Comparison

Citymapper vs CTA Transit Tracker

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

Head to head
About

Citymapper

Compare real-time travel options across all public transit, walking, cycling, and ride-sharing services. Get turn-by-turn directions, live wait times, and personalized alerts for your journeys. Seamlessly integrate ride-hailing and bike-sharing services for a complete mobility experience.

Highlights
  • Real-time transit comparisons
  • Turn-by-turn navigation
  • Integrated ride-sharing
  • Live wait times and ETAs
  • Personalized disruption alerts
  • Offline map access
Features
Read full description

Instantly compare your travel options in real-time across all transport modes globally! Easily navigate your city with turn-by-turn directions for all your public transportation, walking, cycling and scooter trips. THOUSANDS OF 5 STAR REVIEWS * "This is my favorite transit app. Full-featured and a breeze to use. I really appreciate the Uber integration." * "Only way to get around NYC and Chicago. Easy and accurate. Download this one NOW" * "I love it. It’s the best thing since zippers, peanut and jelly and 1 TB thumb drives" * "Support for the SF Bay Area is particularly impressive because it aggregates all transit systems imaginable (BART, Caltrain, MUNI, VTA, etc.) into one seamless app" FIND THE BEST ROUTE ► Simple trip planning combining all transport modes: bus, subway, train, ferry, cabs, ride share, car share, bike share, e-scooters and walking. Discover routes you never knew existed HIT THE GO BUTTON FOR STEP-BY-STEP DIRECTIONS ► Turn-by-turn navigation for all your transit, walking, personal cycling, bike shares and scooter trips. Choose between 3 different map views, see the charge levels of e-scooters and e-bikes around you, we even help you avoid no-parking zones. We take care of the logistical thinking so you are free to enjoy the ride EXPERIENCE ONE-STOP-SHOP MOBILITY ► Compare cab fares, hail a ride, hop on a shared bike or find the nearest e-scooter all from within the app. Our partners include: Uber, Lyft, JUMP, Lime, Bird, Spin, Skip, Scoot, Citi Bike, JerseryBike, Bluebikes, Indego, CaBi, Divvy, Metro Bike, Breeze, Bay Wheels, Healthy Ride, Relay, BCycle, SA Bike Share, GREENbike, Grid, RTC Bike, BIKETOWN, Biki BEAT THE RUSH HOUR CROWD ► Live wait times and ETA so you'll never miss a bus, train or ferry again. Follow your bus / train as it's approaching on a real-time map, see the best train car to board, get alerted when it's time to get off, and get in and out from the best exit at any subway / train station PERSONALIZE YOUR CITY ► Save Home, Work and your go-to stops or stations for lightning fast trip planning. Subscribe to your favorite subway, train, bus or ferry line for automatic disruption, delay, and status alerts GET SOCIAL ► Share your live trip: let friends follow your live trip to know when you'll arrive. Share any location or address: one tap for others to get directions TRAVEL OFFLINE ► Access offline the official NYC subway map, Manhattan bus map, Brooklyn bus map, Queens bus map, DC metro map, Muni Metro map, and more CITY COVERAGE ► New York City | Chicago | Los Angeles | San Francisco | Washington DC | Boston | Philadelphia | Seattle | Miami | Atlanta | Portland | Denver | Baltimore | San Diego | Minneapolis | Houston | Phoenix | Dallas | Las Vegas | Pittsburgh | Honolulu | Salt Lake City | San Antonio | St. Louis | Cleveland | Austin + Many more worldwide! See the full list and vote for the next one in the app or at https://citymapper.com/cities TRANSIT AGENCIES ► We use open data from transit agencies in the cities we cover, including: MTA | CTA | LA Metro | MBTA | WMATA | SEPTA | NJ Transit | Muni | BART | King Bus | MARTA | LIRR | RTD | TriMet | Metro-North Railroad | PATH | Houston METRO | San Diego MTS | Miami-Dade Transit | Metro Transit | METRA | RTC Bus | TheBus | Port Authority | DART | AC Transit | Sound Transit | UTA | OCTA | VIA | PTD | Metro Transit | RTA | Capital Metro | Broward County Transit Division | NY Waterway Ferries | Washington State Ferries | LBT | Nassau Inter County Express (NICE)| Valley Metro | Metrolink | Santa Monica Big Blue Bus (BBB) KEEP IN TOUCH ► If you have questions or feedback or something we may have missed in your city email us at support@citymapper.com Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Citymapper Privacy Policy: https://citymapper.com/privacy Terms of Service: https://citymapper.com/terms

About

CTA Transit Tracker

Track Chicago Transit Authority buses in real-time. Get live location and arrival information for your routes and stops. Save your favorite stops for quick access to upcoming bus times.

Highlights
  • Real-time CTA bus tracking
  • Live arrival predictions
  • Save favorite stops
  • User-friendly interface
  • Fast information retrieval
Features
Read full description

"CTA Transit Tracker" is a dedicated real-time bus tracking app designed for residents and visitors in the Chicago area. This app allows you to effortlessly access real-time location and arrival information for Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) buses. Simply choose your route, direction, and stop to view the next bus arrivals. Additionally, you can save your frequently used stops for quick, one-touch access to upcoming bus arrivals. Key Features: Real-time tracking for CTA buses Save an unlimited number of favorite stops User-friendly interface Fast and efficient information retrieval CTA Transit Live Tracker utilizes data feeds from CTA Bus Time, ensuring accurate and reliable public transit information to enhance your commuting experience in Chicago. If you have any questions, please contact email: wuchaoyu1991@gmail.com

Screenshots

Citymapper4 screens
CTA Transit Tracker4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CTA Transit Tracker at none against Citymapper's 3. CTA Transit Tracker also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Citymapper's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (110K vs 233). On price, ads 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. Citymapper sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. CTA Transit Tracker asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Citymapper holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Citymapper has 110K ratings behind it against 233, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Citymapper's written reviews are positive against 67% of CTA Transit Tracker's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Citymapper ships an update every 9 days, CTA Transit Tracker every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Citymapper versus CTA Transit Tracker: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCitymapperCTA Transit Tracker
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (110K ratings) — better4.6 (233 ratings)
Positive reviews76.0% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings110K — better233
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterEvery 3 months
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
Best chart rank#21 — better—
DevicesiPhone, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size297 MB5 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperCitymapper Limited婧嘉 郭

Customer experience

Citymapper

All ratings110,260 ratings
Positive97.1%
Neutral1.2%
Negative1.7%
Written reviews1,899 reviews
Positive76.0%
Neutral6.1%
Negative17.9%

CTA Transit Tracker

All ratings233 ratings
Positive90.6%
Neutral3.0%
Negative6.4%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

Bugs and requests

Citymapper

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Delayed transit arrival notifications
  • Incorrect route suggestions
  • Glitches when switching between cities

Requested features

5 requests
  • Offline mode support
  • Customizable route preferences
  • Integration with other transit apps
  • Improved accessibility features
  • Better multimodal transportation options

CTA Transit Tracker

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Citymapper

Subscriptions3
  • Citymapper CLUB7 Days trial$1.491 Month
  • Citymapper CLUB7 Days trial$9.991 Year
  • Citymapper CLUB+$99.991 Year
None

CTA Transit Tracker

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Citymapper free?
Citymapper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CTA Transit Tracker free?
CTA Transit Tracker is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Citymapper or CTA Transit Tracker?
Citymapper is rated higher. Citymapper averages 4.9 out of 5 from 110K ratings, while CTA Transit Tracker averages 4.6 from 233 ratings.
Do Citymapper or CTA Transit Tracker have ads?
Both Citymapper and CTA Transit Tracker show ads.
Which is updated more often, Citymapper or CTA Transit Tracker?
Citymapper ships an update every 9 days, and CTA Transit Tracker every 3 months. Most recently, Citymapper was updated on November 1, 2026 and CTA Transit Tracker on October 30, 2026.

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