Comparison

Google vs Phone

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

Head to head
About

Google

This app provides a comprehensive search experience, integrating AI for quick answers and personalized content. It allows you to search using images, voice, or text, and offers features like song identification and real-time translation.

Highlights
  • AI Overviews for quick answers
  • Image search with Lens
  • Hum to Search for song identification
  • Personalized Discover feed
  • Real-time camera translation
  • Home screen search widget
Features
Read full description

Download the Google app to find quick answers, explore your interests, and ask anything on your mind in any way. Try AI in Google Search with AI Mode, Lens, Search Live, and more. Feature highlights*: • AI Mode: Get AI-powered responses to your toughest questions with AI Mode–talk, type, or snap a photo to get started, and ask follow-up questions to dig deeper. You’ll continue to see a range of helpful links so you can keep exploring across the web. • Google Lens: See something you like? Snap a photo and discover where to shop for it, find related images, and more. Refine your camera searches by adding words – whether you want those shoes but in ‘blue’, or want to learn how to ‘repair’ that broken bit on your bicycle. • Search Live: Have a live, real-time conversation in Search by using your voice and camera to easily get answers and on-screen links to the web when you need them. • AI Overviews: Get a snapshot of key information about a topic or question, like ’how to fix a broken zipper’, with links so you can easily explore more on the web. • Hum to Search: Can't remember the name of that song? Hum the tune and Google will help find it for you—no lyrics, artist name or perfect pitch required. You can also search for a song playing near you. • Discover: Stay up-to-date on topics that matter to you. Get personalized news, articles, and videos based on your interests. • Google Search Widget: Search faster from your home screen or lock screen, with easy shortcuts to AI Mode, Lens, and more. Google Search, totally reimagined with AI • Explore a new intelligent Search box that expands with your curiosity, offers AI powered suggestions and lets you search with text, videos and more. • Bring your toughest questions to Search. With a more seamless Search experience, you can go from an AI Overview on the search results page to asking follow-up questions in AI Mode, with links to the web. • Get help with planning, researching, brainstorming new ideas, and more with the latest Gemini models delivering frontier performance for agents and coding. • Bring your ideas to life by transforming your photos in Lens or creating images in AI Mode with Nano Banana. Available in select languages and locations. Search what you see with Google Lens: • Use your camera to identify what you’re looking at. Identify plants and animals, translate text in real-time, find similar products to buy, and even solve math problems with step-by-step guides. • Translate over 100 languages on things like road signs when you travel, menus, and more by pointing your camera at text. • Reverse image search: Find the source, similar photos, and related information for any image. • Get step-by-step homework help on math, physics and word problems, and testing your knowledge with Questions and Answers are now fully supported within the Google app. Search safely and securely: • All searches in the Google app are protected by encrypting the connection between your device and Google. • Privacy controls are easy to find and use. Tap your profile picture to access your menu and delete recent search history from your account with one click. • Search proactively filters webspam to help ensure that you see safe, high-quality results. Learn more about what the Google app can do for you: https://search.google/ Privacy policy: https://www.google.com/policies/privacy Your feedback helps us create products you'll love. Join a user research study here: https://goo.gl/kKQn99 *Features may not be available in all countries.

About

Phone

This app consolidates all your calling needs, including standard phone calls, FaceTime audio, and video calls. It offers advanced features like voicemail transcription, call recording, and intelligent call screening to manage your communications efficiently.

Highlights
  • Unified calls (phone, FaceTime audio/video)
  • Voicemail transcription and summaries
  • Live call recording
  • Customizable contact posters
  • Intelligent call screening
  • Wi-Fi calling
  • Automatic mic modes
Features
Read full description

Make and receive calls with the Phone app. • Phone calls, FaceTime audio calls and FaceTime video calls all in one place. • Choose a new unified layout that brings together your Favorites, Recents, and Voicemails • Favorites offers one-tap shortcuts for calls and messages to your most important contacts. • Recents displays recent conversations and missed calls. Search for previous calls, transcribed voicemails, and contacts using a broad range of search criteria. • Voicemail Summaries powered by Apple Intelligence appear in-line with missed calls and help surface the most important information. • Keypad search lets you quickly find and call existing contacts by typing in their name or number with the alphanumeric keypad. • Contact Posters let you customize exactly how you appear when you give someone a call. Choose from various treatments for photos, Memoji and your name. • Record live calls or FaceTime audio calls from the Phone app and review the transcripts in the Notes app. When you start a recording, the Phone app automatically announces that the call is being recorded. • Visual Voicemail offers a written transcript of your voicemails. Save Visual Voicemail messages as notes, voice memos, or share them using Messages, Mail or AirDrop.* • Live Voicemail lets you see a real-time transcription as someone is leaving you a message, and you can pick up the call if it’s something you want to address in the moment. • Automatic Mic Mode picks the right Mic Mode for you. Voice Isolation blocks out ambient noise and spotlights your voice. Wide Spectrum will leave ambient noises unfiltered, allowing your voice and all the sounds around you to be heard. • Text responses make it easy to send a response in a single tap when you can’t pick up a call. Use suggested replies, or create your own custom text responses. • Remind Me Later helps you remember to return calls that you can’t pick up in the moment. • Hold Assist lets the Phone app wait on hold for you and alerts you once a live agent is available. • Call Screening lets you screen incoming calls from unknown numbers. Your phone will pick up the call for you and ask for a name and reason for the call before the phone even rings. • Call Context uses Apple Intelligence to help surface relevant information — like a confirmation code — when you call a business. • Silence Unknown Callers gives you the option to automatically send unknown numbers to voicemail. Your phone will only ring for people in your contacts, recent outgoing calls, and Siri Suggestions. • Blocked Contacts allows you to identify unwanted callers and blocks phone and FaceTime calls from those numbers. • A range of ringtones and vibrations allow you to choose distinct alerts for certain people. • Wi-Fi Calling lets you make or receive a phone call on a Wi-Fi connection, so you can stay connected in areas with little or no cellular coverage.* • Dial Assist automatically determines the correct international or local prefix when dialing. • Call Waiting allows someone to call you while you’re already on another call.* • Call Forwarding relays calls made to your number to another number that you specify.* Apple Watch Features: • Make and answer phone calls right from your wrist. • When you hear or feel the call, send the call to voicemail, answer using your iPhone or send a message. • While you’re on a call, adjust the call volume, use the keypad or even switch the call to your iPhone. • Listen to voicemails. • Ask Siri to call someone in your contacts. *Requires carrier support

Screenshots

Google4 screens
Phone2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Google at 4.6 against Phone's 4.0. Google also leads on review sentiment (59% vs 28%) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 8 months). Phone's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 37) and ads (none vs shown). On price 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. Google sells 22 in-app purchases, starting at $0.89 per month. Phone asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Google holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Google has 5.1M ratings behind it against 10K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 59% of Google's written reviews are positive against 28% of Phone's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Google ships an update every 5 days, Phone every 8 months. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

Scorecard10 real differences · 1 level
Google versus Phone: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGooglePhone
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (5.1M ratings) — better4.0 (10K ratings)
Positive reviews59.1% of reviews — better28.3% of reviews
Number of ratings5.1M — better10K
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterEvery 8 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#1 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS16.010.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size485 MB9 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperGoogleApple

Customer experience

Google

All ratings5,108,043 ratings
Positive91.4%
Neutral2.9%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews10,353 reviews
Positive59.1%
Neutral5.7%
Negative35.1%

Phone

All ratings10,372 ratings
Positive72.0%
Neutral6.2%
Negative21.7%
Written reviews2,164 reviews
Positive28.3%
Neutral10.5%
Negative61.2%

User reviews

Google

From 5.1M App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Reliable and feature-packed
  • 👍 Seamless integration with other Google services
  • 🔍 Accurate and personalized search results
  • 📱 Intuitive and smooth interface
  • 🔍 Helpful Google Assistant

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
  • 🔍 Biased or irrelevant search results
  • 📱 Slow performance and freezing issues
  • 🔍 Forced use of Google Lens
  • 🔍 Difficulty removing unwanted content from feed

Phone

From 10K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 📞 Reliable for making calls
  • 🔒 Secure and private
  • 📝 Live voicemail transcription
  • 🔍 Useful for checking voicemails

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Notification issues
  • 🔇 Microphone problems
  • 🔍 Lacking advanced call screening features
  • 🕰️ Outdated UI and functionality
  • 🔀 Confusing with separate Contacts app

Bugs and requests

Google

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Search bar freezes or takes a long time to load
  • Tabs disappearing or not saving properly
  • Inability to save images or access image search
  • Crashing or force closing issues
  • Inconsistent dark mode/light mode behavior

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to disable Google Lens
  • Improved tab management
  • Ability to customize news feed interests
  • Restore image download functionality
  • Dedicated search mode for trucks and larger vehicles

Phone

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Voicemail notification issues
  • Disappearing contact photos and information
  • Inability to make outgoing calls after updates
  • Inconsistent behavior with call log and missed call notifications

Requested features

5 requests
  • Allow editing of mistyped numbers
  • Add search option in Recents tab
  • Provide option to delete/change voicemail greeting
  • Enable bulk contact deletion
  • Integrate more customization options (e.g., ringtones, backgrounds)

In-app purchases

22 purchases

Google

Subscriptions22
  • 30 GB$0.891 Month
  • 100 GB$1.991 Month
  • 100 GB1 Month trial3 variants$1.991 Month
Show 19 more
  • 100 GB3 Months trial$1.991 Month
  • 200 GB$2.991 Month
  • 200 GB1 Month trial3 variants$2.991 Month
  • Google AI Plus (400 GB)$4.991 Month
  • Google AI Plus (400 GB)1 Month trial$4.991 Month
  • Google AI Plus (2 TB)$9.991 Month
  • 2 TB1 Month trial3 variants$9.991 Month
  • 100 GB$19.991 Year
  • Google AI Pro (5 TB)1 Month trial2 variants$19.991 Month
  • Google AI Pro (5 TB)$19.991 Month
  • Google AI Pro (2 TB)$19.991 Month
  • 5 TB2 variants$24.991 Month
  • 200 GB$29.991 Year
  • 200 GB1 Year trial$29.991 Year
  • Google AI Plus (400 GB)$49.991 Year
  • 10 TB$49.991 Month
  • Google AI Plus (2 TB)$99.991 Year
  • 30 TB$149.991 Month
  • 5 TB$249.991 Year
None

Phone

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Google free?
Google is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Phone free?
Phone is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Google or Phone?
Google is rated higher. Google averages 4.6 out of 5 from 5.1M ratings, while Phone averages 4.0 from 10K ratings.
Do Google or Phone have ads?
Google shows ads; Phone does not.
Which is updated more often, Google or Phone?
Google ships an update every 5 days, and Phone every 8 months. Most recently, Google was updated on September 25, 2026 and Phone on September 25, 2026.

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