Comparison

Gem vs SwitchFlip Co

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

Head to head
About

Gem

Discover secondhand and vintage clothing efficiently across numerous online stores and marketplaces. Find specific items or browse by decade and brand, with options to save favorites and receive notifications. Purchase directly from the seller's website without additional fees.

Highlights
  • Unified search for resale sites
  • Image search functionality
  • Filter by price, size, location, decade
  • Browse by decade, brand, gender
  • Save favorite items
  • Push/email notifications
  • Direct purchase from seller
Features
Read full description

The most efficient app for finding secondhand clothing. • One fast search for all resale sites and stores • No additional fees • Keep track of your searches with push/email notifications • Search with image • Filter by price, size, location, decade, gender • Browse by decade, brand, gender • Save favorites • Buy the item on the store website — FEATURED IN “Fashion writers, vintage collectors and costume designers all use this app” – The New York Times “You can find vintage or secondhand alternatives to items you’d normally buy new” – Vogue US “Anything I consider getting, I first search it on Gem” – New York Magazine “What We Love: Gem searches for items from independent stores and resale platforms—drawing from over 150 million listings across the internet.” – App Store US — Gem brings together thousands of online vintage & secondhand stores and marketplaces into one simple search. Once you find the item you’re looking for, you can buy it directly from the seller website, without extra cost. Gem is open to all online vintage & secondhand clothing stores. Contact us if you would like your store to be included. — Screenshots product image credits: Twofold_b, Community Thrift and Vintage, SSLOPPYSSECONDS, BrassCactusVintageCo, CannedHamVintage, Halcyon West, ButterworthsVintage, James Veloria, Wayward Collection, Recess LA, CALIVINTAGEUSA, BrooklynThread, cottonmouth, Fair Season, Na Nin, SouthwestVintage, MiscELENAeous, Libbysmomsvintage

About

SwitchFlip Co

A platform for skaters to buy, sell, and trade used skate gear, from shoes to decks and trucks. It aims to make skateboarding more accessible by giving gear a new life.

Highlights
  • Buy used skate shoes
  • Sell used skate gear
  • Trade skate equipment
  • Resale platform for decks, trucks, wheels
  • Community for skaters
Features
Read full description

We’re skaters helping skaters—making it easier to stay on the board without dropping a fortune every time a shoe blows out. And we’re not stopping at shoes. The dream is to grow SwitchFlip into a full-on resale platform—decks, trucks, wheels, whatever keeps you shredding. Imagine a place where all your gear can find a new life with someone who needs it.

Screenshots

Gem4 screens
SwitchFlip Co4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: SwitchFlip Co at daily against Gem's every 2 months. Gem's advantage is ratings volume (983 vs 2). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Gem against 5.0 for SwitchFlip Co. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Gem has 983 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 97% of Gem's written reviews are positive against 100% of SwitchFlip Co's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Gem ships an update every 2 months, SwitchFlip Co daily. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Gem versus SwitchFlip Co: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGemSwitchFlip Co
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (983 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews96.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings983 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size51 MB40 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperGem Search, LLCDe la Cruz Consulting LLC

Customer experience

Gem

All ratings981 ratings
Positive97.6%
Neutral0.9%
Negative1.5%
Written reviews407 reviews
Positive96.8%
Neutral1.2%
Negative2.0%

SwitchFlip Co

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Gem

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Inconsistent display of sold items in search results
  • Occasional app crashes or freezes

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add image search functionality
  • Expand search filters (e.g. condition, category)
  • Improve saved search/item organization
  • Include more platforms (e.g. Mercari, The RealReal)

SwitchFlip Co

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Gem

No in-app purchases

None

SwitchFlip Co

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Gem free?
Gem is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SwitchFlip Co free?
SwitchFlip Co is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Gem or SwitchFlip Co?
SwitchFlip Co is rated higher. Gem averages 4.9 out of 5 from 983 ratings, while SwitchFlip Co averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Gem or SwitchFlip Co have ads?
Neither Gem nor SwitchFlip Co shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Gem or SwitchFlip Co?
Gem ships an update every 2 months, and SwitchFlip Co daily. Most recently, Gem was updated on November 3, 2026 and SwitchFlip Co on November 4, 2026.

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