# Open The Books vs BillBlaster

The clearest difference is review sentiment: BillBlaster at 76% against Open The Books's 28%. BillBlaster also leads on rating (4.7 vs 2.5) and ads (none vs shown). On price, ratings volume, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

BillBlaster holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 88 and 159 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 28% of Open The Books's written reviews are positive against 76% of BillBlaster's.

Open The Books ships an update every 6 months, BillBlaster weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Open The Books | BillBlaster |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [2.5 (88 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/open-the-books/id485809631/reviews) | **[4.7 (159 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/billblaster/id6470323595/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 88 | **159** |
| Positive reviews | 28.4% of reviews | **75.6% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | **Free** |
| Size | 6 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.2 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [American Transparency](https://appshunter.io/developer/939816911) | [Grace Chong](https://appshunter.io/developer/1713427150) |

## What reviewers say

### Open The Books

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/open-the-books/id485809631)

Explore detailed U.S. government spending data, including contracts, grants, and salaries for federal, state, and local employees. Hyper-localize searches by GPS, zip code, or name to find specific financial information.

**Highlights:** Search U.S. government checkbook data, View federal employee salaries and bonuses, Access state checkbook spending, Find local government public salaries, Hyper-localize searches by GPS or zip code, Search by vendor or employee name

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### BillBlaster

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/billblaster/id6470323595)

This app provides direct access to information about your congressional district and representatives. Easily find contact details, social media, and even call them directly to share your opinion.

**Highlights:** District information and map, Representative profiles and contact details, Direct dial to representatives, Access to senator and local representative info, Twitter information for representatives

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Efficiently connects users with representatives
- 👍 Easy to use and navigate
- 💡 Great tool for political engagement
- 👍 Simple and powerful interface
- 🚀 Allows active participation in republic

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Data is sometimes outdated
- 🐛 Lacks contact info not readily available elsewhere
- 🔒 Potential privacy concerns due to data harvesting
- 🐛 Not compatible with older iPhones
- 🐛 App does not work on iPad

**Reported bugs**

- Does not work on iPad
- Doesn't work on iPhone 8
- App will not fully open (circle of death)
- App keeps spinning
- Nothing shows up on iPhone

**Requested features**

- Send messages to multiple Senators/Representatives at once
- Include state senators and representatives
- Update data to include results of recent elections
- Add voting history on bills
- Include local reps


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Open The Books free?

Open The Books is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is BillBlaster free?

BillBlaster is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Open The Books or BillBlaster?

BillBlaster is rated higher. Open The Books averages 2.5 out of 5 from 88 ratings, while BillBlaster averages 4.7 from 159 ratings.

### Do Open The Books or BillBlaster have ads?

Open The Books shows ads; BillBlaster does not.

### Which is updated more often, Open The Books or BillBlaster?

Open The Books ships an update every 6 months, and BillBlaster weekly. Most recently, Open The Books was updated on October 23, 2026 and BillBlaster on October 20, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*