Comparison

Howbout vs CaughtUp

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

Head to head
About

Howbout

This app simplifies social planning by allowing friends to share calendars, coordinate events, and see each other's availability. It helps move plans out of group chats and into a centralized, customizable space with integrated communication features.

Highlights
  • Shared calendars for friends
  • Color-coded events
  • Plan details with notes and pictures
  • Share and view friend availability
  • Integrated group chat and DMs
  • Sync external calendars
  • Home screen widgets
Read full description

The shared calendar for friends, couples, and family This is the app you’ve seen all over TikTok. 10M downloads, 200M+ plans made, and 1B+ views across social media. Howbout is how millions of people actually see each other more. Planning shouldn't take a hundred messages and a "when works for you?" thread that goes nowhere. Howbout fixes that. Find the gap, lock in the plan, actually see the people who matter to you. … WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH HOWBOUT SEE WHEN EVERYONE'S FREE No guessing, it's right there on the calendar. MAKE PLANS Add events, add details, and keep everything together, so plans don't fall apart. SHARE YOUR CALENDAR OR AVAILABILITY Choose what people see. Stay private or share with friends. KEEP ALL THE DETAILS IN ONE PLACE Plans, chats, locations, notes, photos… no switching apps or losing the details. REAL TIME NOTIFICATIONS Get updates when plans change or when your friends are up to something fun. MAKE YOUR CALENDAR YOURS Color-code and customize your calendar how you like. SYNC YOUR CALENDARS & TIMELINES Work, school, personal, social… it's all in one place, so nothing clashes. UP NEXT WIDGETS Stay on top of your upcoming plans and see what your friends are up to from your home screen. … BUILT FOR REAL LIFE For friend groups: check availability, lock in plans, actually see each other more. For couples: stay in sync, plan dates faster, stop double-booking each other. For families: track school runs, appointments, and weekends, all in one place. … HOWBOUT+ Unlock more customization like colors and app themes, smarter planning tools, and get an all around better experience. Your subscription will automatically renew unless turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage your subscription in your App Store settings. … Contact us: support@howbout.app · Follow @howbout_app Privacy: howbout.app/privacy · Terms: howbout.app/terms

About

CaughtUp

This app streamlines social planning by consolidating event details, coordination, and communication into a single, organized platform. It helps users turn ideas into organized events, even if friends don't have the app, and syncs with existing calendars for a complete view of your schedule.

Highlights
  • AI event creation from flyers or screenshots
  • Shareable event links (URL, QR code, text)
  • Float ideas to friends for interest gauging
  • Personal availability view
  • Calendar sync for unified schedule
  • Built-in messaging for shared events
  • Live-updating event details
Features
Read full description

Keep your plans alive. If you’re the one who usually starts plans, you know how messy it gets — notes for details, calendars for timing, group chats for coordination, and your brain holding everything together. CaughtUp handles the follow‑through so you don’t have to. You get instant value the moment you install it — even if your friends never download the app. Whether it’s a quick coffee, a group dinner, or a recurring meetup, CaughtUp keeps every plan organized and easy to follow through on. Live the Life You Planned Planning shouldn’t feel like a part‑time job. • Stop being the group chat manager • Stop juggling apps • Stop carrying the mental load • Stop losing plans in messages CaughtUp keeps everything in one clean, organized place so you can focus on the moments that matter. Save Ideas From Anywhere You don’t need your friends on the app to get value. AI Event Creation Snap a flyer, screenshot a message, or paste text — CaughtUp turns it into a ready‑to‑share event. Smart Event Links Share plans via URL, QR code, or text invite. Friends don’t need the app. Float Ideas to Friends Set a time, add the details, and mark it as an idea — share early plans to see who’s interested before anything is locked in. Personal Availability View Instantly see when you are free. Calendar Sync Bring your calendars into CaughtUp so everything you’re doing stays visible in one place. Planning Together Is Effortless When friends join, everything becomes even easier. • Shared schedules • Built‑in messaging • Live‑updating events Everyone stays aligned, even when plans change. Turn “We Should” Into “We Did” CaughtUp helps you follow through — whether it’s spontaneous hangs or long‑overdue catch‑ups. You’ll never lose track of a plan again. Your Whole Life, Synced Bring all your calendars into CaughtUp and see everything in one place — including when your friends are free. Shared events stay synced with the people involved, so everyone always has the latest details without digging through messages or juggling apps. Coming Soon: Your Planning Companion We’re actively developing Becca, a personal assistant designed to reduce the overhead of planning. In a future update, Becca will help you turn ideas into organized plans by handling the small details that usually slow things down. She’ll also support gentle follow‑ups so plans don’t fade away — keeping everyone aligned without you having to chase people. Why It Matters Good relationships make life better — but logistics get in the way. CaughtUp removes the stress, the juggling, and the mental overhead so you can be the friend who actually makes things happen. More connection. Less coordination. All in one place.

Screenshots

Howbout4 screens
CaughtUp4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Howbout at 51K against CaughtUp's 6. Howbout also leads on chart position (#72 vs unranked). CaughtUp's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence 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. Howbout sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and CaughtUp sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $7.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

CaughtUp holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Howbout has 51K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Howbout versus CaughtUp: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHowboutCaughtUp
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (51K ratings)5.0 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews42.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings51K — better6
Update frequencyWeeklyWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#72 — better—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size155 MB49 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperHowbout Ltd.CaughtUp LLC

Customer experience

Howbout

All ratings50,385 ratings
Positive96.5%
Neutral1.9%
Negative1.5%
Written reviews1,240 reviews
Positive42.1%
Neutral7.0%
Negative50.9%

CaughtUp

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Howbout

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Calendar sync issues causing duplicate events
  • Notifications not working as expected
  • App crashing or freezing
  • Inability to edit events without resending invites

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add widget support
  • Allow customization of event colors
  • Improve recurring event handling
  • Add option to only share with specific people

CaughtUp

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Howbout

Subscriptions6
  • Howbout+ Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Howbout+ Monthly$3.991 Month
  • Howbout+ Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • Howbout+ Monthly7 Days trial$5.991 Month
  • Howbout+ Annual7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Howbout+ Annual$39.991 Year
1 purchases

CaughtUp

Subscriptions1
  • Subscription Plus2 variants$7.991 Month

Questions

Is Howbout free?
Howbout is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CaughtUp free?
CaughtUp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Howbout or CaughtUp?
CaughtUp is rated higher. Howbout averages 4.8 out of 5 from 51K ratings, while CaughtUp averages 5.0 from 6 ratings.
Do Howbout or CaughtUp have ads?
Neither Howbout nor CaughtUp shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Howbout or CaughtUp?
Howbout ships an update weekly, and CaughtUp weekly. Most recently, Howbout was updated on October 28, 2026 and CaughtUp on October 24, 2026.

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