BOS vs GoStix™ Plus
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
BOS
Report non-emergency neighborhood issues in Boston, such as potholes and graffiti. Track the status of your reports and view active issues on a city map. This app helps residents improve their communities by streamlining communication with city services.
- Report neighborhood issues
- Track report status
- View active reports on map
- Submit non-emergency requests
- Community improvement tool
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BOS:311 enables Boston's residents to improve their neighborhoods by reporting non-emergency issues in their communities, like potholes and graffiti. Reports are automatically fed into the City of Boston’s work order system to track and assign them to City staff. Through the app, you can follow the status of your request, as well as the statuses of other reports in the City. There’s even a map to get an easy overview of active reports in Boston.
GoStix™ Plus
This app quantifies analytes by analyzing the intensity of bands on a lateral flow cassette. Scan the cassette with your device to get rapid results correlating to analyte levels. It's a research tool for life science applications.
- Lateral flow assay analysis
- Analyte quantification
- Band intensity correlation
- Smartphone scanning
- Rapid results
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GoStix Plus assays are life science research tools designed for rapid quantification of diverse analytes using a simple, lateral flow-based method. 10 minutes after applying your sample, a band will appear in the window of the GoStix Plus cassette at an intensity that correlates with the amount of analyte present. The cassette is then scanned using a smartphone camera or equivalent mobile device running the GoStix Plus app, which will then quantify the level of analyte in the sample based on the intensity of the band. To learn more about GoStix Plus assays and the GoStix Plus app, visit our website.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: BOS at none against GoStix™ Plus's shown. BOS also leads on rating (2.6 vs 2.3) and review sentiment (36% vs 19%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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.
BOS holds the better App Store score, 2.6 against 2.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 80 and 27 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 36% of BOS's written reviews are positive against 19% of GoStix™ Plus's.
BOS ships an update every 4 months, GoStix™ Plus every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on August 16, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | BOS | GoStix™ Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.6 (80 ratings) — better | 2.3 (27 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 36.2% of reviews — better | 18.8% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 80 — better | 27 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.4 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 26 MB | 61 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | City of Boston | Takara Bio USA, Inc. |
Customer experience
BOS
GoStix™ Plus
Bugs and requests
BOS
Reported bugs
20 issues- Reports opened for months with no action
- App doesn't do its job or city departments don't
- Reports go unanswered for months
- App doesn't recognize certain areas
- New version is slower and less effective
Show 15 moreShow fewer
- Map feature is broken or unreliable
- Cases never close or are not resolved
- App is clunky and difficult to use
- App crashes upon opening
- App stops working after iOS updates
- App shows 'updates failed'
- App button for creating new requests not working
- App opens multiple reports at once
- Clicking on map pins opens an unclosable banner
- App stops showing correct trash pickup days
- App is broken when trying to attach a picture
- App is broken after new update
- Impossible to create a new report for months
- Server registration fails
- App crashes on older iOS versions
Requested features
13 requests- Allow users to comment on or corroborate reports
- Add ability to delete a report
- Add feature to report speeding
- Make 'recent reports' tab accessible for voiceover users
- Add more categories for reporting (e.g., cyclists, bike lanes)
Show 8 moreShow fewer
- Increase app awareness through ads, especially in underserved communities
- Improve filtering options for reports on the map
- Allow users to see if an issue has already been reported
- Revert to previous app version
- Fix bugs and add new features instead of completely changing everything
- Add dark mode option
- Improve map accuracy for address location
- Add option to report crimes (currently only for non-crimes)
GoStix™ Plus
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
BOS
No in-app purchases
GoStix™ Plus
No in-app purchases
