Caltrain+ vs TAGO RIDES
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
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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.
TAGO RIDES
This app connects university students for carpooling, allowing verified .edu users to find rides or offer them to fellow students. It provides a cheaper alternative to traditional rideshares and taxis, with features like real-time tracking and secure in-app payments.
- .edu-only verified student community
- Real-time matching with directional intelligence
- Live driver tracking with ETA and Live Activity
- Secure in-app chat and payments via Stripe
- Built-in safety features: emergency button, trip sharing
- Recurring ride scheduling
- Accessibility features for caregivers and mobility access
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Someone is already driving where you need to go. Tago connects people making the same trip so they can share the ride and split what it costs. Post the drive you were making anyway, or find a seat on someone else's. No surge pricing, and no commission. HOW IT WORKS 1. Say where you're going and when. 2. See who's already driving that way, with their times, open seats and the cost per seat. 3. Send a request. When the driver accepts, sort out the timings in chat. 4. Scan to start the trip, ride, and you're done. FINDING A RIDE • Search a route and see every trip on it • Request a seat for the day you need, and bring up to three companions • Know the exact cost before you ask, with no fees added at the end • When nobody drives the whole way, tago stitches a drive together with transit • A group chat for every trip, so nobody is guessing where to stand OFFERING SEATS • Post the drive you were already making and fill the empty seats • Set your own time, route and stops • Driving the same trip every week? Post it once and cover the whole week • Review requests and choose who rides with you BUILT AROUND REAL TRIPS • Concerts, games and festivals, with a seat home when it ends • Airport runs to and from set pickup points • Weekly commutes as a repeating schedule • Weekend trips home NO COMMISSION Tago does not take a cut. What a rider chips in is what the driver receives. There is no service fee, no booking fee and no surge. SAFETY Every account is verified and every trip ends with a rating. Trips start with a scan, so the right people are in the right car. Share your live trip with someone you trust whenever you want. WHO USES TAGO Students getting home for the weekend. Commuters splitting the drive into the city. Anyone heading to the same show, the same airport or the same town as someone else, and tired of paying for the whole car alone. Download Tago and find your seat.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: Caltrain+ at 2.4K against TAGO RIDES's 14. TAGO RIDES's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks) and review sentiment (100% vs 86%). On price, rating, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
TAGO RIDES holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Caltrain+ has 2.4K ratings behind it against 14, 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 100% of TAGO RIDES's.
Caltrain+ ships an update every 3 weeks, TAGO RIDES weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Caltrain+ | TAGO RIDES |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (2.4K ratings) | 5.0 (14 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 85.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2.4K — better | 14 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 16 MB | 73 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Jonathan Sahoo | Tago Rides, Inc. |
Customer experience
Caltrain+
TAGO RIDES
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
TAGO RIDES
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Caltrain+
No in-app purchases
TAGO RIDES
No in-app purchases









