Comparison

Amtrak vs MBTA mTicket

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

Head to head
About

Amtrak

Book train tickets, manage your account, and access travel information on the go. Show your eTicket digitally and save payment details for quick purchases. Find station info and check train status easily.

Highlights
  • Digital eTickets
  • Ticket purchasing
  • Train status checks
  • Station information
  • Account management
  • Apple Wallet integration
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Discover the convenience of traveling with Amtrak. With the Amtrak app you can get simple and intuitive access to all the travel information you need, whenever you need it. • Show your eTicket while onboard, including multi-ride and monthly passes - no need to print • Purchase one-way, roundtrip, multi-ride and monthly tickets with dollars or Amtrak Guest Rewards points • Check train status • Find station information • Edit and manage your account profile • Save credit cards for quick checkout • Send your eTicket to Apple Wallet • And so much more... With the Amtrak app, you can do it all right from your smart device.

About

MBTA mTicket

Purchase Commuter Rail and Ferry tickets instantly from your smartphone. This app acts as a mobile ticket office, allowing you to buy single, round-trip, and 10-ride tickets securely. Your phone becomes your ticket, and purchased tickets are stored within the app for easy access and transfer.

Highlights
  • Secure ticket purchasing
  • Smartphone as ticket
  • Ticket transferability
  • View schedules and alerts
  • Purchase 10-ride tickets
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Buy a ticket anywhere, anytime - in seconds. The Official MBTA mTicket App is like a ticket office in your pocket. Your smartphone is your ticket! With the new MBTA mTicket App for Commuter Rail and Ferry, you can securely purchase MBTA Commuter Rail and Ferry Single Ride, Round-Trip, and 10 Ride tickets in seconds. Purchasing a ticket is easy: select your trip & ticket type, enter your payment card information and your smartphone is your ticket! Never lose your ticket again! Once you purchase your ticket, it will always stick in My Tickets. Need to replace your phone? No problem -- we can easily transfer any purchased ticket. Want to check your schedule or service updates? You can check schedules and T-Alerts right from inside the app! We are making the app better everyday! Let us know what you think at www.mbta.com/mticket Features: ● Secure ticket purchasing with your credit or debit card ● Your smartphone is your ticket ● Never worry about zones again -- just select your origin and destination to purchase ● Never lose your ticket -- tickets can be easily transferred if your phone is lost or stolen ● Check Commuter Rail schedules, maps, and service alerts ● Brand new offers from JustRide and the MBTA

Screenshots

Amtrak4 screens
MBTA mTicket4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Amtrak at 4.7 against MBTA mTicket's 2.6. Amtrak also leads on ratings volume (221K vs 644) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). MBTA mTicket's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, review sentiment, 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Amtrak holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Amtrak has 221K ratings behind it against 644, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of Amtrak's written reviews are positive against 27% of MBTA mTicket's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Amtrak ships an update monthly, MBTA mTicket every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Amtrak versus MBTA mTicket: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAmtrakMBTA mTicket
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (221K ratings) — better2.6 (644 ratings)
Positive reviews30.5% of reviews — better27.4% of reviews
Number of ratings221K — better644
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#19 — better#103
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.015.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size145 MB79 MB
Age rating+44+
DeveloperAmtrakMassachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Customer experience

Amtrak

All ratings220,965 ratings
Positive91.5%
Neutral2.2%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews1,141 reviews
Positive30.5%
Neutral8.3%
Negative61.2%

MBTA mTicket

All ratings644 ratings
Positive36.0%
Neutral8.4%
Negative55.6%
Written reviews124 reviews
Positive27.4%
Neutral10.5%
Negative62.1%

User reviews

Amtrak

From 221K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to navigate
  • 👍 Helpful for tracking delays and notifications
  • 🚂 Positive travel experience overall
  • 💻 Reliable for booking and managing trips

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and errors
  • 🕰️ Lack of real-time updates on train status
  • 📱 Unintuitive and confusing app interface
  • 💳 Issues with booking and payment functionality

MBTA mTicket

From 644 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great app and reliable
  • 👍 Clean and simple, easy to use
  • 👍 Functional and works as needed
  • 🚀 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 👍 Works fine, no issues experienced

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Glitchy at best, frequently crashes
  • 🐛 Buggy, payment processing issues
  • 🐛 Unreliable, app often doesn't work
  • 🐛 Broken features, poor UX
  • 🐛 Payments not working, app unusable

Bugs and requests

Amtrak

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inability to modify or cancel reservations
  • Inconsistent behavior when booking multi-leg trips
  • Problems with logging in and accessing account information

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more detailed train information (amenities, quiet cars, etc.)
  • Improve trip planning and itinerary management features
  • Integrate with mobile wallets for easier ticketing
  • Provide better communication during service disruptions

MBTA mTicket

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login issues, unable to create account
  • Tickets disappearing, money stolen
  • Brightness settings not resetting
  • Incompatible with older devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for Apple Wallet
  • Integrate with mobile wallets
  • Improve navigation and ticket management
  • Add real-time train schedule updates
  • Allow changing account details

In-app purchases

None

Amtrak

No in-app purchases

None

MBTA mTicket

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Amtrak free?
Amtrak is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MBTA mTicket free?
MBTA mTicket is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Amtrak or MBTA mTicket?
Amtrak is rated higher. Amtrak averages 4.7 out of 5 from 221K ratings, while MBTA mTicket averages 2.6 from 644 ratings.
Do Amtrak or MBTA mTicket have ads?
Neither Amtrak nor MBTA mTicket shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Amtrak or MBTA mTicket?
Amtrak ships an update monthly, and MBTA mTicket every 3 months. Most recently, Amtrak was updated on October 19, 2026 and MBTA mTicket on October 16, 2026.
Which is more popular, Amtrak or MBTA mTicket?
Amtrak currently peaks at #19 in the App Store charts, and MBTA mTicket at #103. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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