Comparison

Waymo vs BART (Official)

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

Head to head
About

Waymo

Request autonomous rides in select territories with a fully electric fleet. Customize your journey with temperature and music controls, and enjoy a safe, reliable, and eco-friendly transportation experience.

Highlights
  • Request autonomous rides
  • Ride scheduling
  • Customize ride temperature and music
  • Easy door unlock via Bluetooth
  • Share trip status
  • Multi-stop trips
  • All-electric fleet
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Get there with The World’s Most Experienced Driver™ Waymo is on a mission to be the world’s most trusted driver, making it safer, more accessible, and more sustainable to get around—without the need for anyone in the driver’s seat. REQUEST AUTONOMOUS RIDES Ready to ride in any of our existing territories? Download the Waymo app and enter your destination to request your first ride. HOW IT WORKS Once requested, the Waymo car will pick you up from your current location; all you have to do is hop in, sit back, and buckle up. To begin your trip, tap “Start Ride” on the in-car passenger screen where you can also see what the Waymo Driver sees and contact Rider Support at any time. DESIGNED WITH YOU IN MIND Waymo offers the freedom of having a car to yourself without the stress of driving or parking. Day or night, you can request fully autonomous rides that are safe, clean, reliable, and customizable. Whether it’s picking the perfect temperature or streaming your favorite playlists, each ride empowers you to make it your own. MEET THE WORLD’S MOST EXPERIENCED DRIVER™ Waymo is The World’s Most Experienced Driver™ with millions of miles of experience and a proven safety track record. Every car in our all-electric fleet is operated by the Waymo Driver, an autonomous driving technology built with safety at heart. Its real-time visibility gives the Waymo Driver the capability to navigate and adapt with ease. Supported by a multilayered suite of sensors—including cameras, radar, and lidar—our systems maintain a constant 360°-view of the car’s surroundings ensuring road safety for all. YOUR RIDE, EVERY TIME. EXPLORE FEATURES Ride scheduling • Set pick up times up to one hour in advance and we’ll be there to get you. Pick the perfect vibe • Adjust temperature and select tunes all through the Waymo app or in-car screen display. Easy door unlock • Only you can unlock your ride—use Bluetooth to unlock your ride automatically as soon as you’re near. Adjust settings via the My Car Tab in the Waymo app. Share your trip • Share live arrival times with friends and family while en route. Trunk space • Store your belongings with ample trunk space. Upon exiting the car, the trunk will automatically open to ensure nothing’s left behind. Multi-stop • Add multiple destinations to your ride anytime—up to 4 per trip. Or, pull over any time with the tap of a button using the Waymo app or in-car screen. Eco-friendly • Do right by the planet when you ride with our all-electric fleet. The Waymo app is available for download in: • Australia • Canada • France • Germany • Great Britain (UK) • India • Italy • Japan • Mexico • New Zealand • Poland • Singapore • United States of America

About

BART (Official)

Plan your Bay Area transit journeys with real-time train departures and official service alerts. This app offers end-to-end trip planning, step-by-step navigation, and customized notifications for a hassle-free commute.

Highlights
  • Real-time train departures
  • End-to-end trip planner
  • Step-by-step navigation
  • Customized service alerts
  • Contactless parking payment
  • Service disruption information
Features
Read full description

The official Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) app has arrived. It’s the easiest way to plan your trip and get accurate real time train departures with data straight from BART, along with official service alerts. The BART app offers exclusive features for hassle free travel for daily commuters, infrequent users and tourists alike: -Plan your entire end to end trip with BART’s exclusive Trip Planner giving you the fastest route from your starting point to your destination using BART and multiple modes of transportation, including connecting transit, biking, walking and driving. -Step by step navigation with personalized preferences and saved favorite stations and trips. -Real time departures and schedule timetable. -Customized in-app notifications about BART service and announcements. -Contactless in-app Daily Fee parking payment -Service disruption information linked to your trip itinerary. -Report a Biohazard that needs addressing and access our BART Watch App for reporting crimes. -Escalator and Elevator advisories. -Fleet of the Future train tracker. -Cancelled trip notices. -Easily see the last train of the evening by station when you’re planning your night out or your trip home from the airport. -Station information (including if it offers a parking lot and secured bike parking). -Seamless connection to bart.gov and BARTable for deals, events, and fun. -It’s ad free; who wants to be distracted when looking how far away your train is? BART is working on future features of the app to enhance your BART experience... Tell us about the features you want.

Screenshots

Waymo4 screens
BART (Official)4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Waymo at 83% against BART (Official)'s 30%. Waymo also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). BART (Official)'s advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). 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

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

Waymo holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Waymo has 247K ratings behind it against 26K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of Waymo's written reviews are positive against 30% of BART (Official)'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Waymo ships an update fortnightly, BART (Official) every 2 months. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Waymo versus BART (Official): the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWaymoBART (Official)
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (247K ratings) — better4.6 (26K ratings)
Positive reviews82.9% of reviews — better29.7% of reviews
Number of ratings247K — better26K
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#15 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.017.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size175 MB81 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWaymo LLCSan Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District

Customer experience

Waymo

All ratings247,405 ratings
Positive99.4%
Neutral0.2%
Negative0.4%
Written reviews2,110 reviews
Positive82.9%
Neutral1.6%
Negative15.5%

BART (Official)

All ratings21,736 ratings
Positive91.1%
Neutral2.9%
Negative6.1%
Written reviews219 reviews
Positive29.7%
Neutral9.1%
Negative61.2%

User reviews

Waymo

From 247K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth, safe, and efficient rides
  • 👍 Easy to use app
  • 🚗 Comfortable and clean vehicles
  • 💰 Affordable pricing
  • 🎶 Music control in the car

Room to improve

  • 🚧 Limited service area
  • 🕰️ Longer wait times compared to other ride-sharing
  • 🚶‍♀️ Inconvenient pickup/drop-off locations
  • 🤖 Concerns about self-driving reliability
  • 📞 Poor customer service

BART (Official)

From 26K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Convenient in-app parking payment
  • 👍 Accurate real-time train information
  • 🚀 Easy to use app
  • 👍 Helpful for planning trips

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Unreliable real-time information
  • 🔍 Confusing parking payment process
  • 🔍 Lack of key features like checking Clipper card balance
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Not intuitive for first-time users

Bugs and requests

Waymo

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App login issues
  • Unreliable ride booking and cancellation
  • Unexpected route changes during rides

Requested features

4 requests
  • Expand service area to more cities
  • Improve pickup/drop-off locations
  • Add Bluetooth connectivity for personal music
  • Provide option to contact support during rides

BART (Official)

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Real-time departure times not updating accurately
  • Trip planning providing incorrect/nonsensical routes
  • Login and password issues causing frequent logouts
  • Parking payment not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to check Clipper card balance
  • Automatic license plate recognition for parking
  • Offline mode for schedules and trip planning
  • Better notifications for service advisories and delays
  • More customization options for favorite stations

In-app purchases

None

Waymo

No in-app purchases

None

BART (Official)

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Waymo free?
Waymo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is BART (Official) free?
BART (Official) is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Waymo or BART (Official)?
Waymo is rated higher. Waymo averages 5.0 out of 5 from 247K ratings, while BART (Official) averages 4.6 from 26K ratings.
Do Waymo or BART (Official) have ads?
Neither Waymo nor BART (Official) shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Waymo or BART (Official)?
Waymo ships an update fortnightly, and BART (Official) every 2 months. Most recently, Waymo was updated on September 24, 2026 and BART (Official) on September 24, 2026.

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