Comparison

Waymo vs Clipper Card

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
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

Clipper Card

Manage your transit card for contactless fare payments across the San Francisco Bay Area. Load value, plan trips with real-time information, and pay fares directly from your iPhone or Apple Watch.

Highlights
  • Pay fares with Clipper in Apple Pay
  • Manage transit accounts
  • Load cash value and transit passes
  • Plan trips with real-time info
  • Add/transfer cards to Apple Wallet
  • View account activity
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

The Clipper app is here! - Pay your fares with Clipper in Apple Pay - Manage your account(s) - Load cash value and transit passes - Plan your trips Clipper is the all-in-one transit card used for contactless fare payments throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. The new Clipper app lets you manage your Clipper account from your iPhone—add value, view your history, and plan your trip! Download the Clipper app today! Pay with Your iPhone or Apple Watch The Clipper app gives you step-by-step instructions for setting up a new Clipper card or transferring an existing Clipper card to your Apple Wallet. Manage Your Account The Clipper app gives you the same account access as the website, but on your iPhone! You can register a new card, load cash value and transit passes, set up Autoload, view your recent activity, and other features. Sign in and out of multiple Clipper accounts in the Clipper app to manage a card on behalf of someone else. Plan Your Trip The Clipper app has real-time transit information and helpful trip planning tools to make getting around the Bay easy! You can view nearby transit options and routes, get real-time travel and arrival information, and save your favorite locations, stops, and stations. By downloading this app, you agree to and accept the terms of the Clipper Mobile Application License Agreement (https://www.clippercard.com/ClipperWeb/mobile-application-agreement.html) and the Clipper Privacy Policy (https://www.clippercard.com/ClipperWeb/privacy.html). Clipper serves 24 transit services in the San Francisco Bay Area: AC Transit BART Caltrain City Coach County Connection Dumbarton Express FAST Golden Gate Ferry Golden Gate Transit Marin Transit Muni Petaluma Transit SamTrans San Francisco Bay Ferry Santa Rosa CityBus SMART SolTrans Sonoma County Transit Tri Delta Transit Union City Transit Vine VTA WestCAT Wheels By downloading this app, you agree to and accept the terms of the Clipper Mobile Application License Agreement (https://www.clippercard.com/ClipperWeb/mobile-application-agreement.html) and the Clipper Privacy Policy (https://www.clippercard.com/ClipperWeb/privacy.html).

Screenshots

Waymo4 screens
Clipper Card4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Waymo at 83% against Clipper Card's 3%. Waymo also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.8) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). Clipper Card's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 18.0). 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 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Waymo has 247K ratings behind it against 11K, 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 3% of Clipper Card's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Waymo ships an update fortnightly, Clipper Card every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Waymo versus Clipper Card: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWaymoClipper Card
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (247K ratings) — better3.8 (11K ratings)
Positive reviews82.9% of reviews — better3.0% of reviews
Number of ratings247K — better11K
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#14 — better#157
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size175 MB61 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWaymo LLCMetropolitan Transportation Commission

Customer experience

Waymo

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

Clipper Card

All ratings9,408 ratings
Positive68.4%
Neutral3.0%
Negative28.6%
Written reviews398 reviews
Positive3.0%
Neutral6.8%
Negative90.2%

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

Clipper Card

From 11K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Convenient to add Clipper card to Apple Wallet
  • 👍 Easy to manage Clipper card balance

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy app with frequent issues
  • ⏱️ Slow to update card balance and transaction history
  • 💳 Difficult to cancel auto-load or transfer card balances
  • 🤖 Poor customer service and unresponsive support
  • 🔒 Security concerns with lost/stolen cards

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

Clipper Card

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App freezes and crashes frequently
  • Card balances not updating properly
  • Issues with adding cards to Apple Wallet
  • Inconsistent behavior when loading funds

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improve real-time sync of card balance and transactions
  • Streamline process to cancel auto-load and transfer balances
  • Provide better customer support and communication
  • Enhance security features for lost/stolen cards
  • Eliminate unnecessary fees

In-app purchases

None

Waymo

No in-app purchases

None

Clipper Card

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Waymo free?
Waymo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Clipper Card free?
Clipper Card is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Waymo or Clipper Card?
Waymo is rated higher. Waymo averages 5.0 out of 5 from 247K ratings, while Clipper Card averages 3.8 from 11K ratings.
Do Waymo or Clipper Card have ads?
Neither Waymo nor Clipper Card shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Waymo or Clipper Card?
Waymo ships an update fortnightly, and Clipper Card every 3 months. Most recently, Waymo was updated on September 25, 2026 and Clipper Card on September 24, 2026.
Which is more popular, Waymo or Clipper Card?
Waymo currently peaks at #14 in the App Store charts, and Clipper Card at #157. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

Other comparisons