Comparison

Hostplus vs Smartly

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

Head to head
About

Hostplus

Manage your superannuation and insurance on the go. Check your balance, track contributions, and access useful features securely. Designed for existing members, it offers a simple and intuitive experience.

Highlights
  • Check account balance
  • Track contributions
  • View insurance details
  • Secure login (PIN, Touch ID, Face ID)
  • Simple and easy to understand
Features
Read full description

At Hostplus, we pride ourselves on being uncomplicated. We make sure everything we do is simple to understand and full of only useful things. Our app is no exception. Check your balance, track your contributions, view your insurance and more with the Hostplus app. Getting started - This app is for Hostplus super members. If you don’t have an account with us, you can join online at hostplus.com.au - To make sure you’re using the latest features, please make sure your automatic updates are switched on. Logging in - Login easily with a PIN, Touch ID, or Face ID for secure access to your information on the go.

About

Smartly

This app allows employees to manage their payroll information, including viewing payslips, applying for leave, and submitting timesheets. Employers must set up employee accounts for access. It simplifies payroll management for both employees and businesses.

Highlights
  • View payslips
  • Apply for leave
  • Submit timesheets
  • Track leave balances
  • Assign hours to jobs
  • Email PDF payslips
Features
Read full description

The Smartly mobile app is for employees who work for a business that uses Smartly to manage their payroll. As an employee you can check your pay history and apply for leave as well as submit timesheets. To login, your employer needs to set you up in the payroll site and give you your username. You’ll then get an email to create your password and you’ll be good to go! FEATURES Pay details - View your payslips (up to 3 months). - Email yourself a PDF version of your payslip. - See a countdown to your next pay. Managing leave requests - Apply for leave (including special leave types). - View any upcoming leave, plus leave history and balances. - Managers can add, edit, approveor decline leave requests for their team. - View future leave balances when applying for leave. Submitting timesheets - Enter time and rate per hour. - Create multiple time entries for each day. - Managers can add, edit, approve or decline time for their team. - Remembers the last timesheet entry and prefills the same hours. - Copy a previous weeks timesheet to save time. Labour costing - Assign hours worked to different jobs or departments. ABOUT SMARTLY We know that payroll can be a headache. So, at Smartly we make it simple for businesses to pay their people on time, accurately and in-line with regulation. Faff-free payroll, happy staff, no headaches. Too easy!

Screenshots

Hostplus4 screens
Smartly4 screens

Verdict

The call

Hostplus and Smartly both sit at 4.9 stars, but that hides the real split: 49% of Hostplus's written reviews are positive against 32% of Smartly's. Smartly's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 2 months). On price, rating, ratings volume 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 Hostplus against 4.8 for Smartly. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 80 and 35 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 49% of Hostplus's written reviews are positive against 32% of Smartly's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hostplus ships an update every 2 months, Smartly monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Hostplus versus Smartly: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHostplusSmartly
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (80 ratings) — better4.8 (35 ratings)
Positive reviews49.2% of reviews — better31.9% of reviews
Number of ratings80 — better35
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS16.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size30 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHOSTPLUS SuperSmartPayroll

Customer experience

Hostplus

All ratings80 ratings
Positive98.8%
Neutral0.0%
Negative1.3%
Written reviews181 reviews
Positive49.2%
Neutral8.8%
Negative42.0%

Smartly

All ratings35 ratings
Positive97.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews69 reviews
Positive31.9%
Neutral14.5%
Negative53.6%

User reviews

Hostplus

From 80 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use and navigate interface
  • 📱 Clean, modern, and intuitive design
  • ⚡ Quick access to balance and account information
  • 📊 Helpful graphs and visual balance tracking
  • 🔔 Real-time balance update notifications

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent app crashes and errors
  • ⏱️ Slow loading times and laggy performance
  • 🔄 Frequent maintenance windows and downtime
  • ❌ Login failures and authentication issues
  • 📉 Real-time balance updates degraded to 1-2 days

Smartly

From 35 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 👍 Intuitive design
  • 👍 Straightforward
  • 👍 Good for tracking shifts
  • 👍 Great for employees

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Constantly logs out
  • 🐛 Frequent login issues
  • 🐛 App crashes/freezes
  • 🐛 Slow performance
  • 🐛 Poor accessibility

Bugs and requests

Hostplus

Reported bugs

14 issues
  • App stuck on loading screen after PIN entry
  • Login button unresponsive after recent updates
  • Error 122: Minimum security requirements violation
  • Unexpected error messages preventing app access
  • Session timeout during password recovery
Show 9 more
  • App forgets login details after updates
  • Error 115: Cannot connect to ChoicePlus
  • Blue screen with no content displayed
  • Facial recognition reverting to PIN without reason
  • App requires update but no update available
  • Push notifications with test messages appearing
  • Continue button not responding during login
  • Extended maintenance periods (14+ hours)
  • App crashes after new updates

Requested features

13 requests
  • Historical balance tracking by specific dates
  • Financial year earnings breakdown (not just 12 months)
  • Better graphs and detailed performance analysis
  • Investment switching capability on app
  • Two-factor authentication via authenticator app
Show 8 more
  • More detailed asset allocation information
  • Download statements functionality
  • Advanced calculators and financial tools
  • Swap function for investments
  • Better iPad optimization and landscape mode
  • Ability to view investment returns and drill-down analysis
  • Performance reports accessible on app
  • Larger margin options for trading orders

Smartly

Reported bugs

39 issues
  • Notifications don't work
  • App size increased
  • Biometrics enrollment repeated
  • Password reset issues
  • Login button unresponsive
Show 34 more
  • Keeps logging out
  • App crashes or freezes
  • Date selection hard
  • App crashes or freezes regularly
  • Issues with shifts past midnight
  • Cannot log in
  • App freezes when adding timesheet
  • Timesheet tab buffering
  • App doesn't function
  • Cannot approve timesheets
  • Randomly logs out users
  • App crashes every fortnight
  • Slow to respond to taps
  • App freezes on loading screen
  • Cannot add timesheet when logged in
  • Timesheet tab buffering and error
  • App won't function
  • Cannot approve timesheets
  • Randomly logs out
  • App crashes every fortnight
  • Slow to respond
  • App crashes
  • App crashes immediately
  • App hangs on white loading screen
  • Login issues
  • App doesn't remember login
  • Constant lag and freezing
  • Screens don't allow scrolling
  • New timesheet layout doesn't let you copy hours
  • App needs to be repeatedly reinstalled
  • App doesn't open
  • App crashes
  • App crashes immediately
  • App hangs on white loading screen

Requested features

10 requests
  • Ability to put in start time without finish time
  • Reminder for missing finish time
  • More detailed app
  • Web portal access for employees
  • Ability to handle working past midnight without two entries
Show 5 more
  • Export staff on leave to Outlook calendar
  • Ability to put time to time in lieu
  • Previous week preloaded
  • Auto-save start and finish times from previous day
  • Notifications

In-app purchases

None

Hostplus

No in-app purchases

None

Smartly

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hostplus free?
Hostplus is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Smartly free?
Smartly is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Hostplus or Smartly?
Hostplus is rated higher. Hostplus averages 4.9 out of 5 from 80 ratings, while Smartly averages 4.8 from 35 ratings.
Do Hostplus or Smartly have ads?
Neither Hostplus nor Smartly shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Hostplus or Smartly?
Hostplus ships an update every 2 months, and Smartly monthly. Most recently, Hostplus was updated on September 22, 2026 and Smartly on September 21, 2026.

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