Comparison

Caltrain+ vs Palo Alto Link

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

Head to head
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.

About

Palo Alto Link

This service offers an affordable and eco-friendly rideshare experience within the city. Book a ride through your phone, get picked up at a nearby corner, and share your journey with others heading in the same direction. It's a convenient way to navigate the city while reducing your carbon footprint.

Highlights
  • On-demand rideshare
  • Corner-to-corner pickup
  • Shared rides
  • Eco-friendly vehicles
  • Affordable pricing
  • Mobile booking
Features
Read full description

Palo Alto Link is the city’s easy, affordable, and eco-friendly service. We are a rideshare service that comes when you want, where you want — give us your pickup and dropoff addresses, and we’ll provide a few ride options. Choose the ride option that works best for you and get directions to a nearby intersection where a driver will pick you up. How it works: - Book a ride on your phone. - Get picked up on a nearby corner. - Share your ride with others What we’re about: SHARED. Our corner-to-corner algorithm matches people headed in the same direction. Aggregating people into one vehicle brings down prices and lowers CO2 emissions. Enough said. SUSTAINABLE. Sharing rides reduces the number of vehicles on the roads, bringing down congestion and CO2 emissions. On top of this, our vehicle fleet is a mix of hybrid and fully electric vehicles. With a couple of taps, you get to do your part to make your city a little bit greener and cleaner, every time you ride. Questions? Reach out at support-pal@ridewithvia.com. Loving your experience so far? Throw us a 5-star rating. You’ll have our eternal gratitude.

Screenshots

Caltrain+4 screens
Palo Alto Link4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Caltrain+ at 86% against Palo Alto Link's 43%. Caltrain+ also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Caltrain+ has 2.4K ratings behind it against 395, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 86% of Caltrain+'s written reviews are positive against 43% of Palo Alto Link's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Caltrain+ ships an update every 3 weeks, Palo Alto Link every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Caltrain+ versus Palo Alto Link: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCaltrain+Palo Alto Link
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (2.4K ratings) — better4.6 (395 ratings)
Positive reviews85.7% of reviews — better42.9% of reviews
Number of ratings2.4K — better395
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB130 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJonathan SahooVia Transportation, Inc.

Customer experience

Caltrain+

All ratings2,344 ratings
Positive96.3%
Neutral1.4%
Negative2.3%
Written reviews35 reviews
Positive85.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative14.3%

Palo Alto Link

All ratings393 ratings
Positive88.8%
Neutral2.5%
Negative8.7%
Written reviews21 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral4.8%
Negative52.4%

User reviews

Caltrain+

From 2.4K 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

Palo Alto Link

From 395 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💰 Affordable rides
  • 👍 Easy to use app
  • ✅ Reliable service
  • 🤝 Courteous drivers
  • 📱 Shows driver location

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Extremely buggy app
  • ⏳ Inaccurate ETAs
  • 🚶‍♂️ Drivers pick up others first
  • 🔄 App freezes often
  • 😩 Requires frequent app restarts

Bugs and requests

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

Palo Alto Link

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • App freezes and needs constant restarting
  • Payment method failures
  • Driver location updates are delayed
  • Pickup locations randomly shift
  • App randomly decides pickup location is out of zone
Show 1 more
  • App automatically plots routes to include bus stops regardless of destination

Requested features

8 requests
  • Improve app stability
  • Fix ETA inaccuracies
  • Optimize routing
  • Improve pickup/dropoff location accuracy
  • Provide estimated arrival time beforehand
Show 3 more
  • Recommend closest pickup location
  • Better integration with public transit
  • Reduce unnecessary notifications

In-app purchases

None

Caltrain+

No in-app purchases

None

Palo Alto Link

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Caltrain+ free?
Caltrain+ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Palo Alto Link free?
Palo Alto Link is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Caltrain+ or Palo Alto Link?
Caltrain+ is rated higher. Caltrain+ averages 4.8 out of 5 from 2.4K ratings, while Palo Alto Link averages 4.6 from 395 ratings.
Do Caltrain+ or Palo Alto Link have ads?
Neither Caltrain+ nor Palo Alto Link shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Caltrain+ or Palo Alto Link?
Caltrain+ ships an update every 3 weeks, and Palo Alto Link every 5 weeks. Most recently, Caltrain+ was updated on November 7, 2026 and Palo Alto Link on November 3, 2026.

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