# Hometown Gate vs First Bell

The clearest difference is review sentiment: First Bell at 50% against Hometown Gate's 0%. First Bell also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.9) and update cadence (every 9 days vs monthly). Hometown Gate's advantage is ratings volume (55 vs 15) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

First Bell holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 55 and 15 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of Hometown Gate's written reviews are positive against 50% of First Bell's.

Hometown Gate ships an update monthly, First Bell every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hometown Gate | First Bell |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.9 (55 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hometown-gate/id1500357503/reviews) | **[4.8 (15 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/first-bell/id6751309514/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **55** | 15 |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | **50.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 9 days** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 58 MB | 0 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [HomeTown Ticketing, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1500357502) | [Subramanian Ramaswamy](https://appshunter.io/developer/1834509675) |

## What reviewers say

### Hometown Gate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hometown-gate/id1500357503)

Manage event ticketing seamlessly with this app. Sell tickets, scan entries, and accept payments on your device. It offers offline functionality, flexible ticket delivery, and in-app reporting for efficient event management.

**Highlights:** Sell tickets on-the-go, Scan entries with device camera, Accept cash and credit card payments, Offline ticket validation, Flexible ticket delivery options, In-app reporting

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### First Bell

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/first-bell/id6751309514)

This app helps high school students manage their daily class schedules with personalized views and live timers. Input your classes once to instantly organize your day and always know what's next.

**Highlights:** Personalized class schedules, Live timers for current block, View today's full schedule, Input class names and room numbers, Organized daily view

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hometown Gate free?

Hometown Gate is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is First Bell free?

First Bell is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Hometown Gate or First Bell?

First Bell is rated higher. Hometown Gate averages 3.9 out of 5 from 55 ratings, while First Bell averages 4.8 from 15 ratings.

### Do Hometown Gate or First Bell have ads?

Neither Hometown Gate nor First Bell shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Hometown Gate or First Bell?

Hometown Gate ships an update monthly, and First Bell every 9 days. Most recently, Hometown Gate was updated on November 3, 2026 and First Bell on October 30, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*