Comparison

U vs next4

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

Head to head
About

U

This app provides students, faculty, and staff with enhanced safety on the University of Michigan campus. It offers emergency contacts, real-time location sharing, and direct reporting of concerns to campus security. Users receive important safety alerts and access essential safety tips and resources.

Highlights
  • Emergency contact access
  • Real-time location sharing
  • Friend Walk safety feature
  • Direct tip reporting to security
  • Safety tips and resources
  • Instant safety notifications
Features
Read full description

U-M Public Safety is the official safety app of University of Michigan. It is the only app that integrates with University of Michigan's safety and security systems. Campus Security has worked to develop a unique app that provides students, faculty and staff with added safety on the University of Michigan campus. The app will send you important safety alerts and provide instant access to campus safety resources. U-M Public Safety features include: - Emergency Contacts: Contact the correct services for the University of Michigan area in case of an emergency or a non-emergency concern - Mobile Bluelight: Send your location to University of Michigan security in real-time in case of a crisis - Friend Walk: Send your location to a friend through email or SMS on your device. Once the friend accepts the Friend Walk request, the user picks their destination and their friend tracks their location in real time; they can keep an eye on them to make sure they make it safely to their destination. - Tip Reporting: Multiple ways to report a safety/security concern directly to Campus Security. - Safety Toolbox: Enhance your safety with the set of tools provided in one convenient app. - Safety Tips and Resources: Campus emergency documentation that can prepare you for disasters or emergencies. This can be accessed even when users aren’t connected to Wi-Fi or cellular data. - Support Resources: Access support resources in one convenient app to enjoy a successful experience at University of Michigan. - Safety Notifications: Receive instant notifications and instructions from University of Michigan safety when on-campus emergencies occur. Download today to ensure you’re prepared in the event of an emergency.

About

next4

This app helps you discover colleges by ranking them based on your preferences. It uses a unique card-sorting system to understand what matters most to you, providing a personalized list of schools with clear explanations for their ranking.

Highlights
  • Card-sorting preference system
  • Personalized college rankings
  • Detailed school breakdowns
  • Majors quiz
  • No account required
  • Offline data storage
Features
Read full description

You know roughly what you want out of college. Turning that into an actual list of schools is the hard part. next4 doesn't ask you to fill out another search form. You sort a deck of 86 cards — things like class size, city vs. college town, Greek life, research opportunities, distance from home — into five piles: Not For Me, Would Rather Not, Doesn't Matter, Would Like, and Must Have. Pick up to seven Must Haves. That's the whole input. Then next4 ranks 6,000+ U.S. colleges against what you just told it, and shows you why. WHY IT'S DIFFERENT Most college finders rank on a score they won't explain. next4's matching is deterministic — the same answers always produce the same list, and every school comes back carrying the specific cards of yours that put it there, grouped the way you sorted them. If a school is #3, you can see the reason in your own words. We only rank on things the data can actually defend. If the data can't answer for a school on some card, that school is neither rewarded nor punished — unknown is neutral, never a strike. HOW IT WORKS 1. Answer a few quick questions — home state, GPA range, test scores if you have them, budget, intended majors, what year you're in. 2. Rank what matters most to you. 3. Sort the 86 cards. 4. Get your ranked matches instantly. 5. Swipe right to save a school, left to pass. 6. Open any school for the full breakdown: cost, size, programs, and the cards that matched. Not sure what you want to study? A separate majors quiz ranks fields of study by what you're actually drawn to. BUILT ON REAL DATA Rankings run against federal and public sources — IPEDS enrollment, cost and program data, Clery campus statistics, EADA athletics, NCHC honors college listings, and BEA cost-of-living figures. Not scraped opinions. NO ACCOUNT, NO INBOX There's no sign-up, no password, and no email. Your sort and saved schools live on your device. You can turn analytics off in Settings at any time. BEFORE YOU START next4 helps you build a list worth researching. It does not predict or guarantee admission, and it is not a substitute for a school counselor or professional advice. Always check details directly with a college before you rely on them.

Screenshots

U4 screens
next44 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: next4 at 5.0 against U's 4.0. U's advantage is ratings volume (12 vs 3) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

next4 holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 12 and 3 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
U versus next4: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterUnext4
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (12 ratings)5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings12 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 45 months—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size28 MB41 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperThe University of MichiganLUKA BENJAMIN HADZIC

Customer experience

U

All ratings12 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral8.3%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

next4

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

U

No in-app purchases

None

next4

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is U free?
U is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is next4 free?
next4 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, U or next4?
next4 is rated higher. U averages 4.0 out of 5 from 12 ratings, while next4 averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.
Do U or next4 have ads?
Neither U nor next4 shows ads.

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