Comparison

NW Ferry vs myORCA

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

Head to head
About

NW Ferry

Plan your Washington State Ferry trips with real-time schedules, live vessel tracking, and service alerts. This app provides terminal cameras and drive-up space estimates to help you stay informed and ahead of delays.

Highlights
  • Real-time schedules & fares
  • Live vessel tracking
  • Service alerts
  • Terminal cameras
  • Drive-up space estimates
  • Favorites & recents
  • Apple Watch app & widgets
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Plan your Washington State Ferry trip in seconds. NW Ferry gives you real-time schedules, live vessel tracking, service alerts, terminal cameras, and drive-up space estimates — everything you need, in one fast app. Whether you're a daily commuter or heading to the San Juan Islands for the weekend, NW Ferry keeps you one step ahead at the dock. What you get with NW Ferry: - Real-time schedules & fares: Check upcoming departures, fares, and seasonal schedule changes for every WSF route - Live vessel tracking: Watch ferries cross Puget Sound in real time - Service alerts: Know about delays, cancellations, and route changes before you leave - Terminal cameras: See dock conditions before you drive there - Drive-up space: View estimated vehicle space remaining for upcoming sailings - Favorites & recents: Save your go-to terminal pairs and jump back to recent routes in one tap - Quick route swap: Reverse your departure and arrival terminals in one tap - Apple Watch app & widgets: Check your next sailing from your wrist — with Closest Terminal and Favorite Terminal widgets - Home Screen & CarPlay widgets: See upcoming departures at a glance, including a Favorite Terminal widget for CarPlay Terminals covered: Anacortes, Bainbridge Island, Bremerton, Clinton, Coupeville, Edmonds, Fauntleroy, Friday Harbor, Kingston, Lopez Island, Mukilteo, Orcas Island, Point Defiance, Port Townsend, Seattle, Shaw Island, Sidney B.C., Southworth, Tahlequah, and Vashon Island. NW Ferry requires an internet connection to load live schedule, fare, and vessel data. NW Ferry is an independent app and is not affiliated with WSDOT or Washington State Ferries.

About

myORCA

Manage your Puget Sound transit card for buses, trains, and ferries. Load fares, check balances, and purchase passes on the go. Connect your existing card or order a new one to simplify your commute.

Highlights
  • Load fares instantly
  • Check card balance
  • Manage multiple cards
  • Purchase daily/monthly passes
  • Set up autoloads
  • Connect existing ORCA card
Features
Read full description

ORCA is the Puget Sound’s all-in-one transit card. Use it to ride the bus, train and ferry in the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area. To get started, download the app and create an account. You need an ORCA card to use the myORCA app. You can connect your existing card or order a new card. Now you can manage your ORCA card anywhere, 24/7 with the myORCA app. With the myORCA app, you can: - Load fares instantly - Check your balance - Purchase and manage multiple ORCA cards - Purchase daily or monthly passes - Set up autoloads - And much more! With ORCA, you can pay for trips and transfers on Community Transit, Everett Transit, King County Metro, Kitsap Transit, Pierce Transit, Sound Transit and Washington State Ferries. Some exclusions apply on special trips and Washington State Ferries. To use ORCA, be sure to tap your card on the ORCA card reader on board, on the train platform, or at your stop. Reduced fare programs are available to qualified riders with low incomes, seniors (65+ years), youth (6-18 years), and persons with disabilities. Reduced fare cards work with the myORCA app, call 888-988-6722 / TTY: 711 to find out which card is right for you. This app requires iOS 13 and above.

Screenshots

NW Ferry4 screens
myORCA1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: NW Ferry at 68% against myORCA's 15%. NW Ferry also leads on rating (4.7 vs 2.5) and ads (none vs shown). myORCA's advantage is price (Free vs $1.99) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 6 months). On in-app purchases and device support 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

myORCA is free to download; NW Ferry costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

NW Ferry holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NW Ferry has 2.2K ratings behind it against 384, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of NW Ferry's written reviews are positive against 15% of myORCA's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NW Ferry ships an update every 6 months, myORCA every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 22, 2026.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
NW Ferry versus myORCA: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNW FerrymyORCA
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (2.2K ratings) — better2.5 (384 ratings)
Positive reviews67.6% of reviews — better15.2% of reviews
Number of ratings2.2K — better384
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#199 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS26.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB46 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDurbinwareCentral Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority

Customer experience

NW Ferry

All ratings2,189 ratings
Positive93.0%
Neutral3.8%
Negative3.2%
Written reviews68 reviews
Positive67.6%
Neutral8.8%
Negative23.5%

myORCA

All ratings344 ratings
Positive32.6%
Neutral8.4%
Negative59.0%
Written reviews197 reviews
Positive15.2%
Neutral12.2%
Negative72.6%

User reviews

NW Ferry

From 2.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Accurate and up-to-date
  • 📊 Helpful for planning ferry trips
  • 🔍 Useful camera views
  • 🗓️ Essential for frequent ferry users

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Unreliable data and inaccurate information
  • 🔍 Missing important features like arrival times
  • 💰 Paid app with limited functionality compared to free options
  • 🔄 Slow to update and unresponsive to schedule changes
  • 🔧 Buggy and crashes frequently

myORCA

From 384 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💻 Convenient to manage card on the go
  • ⚡ Instant card reloading
  • 🔍 Ability to view transaction history

Room to improve

  • 🔒 No Apple Wallet/Pay integration
  • 🔑 Frequent log-out issues
  • 🐛 Buggy payment method management
  • 📱 Limited functionality compared to website

Bugs and requests

NW Ferry

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App won't open on Apple Watch
  • Broken links to customer support
  • Inconsistent display of car capacity information

Requested features

5 requests
  • Display full day's schedule instead of just upcoming ferries
  • Allow customization of routes/terminals shown
  • Add real-time updates for delayed/late ferries
  • Integrate ticket purchasing/reservation functionality
  • Improve widget and 3D Touch functionality

myORCA

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login credentials not recognized
  • Payment method addition/removal not working
  • Recent activity data displaying incorrectly

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add Apple Wallet/Pay support
  • Implement Face ID/Touch ID login
  • Improve app stability and reliability
  • Expand functionality to match website

In-app purchases

None

NW Ferry

No in-app purchases

None

myORCA

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is NW Ferry free?
NW Ferry costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is myORCA free?
myORCA is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, NW Ferry or myORCA?
NW Ferry is rated higher. NW Ferry averages 4.7 out of 5 from 2.2K ratings, while myORCA averages 2.5 from 384 ratings.
Do NW Ferry or myORCA have ads?
myORCA shows ads; NW Ferry does not.
Which is updated more often, NW Ferry or myORCA?
NW Ferry ships an update every 6 months, and myORCA every 2 months. Most recently, NW Ferry was updated on October 22, 2026 and myORCA on October 22, 2026.

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