Comparison

CrossCountry vs Guide.AI

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

Head to head
About

CrossCountry

Easily book train tickets and check live train times across the National Rail network. Get the best prices directly, apply Railcards and NUS discounts, and enjoy convenient travel planning.

Highlights
  • Book train tickets
  • Live train times
  • Real-time running information
  • No booking or credit card fees
  • Use Railcard and NUS discounts
  • Extensive network coverage
Features
Read full description

Book your train tickets quickly and easily with CrossCountry’s app. You can look up live train times, check real-time running information and buy your train tickets for any train on the National Rail network. It’s free to download, and we won’t charge you a booking or credit card fee. Buy with us direct to get the best price on your CrossCountry tickets, use your Railcard, and exclusive NUS discount on CrossCountry Advance train tickets! About CrossCountry About CrossCountry
 CrossCountry is a train operating company, running long distance train services in England, Scotland and Wales. The CrossCountry network is the most extensive in Britain, from Aberdeen to Penzance, and South Wales to East Anglia. Key destinations served to include Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Leeds, Bristol, Cambridge, Reading and Stansted and Birmingham International airports. CrossCountry's fast and frequent train services feature at-seat catering, quiet zones, and First Class. Visit our social media channels to stay up to date: https://www.facebook.com/CrossCountrytrains/ https://twitter.com/CrossCountryUK https://www.instagram.com/crosscountrytrains/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/282803/

About

Guide.AI

Discover landmarks with audio guides that play directly from your device's earpiece speaker. Explore attractions like museums and aquariums with detailed narration, no headphones required. More locations are being added regularly.

Highlights
  • Audio guides for landmarks
  • Plays audio from earpiece speaker
  • No headphones needed
  • Multiple attraction types
  • Regularly updated content
Features
Read full description

Guide.AI is the Landmark Audio Guide Platform. Audio guides currently available include Bristol Aquarium, Canterbury Roman Museum and the Sir Richard Burton Mausoleum, with more on their way! Don't worry, you don't need to have earphones with you to use this app. The audio can be easily set to play out of the earpiece speaker, just like a traditional audio guide.

Screenshots

CrossCountry4 screens
Guide.AI4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Guide.AI at 5.0 against CrossCountry's 4.3. Guide.AI also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.6). CrossCountry's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and review sentiment (33% vs 0%). On price, update cadence, monetization model 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

Both are free to download. Guide.AI sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. CrossCountry asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Guide.AI holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CrossCountry has 15 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 33% of CrossCountry's written reviews are positive against 0% of Guide.AI's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
CrossCountry versus Guide.AI: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCrossCountryGuide.AI
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (15 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews32.8% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings15 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.612.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size99 MB41 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCrossCountry TrainsGuide.AI Ltd

Customer experience

CrossCountry

All ratings15 ratings
Positive86.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative13.3%
Written reviews137 reviews
Positive32.8%
Neutral3.6%
Negative63.5%

Guide.AI

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

In-app purchases

None

CrossCountry

No in-app purchases

10 purchases

Guide.AI

One-time10
  • Band 1 Audio Guide$1.99
  • Band 2 Audio Guide$2.99
  • Band 8 Audio Guide$9.99
Show 7 more
  • Band 10 Audio Guide$9.99
  • Band 9 Audio Guide$9.99
  • Band 11 Audio Guide$11.99
  • Band 12 Audio Guide$12.99
  • Band 13 Audio Guide$14.99
  • Band 14 Audio Guide$14.99
  • Band 15 Audio Guide$14.99

Questions

Is CrossCountry free?
CrossCountry is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Guide.AI free?
Guide.AI is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, CrossCountry or Guide.AI?
Guide.AI is rated higher. CrossCountry averages 4.3 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while Guide.AI averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do CrossCountry or Guide.AI have ads?
CrossCountry shows ads; Guide.AI does not.
Which is updated more often, CrossCountry or Guide.AI?
CrossCountry ships an update every 3 weeks, and Guide.AI every 3 weeks. Most recently, CrossCountry was updated on October 17, 2026 and Guide.AI on October 12, 2026.

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