CrossCountry vs Pulhams
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Book train tickets
- Live train times
- Real-time running information
- No booking or credit card fees
- Use Railcard and NUS discounts
- Extensive network coverage
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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/
Pulhams
Plan your bus journeys, view live departures, and purchase mobile tickets securely. Access timetables, save favorite routes, and stay updated on service disruptions for easy travel across Gloucestershire.
- Mobile ticket purchase
- Live departure tracking
- Route and journey planning
- Digital timetables
- Favorite routes saving
- Service disruption alerts
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Our new app has everything you need to get around Gloucestershire with Pulhams. It’s packed full of everything you’ll need to get mobile on the bus. Mobile Tickets: Purchase mobile tickets securely with Apple Pay or a debit/credit card and show the driver when boarding - no more searching for cash! Live Departures: Browse and view bus stops on the map, explore upcoming departures, or check out the routes from a stop to see where you could travel next. Journey Planning: Plan your commute, trip to the shops or night out with friends. It’s now even easier to plan ahead with Pulhams. Timetables: We’ve squeezed all of our routes and timetables into the palm of your hand. Favourites: You can quickly save your favourite Departure Boards, Timetables and Journeys, with quick access from one convenient menu. Disruptions: You’ll be able to keep up to date with service changes directly from our disruption feeds inside the app. As always, we welcome your feedback. You can send it to us via the app.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Pulhams at 5.0 against CrossCountry's 4.3. Pulhams also leads on ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). CrossCountry's advantage is ratings volume (15 vs 5). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Pulhams holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 15 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of CrossCountry's written reviews are positive against 50% of Pulhams's.
CrossCountry ships an update every 3 weeks, Pulhams fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CrossCountry | Pulhams |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (15 ratings) | 5.0 (5 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 32.8% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 15 — better | 5 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 99 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | CrossCountry Trains | The Go-Ahead Group plc |
Customer experience
CrossCountry
Pulhams
In-app purchases
CrossCountry
No in-app purchases
Pulhams
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is CrossCountry free?
Is Pulhams free?
Which has better reviews, CrossCountry or Pulhams?
Do CrossCountry or Pulhams have ads?
Which is updated more often, CrossCountry or Pulhams?
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