Comparison

Clipper Card vs Caltrain+

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

Head to head
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).

About

Caltrain+

Plan your Caltrain trips with ease. Get real-time schedules, find the fastest routes, and view service alerts. Perfect for commuters and occasional riders needing to navigate the Caltrain system efficiently.

Highlights
  • Trip planning by departure and arrival station
  • View full timetables
  • Access service alerts
  • System map integration
  • Filter by 'arrive by' time
  • View scheduled stops for each train
Features
Read full description

Caltrain+ is a Caltrain schedule and trip planning app that lets you quickly and easily figure out which train to take to get you from Station A to Station B. Additionally you can view full timetables, service alerts, and a system map all from within the app. To use Caltrain+, simply select the station you want to depart from, the station you want to arrive at, and the timetable (Weekday or Weekend), and Caltrain+ will show you a complete list of every matching train you could take along with its number, service type (i.e. Local, Limited, Express, or South County Connector), departure and arrival time, and trip duration. Optionally specify an “arrive by” time to filter the list of trains to only include those which will get you to your destination station before the specified time. You can also view the full list of scheduled stops for a particular train just by tapping on it. Transit data provided by 511.org. Icon made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com.

Screenshots

Clipper Card4 screens
Caltrain+4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Caltrain+ at 84% against Clipper Card's 3%. Caltrain+ also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.8) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). Clipper Card's advantage is chart position (#142 vs unranked) and ratings volume (11K vs 2K). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

Caltrain+ holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Clipper Card has 11K ratings behind it against 2K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 3% of Clipper Card's written reviews are positive against 84% of Caltrain+'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Clipper Card ships an update every 3 months, Caltrain+ every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Clipper Card versus Caltrain+: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClipper CardCaltrain+
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (11K ratings)4.8 (2K ratings) — better
Positive reviews3.0% of reviews84.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings11K — better2K
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
Best chart rank#142 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS11.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size61 MB16 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMetropolitan Transportation CommissionJonathan Sahoo

Customer experience

Clipper Card

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

Caltrain+

All ratings2,045 ratings
Positive96.7%
Neutral1.3%
Negative2.1%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive84.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative15.6%

User reviews

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

Caltrain+

From 2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easily accessible
  • 👍 User friendly
  • 👍 Great UI
  • 👍 Helpful
  • 👍 Useful

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Inaccurate train times
  • 🐛 Inconvenient, unable to process payments

Bugs and requests

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

Caltrain+

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App doesn't open
  • Unable to process payments

Requested features

3 requests
  • Expand service to Gilroy
  • Post more info on the app like ticketing and upcoming changes
  • Add dark mode

In-app purchases

None

Clipper Card

No in-app purchases

None

Caltrain+

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Clipper Card free?
Clipper Card is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Caltrain+ free?
Caltrain+ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Clipper Card or Caltrain+?
Caltrain+ is rated higher. Clipper Card averages 3.8 out of 5 from 11K ratings, while Caltrain+ averages 4.8 from 2K ratings.
Do Clipper Card or Caltrain+ have ads?
Neither Clipper Card nor Caltrain+ shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Clipper Card or Caltrain+?
Clipper Card ships an update every 3 months, and Caltrain+ every 3 weeks. Most recently, Clipper Card was updated on September 24, 2026 and Caltrain+ on September 24, 2026.

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