Comparison

Tube Map vs Citymapper

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

Head to head
About

Tube Map

Navigate London's transport network with this comprehensive app. It features the official TfL Tube map, live line status updates, and an offline journey planner with step-by-step directions. Find nearby stations and save favorite routes for seamless travel.

Highlights
  • Official TfL Tube Map
  • Offline journey planner
  • Live line status and departures
  • Step-by-step directions
  • Find nearest Tube station
  • Save favorite routes
Features
Read full description

Tube Map is a trusted navigation app for travelling across London. Built around the TfL London Underground map design, Tube Map helps commuters, tourists, and daily travellers plan routes, check live service information, and move around the city with more confidence. Tube Map includes the iconic TfL Tube map design, based on the famous Harry Beck layout. The map is easy to read, simple to explore, and designed to help you understand London Underground connections quickly. The app also includes additional map views for the Night Tube and Rail Network, plus a more geographical map view created to help you understand station locations and routes across the city. Key Features: - TfL London Underground map design - Works online and offline - Journey planner with step-by-step directions - Real-time routing around delays and closures - Live line status for delays, closures, and service changes - Live Tube departures from TfL - National Rail arrivals and departures - Night Tube and Rail Network map views - Find the nearest Tube station in London - Save favourite routes for quick access - Save Home and Work stations - Line status widget - Travel guide for London journeys - Apple Watch app support - Premium features for extra travel tools Journey Planning Made Easy Plan journeys across London with a simple route planner that works with or without an internet connection. Tube Map helps you choose routes, follow step-by-step directions, and travel more easily through the London Underground network. Live Travel Updates Stay informed with live Tube departures, line status information, and station updates. Check if a line is delayed, closed, or running with service changes before you travel. Tube Map also supports National Rail arrivals and departures, giving you more useful information when your journey includes rail connections. Premium Features Tube Map Premium available as an in-app subscription: 99p weekly, £3.99 monthly or £9.99 annually, or as a one-off purchase of £24.99. Prices may vary by location. Cancel at any time, for any reason. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, at the cost of your chosen price tier. Subscriptions can be managed and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to Account Settings in your iTunes Account. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when a subscription to that publication is purchased, where applicable. Please Note Line Status notifications are provided to support your journey, but delivery cannot be guaranteed at all times. Some features may depend on data availability and technical conditions. Continued use of GPS in the background can decrease battery life. Privacy Policy: https://mapway.ai/londontubeios/privacy/ Terms of Use: https://mapway.ai/londontubeios/terms/

About

Citymapper

Plan and navigate your journeys using real-time public transit, ride-sharing, and micro-mobility options. Get turn-by-turn directions, live updates, and compare travel times and costs across various modes of transport.

Highlights
  • Real-time trip planning
  • Turn-by-turn navigation
  • Live wait times and ETAs
  • Integration with ride-sharing and bike-sharing
  • Personalized alerts for favorite lines
  • Offline map access
Features
Read full description

Instantly compare your travel options in real-time across all transport modes globally! Easily navigate your city with turn-by-turn directions for all your public transportation, walking, cycling and scooter trips. THOUSANDS OF 5 STAR REVIEWS * "This is my favorite transit app. Full-featured and a breeze to use. I really appreciate the Uber integration." * "Only way to get around NYC and Chicago. Easy and accurate. Download this one NOW" * "I love it. It’s the best thing since zippers, peanut and jelly and 1 TB thumb drives" * "Support for the SF Bay Area is particularly impressive because it aggregates all transit systems imaginable (BART, Caltrain, MUNI, VTA, etc.) into one seamless app" FIND THE BEST ROUTE ► Simple trip planning combining all transport modes: bus, subway, train, ferry, cabs, ride share, car share, bike share, e-scooters and walking. Discover routes you never knew existed HIT THE GO BUTTON FOR STEP-BY-STEP DIRECTIONS ► Turn-by-turn navigation for all your transit, walking, personal cycling, bike shares and scooter trips. Choose between 3 different map views, see the charge levels of e-scooters and e-bikes around you, we even help you avoid no-parking zones. We take care of the logistical thinking so you are free to enjoy the ride EXPERIENCE ONE-STOP-SHOP MOBILITY ► Compare cab fares, hail a ride, hop on a shared bike or find the nearest e-scooter all from within the app. Our partners include: Uber, Lyft, JUMP, Lime, Bird, Spin, Skip, Scoot, Citi Bike, JerseryBike, Bluebikes, Indego, CaBi, Divvy, Metro Bike, Breeze, Bay Wheels, Healthy Ride, Relay, BCycle, SA Bike Share, GREENbike, Grid, RTC Bike, BIKETOWN, Biki BEAT THE RUSH HOUR CROWD ► Live wait times and ETA so you'll never miss a bus, train or ferry again. Follow your bus / train as it's approaching on a real-time map, see the best train car to board, get alerted when it's time to get off, and get in and out from the best exit at any subway / train station PERSONALIZE YOUR CITY ► Save Home, Work and your go-to stops or stations for lightning fast trip planning. Subscribe to your favorite subway, train, bus or ferry line for automatic disruption, delay, and status alerts GET SOCIAL ► Share your live trip: let friends follow your live trip to know when you'll arrive. Share any location or address: one tap for others to get directions TRAVEL OFFLINE ► Access offline the official NYC subway map, Manhattan bus map, Brooklyn bus map, Queens bus map, DC metro map, Muni Metro map, and more CITY COVERAGE ► New York City | Chicago | Los Angeles | San Francisco | Washington DC | Boston | Philadelphia | Seattle | Miami | Atlanta | Portland | Denver | Baltimore | San Diego | Minneapolis | Houston | Phoenix | Dallas | Las Vegas | Pittsburgh | Honolulu | Salt Lake City | San Antonio | St. Louis | Cleveland | Austin + Many more worldwide! See the full list and vote for the next one in the app or at https://citymapper.com/cities TRANSIT AGENCIES ► We use open data from transit agencies in the cities we cover, including: MTA | CTA | LA Metro | MBTA | WMATA | SEPTA | NJ Transit | Muni | BART | King Bus | MARTA | LIRR | RTD | TriMet | Metro-North Railroad | PATH | Houston METRO | San Diego MTS | Miami-Dade Transit | Metro Transit | METRA | RTC Bus | TheBus | Port Authority | DART | AC Transit | Sound Transit | UTA | OCTA | VIA | PTD | Metro Transit | RTA | Capital Metro | Broward County Transit Division | NY Waterway Ferries | Washington State Ferries | LBT | Nassau Inter County Express (NICE)| Valley Metro | Metrolink | Santa Monica Big Blue Bus (BBB) KEEP IN TOUCH ► If you have questions or feedback or something we may have missed in your city email us at support@citymapper.com Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Citymapper Privacy Policy: https://citymapper.com/privacy Terms of Service: https://citymapper.com/terms

Screenshots

Tube Map4 screens
Citymapper4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Citymapper at 76% against Tube Map's 41%. Citymapper also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.7) and chart position (#19 vs #185). 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. Tube Map sells 23 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and Citymapper sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Citymapper holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Citymapper has 108K ratings behind it against 19K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 41% of Tube Map's written reviews are positive against 76% of Citymapper's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tube Map ships an update every 3 weeks, Citymapper every 10 days. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Tube Map versus Citymapper: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTube MapCitymapper
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (19K ratings)4.9 (108K ratings) — better
Positive reviews40.6% of reviews75.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings19K108K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 10 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#185#19 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, Apple Watch
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size206 MB292 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperMapway Inc.Citymapper Limited

Customer experience

Tube Map

All ratings18,721 ratings
Positive93.0%
Neutral2.8%
Negative4.3%
Written reviews721 reviews
Positive40.6%
Neutral4.6%
Negative54.8%

Citymapper

All ratings108,342 ratings
Positive97.2%
Neutral1.2%
Negative1.6%
Written reviews1,754 reviews
Positive75.9%
Neutral6.0%
Negative18.1%

User reviews

Tube Map

From 19K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent for navigating London
  • 🗺️ Helpful offline map
  • ⏱️ Accurate route planning
  • 📍 Highlights nearby landmarks
  • 👍 Easy to use

Room to improve

  • 💸 Aggressive monetization with ads
  • 🔍 Lack of transparency around premium features
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
  • 🗺️ Outdated map information
  • 🤔 Confusing route suggestions

Citymapper

From 108K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent navigation
  • 👍 User-friendly interface
  • 🚇 Comprehensive public transport information
  • 🗺️ Accurate route planning
  • ⏱️ Real-time updates

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Inaccurate schedule information
  • 🔧 Unreliable live updates
  • 🚧 Limited coverage in some cities
  • 💰 Paywall for basic features
  • 🔋 High battery consumption

Bugs and requests

Tube Map

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching between landscape and portrait modes
  • Incorrect station information and routing
  • Inability to remove ads even after purchasing premium version

Requested features

4 requests
  • Integration with public transport payment options
  • More customization options for the map
  • Real-time service updates and alerts
  • Improved accessibility features

Citymapper

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Delayed transit arrival notifications
  • Incorrect route suggestions
  • Glitches when switching between cities

Requested features

5 requests
  • Offline mode support
  • Customizable route preferences
  • Integration with other transit apps
  • Improved accessibility features
  • Better multimodal transportation options

In-app purchases

23 purchases

Tube Map

Subscriptions16
  • Premium Weekly$1.997 Days
  • Unlimited Access$3.991 Month
  • Premium Monthly$3.991 Month
Show 13 more
  • Premium Monthly2 Months trial$3.991 Month
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$5.997 Days
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$6.997 Days
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$7.997 Days
  • Remove Ads Yearly$7.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access$9.991 Year
  • Premium Yearly$9.991 Year
  • Premium Yearly + Trial3 Days trial$9.991 Year
  • Premium Yearly1 Year trial$9.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$9.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Unlimited Access3 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time7
  • First and Last Tube Times$3.99
  • Remove Ads$3.99
  • Tube Exits$3.99
Show 4 more
  • Exclusive Bulk Saver Offer!$6.99
  • Bulk Saver - BEST VALUE!$9.99
  • Unlimited Access$24.99
  • Premium Lifetime$24.99
3 purchases

Citymapper

Subscriptions3
  • Citymapper CLUB7 Days trial$1.491 Month
  • Citymapper CLUB7 Days trial$9.991 Year
  • Citymapper CLUB+$99.991 Year

Questions

Is Tube Map free?
Tube Map is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Citymapper free?
Citymapper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Tube Map or Citymapper?
Citymapper is rated higher. Tube Map averages 4.7 out of 5 from 19K ratings, while Citymapper averages 4.9 from 108K ratings.
Do Tube Map or Citymapper have ads?
Both Tube Map and Citymapper show ads.
Which is updated more often, Tube Map or Citymapper?
Tube Map ships an update every 3 weeks, and Citymapper every 10 days. Most recently, Tube Map was updated on September 24, 2026 and Citymapper on September 24, 2026.
Which is more popular, Tube Map or Citymapper?
Tube Map currently peaks at #185 in the App Store charts, and Citymapper at #19. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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