# NYC 311 vs ARKA Explain

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: NYC 311 at none against ARKA Explain's 2. On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. ARKA Explain sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. NYC 311 asks for nothing beyond the download.

NYC 311 ships an update monthly, ARKA Explain fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 9, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | NYC 311 | ARKA Explain |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[3.1 (425 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nyc-311/id324897619/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **425** | — |
| Positive reviews | 19.4% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 102 MB | 4 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone | **iPhone, iPad** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Department of Information Technology And Telecomm](https://appshunter.io/developer/324897622) | [ARKA Systems LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1873596855) |

## What reviewers say

### NYC 311

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nyc-311/id324897619)

Access New York City government services and information on the go. Report neighborhood issues, track service requests, and stay updated on city services like parking and trash collection.

**Highlights:** Access city government services, Report neighborhood issues, Track service requests, Get updates on parking and trash, Receive schedule change notifications

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Wallet, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🙏🏾 Good App
- 👍 Alternate side parking alerts
- 👍 App is cool
- 👍 Categories are well thought out
- 👍 Convenient to use

**What reviewers complain about**

- 😞 Complaints get closed with no action
- 😞 Complaints not addressed properly
- 😞 Difficult to submit complaints
- 😞 Doesn't allow reporting of all issues
- 😞 Ineffective in getting issues resolved

**Reported bugs**

- Address entry doesn't work
- App crashes or freezes
- App doesn't open after update
- Geolocation not working
- Unexpected errors

**Requested features**

- Add ability to report issues without address
- Add bulk export function for tickets filed
- Add option to attach photos/videos to complaints
- Add support for third-party keyboards
- Improve location identification and mapping


### ARKA Explain

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/arka-explain/id6758572385)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Annual | $29.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is NYC 311 free?

NYC 311 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is ARKA Explain free?

ARKA Explain is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do NYC 311 or ARKA Explain have ads?

Neither NYC 311 nor ARKA Explain shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, NYC 311 or ARKA Explain?

NYC 311 ships an update monthly, and ARKA Explain fortnightly. Most recently, NYC 311 was updated on September 21, 2026 and ARKA Explain on September 9, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*