ParkChicago®Map vs Been Around
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ParkChicago®Map
Find affordable on-street parking in Chicago with an interactive map. View real-time availability, rates, and get directions to your chosen spot. This free service complements a payment app for a seamless parking experience.
- Interactive parking map
- Search for parking spots
- View parking availability
- Get directions to parking
- See parking rates and restrictions
- Predictive availability feature
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The ParkChicago® team introduces ParkChicago®Map, the official on-street parking map app. ParkChicago®Map gives you access to over 36,000 competitively priced parking spaces and helps you find your ideal parking spot. Use the app’s interactive map and search features to find parking at the lowest prices in Chicago city limits so you can skip the garage fees and reservations. ParkChicago®Map is a free service which complements the ParkChicago® app, where you have the convenience of paying for parking (and extending time) with your phone. Get Started Today: - Download the free ParkChicago®Map app - No sign up, no email, no commitments, No hassle - Search for and view parking with the interactive map – use the intuitive pinch-to-zoom feature to view details - Click on the metered spot to view hours of operation and availability - Get directions to the parking spot - Select ParkChicago® to pay for parking The Perks of ParkChicago®Map: - Effortlessly find the most convenient and affordable parking spots in Chicago - Use the predictive availability feature to see when a parking spot will be available over the next week - View metered parking space information such as rates, limits and restrictions - Keep it all mobile! Pay for metered parking via the linked ParkChicago® app Make your parking experience as convenient as possible - download ParkChicago®Map today!
Been Around
Discover places and experiences through recommendations from your trusted network. See where friends have traveled, eaten, and explored with their real ratings and photos. Keep track of your own journeys and save future destinations.
- Discover places through your network
- Track visited cities and countries
- Get real ratings and photos from friends
- Search cities for network activity
- Save photos with stories
- Create a wishlist of future destinations
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Discover the world through people you trust. Tired of asking for recommendations on social media or relying on reviews from strangers? BeenAround helps you discover places through your own network. See where your friends have eaten, traveled, and explored, with real ratings and photos from people you know. Features: Digital Passport: Track every city and country you have visited Real Reviews: Honest ratings from people you follow Explore: Search any city and see who in your network has been there Photo Memories: Save photos with the story behind them Wishlist: Save places you want to visit next Not just reviews. Recommendations from people you trust.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Been Around at 5.0 against ParkChicago®Map's 2.1. Been Around also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 7 months). ParkChicago®Map's advantage is ratings volume (121 vs 17) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Been Around holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ParkChicago®Map has 121 ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two.
ParkChicago®Map ships an update every 7 months, Been Around weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ParkChicago®Map | Been Around |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.1 (121 ratings) | 5.0 (17 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 8.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 121 — better | 17 |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 70 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chicago Parking Meters, LLC | Been There |
Customer experience
ParkChicago®Map
Been Around
Bugs and requests
ParkChicago®Map
Reported bugs
13 issues- App crashes on opening
- App does not open
- Cannot change card on file
- Parking availability is inaccurate
- Meter locations are not accurate
Show 8 moreShow fewer
- Zoom in & out function doesn't work well
- Most buttons don't do anything
- Cannot sign in
- App is not formatted properly on iPhone X
- Search box does not bring up keyboard
- Green box displayed on map with no meter info
- Return to meter view button not functional
- Color scheme not accessible for colorblind users
Requested features
12 requests- Integrate into the main ParkChicago app
- Fix app crashing issues
- Improve parking availability accuracy
- Fix meter location accuracy
- Fix zoom functionality
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- Fix non-functional buttons
- Allow card changes
- Fix sign-in issues
- Improve formatting for iPhone X
- Address colorblind accessibility
- Update for iPhone 14 Pro
- Allow searching by location, not just meter number
Been Around
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
ParkChicago®Map
No in-app purchases
Been Around
No in-app purchases
