Caltrain+ vs Caltrain Schedule & Tracker
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- 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
Read full descriptionHide 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.
Caltrain Schedule & Tracker
This app provides real-time Caltrain tracking, route planning, and system maps for Bay Area commuters. It offers instant timetables, service alerts, and smart features to help you catch your train.
- Real-time train tracking
- Instant route planning
- Live system map
- Smart commute mode
- Full system timetable
- Service alerts
- Fare zone calculation
Read full descriptionHide full description
The fastest way to ride Caltrain. Real-time train tracking, instant route planning, and a live system map — built for Bay Area commuters who refuse to miss their train. **PLAN YOUR RIDE IN SECONDS** Pick your origin and destination. See every upcoming train with live countdowns, travel time, and fare — color-coded so you know exactly how much time you have. Green means go. Yellow means hustle. Red means run. **LIVE TRAIN TRACKING** Watch every active train move along the corridor in real time. Tap any train on the map to see where it is, where it's headed, how late it is, and when it'll reach the next stop. Positions update every 30 seconds using official GTFS real-time data from 511.org. **SMART COMMUTE MODE** Save your daily route with a long-press. Caltrain remembers your origin and destination, and automatically flips direction based on the time of day — morning commute in, evening commute home. One tap to load, zero thinking required. **FULL SYSTEM MAP** An interactive map of the entire Caltrain corridor from San Francisco to Gilroy. Station markers, zone boundaries, walking routes to your station, and every active train rendered as directional arrows. Tap any station to set it as your origin or destination. **INSTANT TIMETABLE** The complete weekday and weekend timetable in a fast, scrollable grid. Filter by Local, Limited, Express, or South County service. Search for a specific train number. The complete weekday and weekend timetable in a fast, scrollable grid. Choose which lines you see — Local, Limited, Express, or South County — from the gear menu, and the map and timetable follow. Search for a specific train number. Tap any train to see its full stop-by-stop timeline with live delay data. **SERVICE ALERTS** Real-time disruption alerts pulled from the official feed. Ranked by severity — from full service suspensions to minor advisories. Each alert shows which specific trains are affected, and station-specific notices appear directly in the train timeline at the relevant stop. **SMART FEATURES** - GPS auto-detect: Tap the locate button and your closest station becomes your origin, with walking time and route to the platform - Express comparison: When an Express train departs soon after a Local, a smart card shows you exactly how much time you'd save by waiting - Walking warnings: If your walk to the station takes longer than the countdown, you'll know before you leave - Fare zones: Automatic fare calculation based on zones crossed - 24-hour time: Toggle between 12h and 24h formats **BUILT FOR SPEED** Every interaction is instant. No loading screens, no account required. The full timetable ships inside the app and is parsed on launch in milliseconds, so everything works offline. When Caltrain publishes a new schedule, Delayta picks it up automatically on your next launch — no app update needed. **NO ADS. NO SUBSCRIPTIONS. NO CATCH.** Caltrain is completely free. No ads, no paywalls, no data collection, no tracking. An optional tip jar exists if you'd like to keep the developer caffeinated — but the app is fully functional without it. **ACCESSIBILITY** Dark mode only — optimized for outdoor readability and OLED battery life. Haptic feedback on key interactions. VoiceOver labels on all interactive elements. Bike car and wheelchair accessibility information on every train. **KNOW BEFORE THE CROWD** Giants home games turn the San Francisco terminus into a wall of people — before first pitch and again at the final out. Delayta flags game days right on the map with the matchup and first pitch, surfaces a heads-up in your alerts, and can remind you the morning of — so you can time your ride around the rush at 4th & King. Service alerts always take priority.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Caltrain+ at none against Caltrain Schedule & Tracker's 3. Caltrain+ also leads on ratings volume (2K vs 4) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). Caltrain Schedule & Tracker's advantage is update cadence (every 8 days vs every 3 weeks) and review sentiment (100% vs 85%). On price, ads, monetization model and device support 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
Both are free to download. Caltrain Schedule & Tracker sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Caltrain+ asks for nothing beyond the download.
Caltrain Schedule & Tracker holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Caltrain+ has 2K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of Caltrain+'s written reviews are positive against 100% of Caltrain Schedule & Tracker's.
Caltrain+ ships an update every 3 weeks, Caltrain Schedule & Tracker every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and September 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Caltrain+ | Caltrain Schedule & Tracker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (2K ratings) | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 85.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2K — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 8 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 16 MB | 7 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Jonathan Sahoo | Jonathan Ng |
Customer experience
Caltrain+
Caltrain Schedule & Tracker
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
Caltrain Schedule & Tracker
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Caltrain+
No in-app purchases
Caltrain Schedule & Tracker
- Buy Me a Boba$1.99
- Buy Me A Meal of Boba$4.99
- Generous Supporter$9.99
Questions
Is Caltrain+ free?
Is Caltrain Schedule & Tracker free?
Which has better reviews, Caltrain+ or Caltrain Schedule & Tracker?
Do Caltrain+ or Caltrain Schedule & Tracker have ads?
Which is updated more often, Caltrain+ or Caltrain Schedule & Tracker?
Other comparisons















