free seat reservation)) - Confirm reservation - Change and refund reservation (reducing the number of persons) - Display purchase history and receipt - Check, change member information - Display QR-Ticket for boarding - Designate or register IC card for boarding - Service status information (Link) ▼ Notes - Membership registration is required to use this app. For registration, personal information is required, such as member name, date of birth, and a valid credit card, etc. - Ticket purchase (reservation) payment will be taken from the credit card registered on the account. -- You need to register or designate IC card for public transportation (*) to travel ticketless with IC card. (*) Kitaca, PASMO, Suica, manaca, TOICA, PiTaPa, ICOCA, Hayakaken, nimoca, SUGOCA - You need the pickup code to pick up tickets from ticket vending machines, etc., at main stations of Tokaido Sanyo Kyushu Shinkansen, such as Tokyo, Kyoto, Shin-Osaka, Hiroshima, Hakata, Kumamoto etc. - Please do not use this app to make a seat reservation for Japan Rail Pass. - This service is available only in English. - For more details on this service, please see the website. *The email address below is for inquiries about application specifications. Please note that we cannnot answer inquiries about the service.

About

40hammocks

Simplify group travel planning by booking hotel blocks for getaways, weddings, and events. Avoid endless emails and calls by managing quotes, negotiations, and contracts directly within the app.

Highlights
  • Group accommodation booking
  • Hotel block reservations
  • End-to-end contract signing
  • Quote and negotiation management
  • Leisure and event travel planning
Features
Read full description

Book group accommodations for travel getaways, weddings, and leisure trips. The easiest way to make hotel block reservations, with end to end booking all the way through contract signing with ease all within the app. No more back and forth across email and phone calls with various hotels, trying to gather quotes, negotiate and understand options. 40hammocks makes hotel block booking a breeze! Try it out now!

Screenshots

Shinkansen smartEX App4 screens
40hammocks4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: 40hammocks at 100% against Shinkansen smartEX App's 18%. 40hammocks also leads on rating (5.0 vs 1.7) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). Shinkansen smartEX App's advantage is ratings volume (576 vs 6) and chart position (#184 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

40hammocks holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Shinkansen smartEX App has 576 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of Shinkansen smartEX App's written reviews are positive against 100% of 40hammocks's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Shinkansen smartEX App ships an update every 2 months, 40hammocks every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Shinkansen smartEX App versus 40hammocks: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShinkansen smartEX App40hammocks
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.7 (576 ratings)5.0 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews17.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings576 — better6
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#184 — better—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size51 MB124 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperCentral Japan Railway Company40HAMMOCKS, INC.

Customer experience

Shinkansen smartEX App

All ratings576 ratings
Positive16.7%
Neutral1.9%
Negative81.4%
Written reviews351 reviews
Positive17.7%
Neutral3.7%
Negative78.6%

40hammocks

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Shinkansen smartEX App

No in-app purchases

None

40hammocks

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Shinkansen smartEX App free?
Shinkansen smartEX App is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is 40hammocks free?
40hammocks is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Shinkansen smartEX App or 40hammocks?
40hammocks is rated higher. Shinkansen smartEX App averages 1.7 out of 5 from 576 ratings, while 40hammocks averages 5.0 from 6 ratings.
Do Shinkansen smartEX App or 40hammocks have ads?
Neither Shinkansen smartEX App nor 40hammocks shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Shinkansen smartEX App or 40hammocks?
Shinkansen smartEX App ships an update every 2 months, and 40hammocks every 3 months. Most recently, Shinkansen smartEX App was updated on September 26, 2026 and 40hammocks on September 11, 2026.

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