DC Next Bus vs DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
DC Next Bus
This app provides real-time bus and metro predictions for Washington D.C. transit. It identifies nearby WMATA and Montgomery County Ride On stops, offering next arrival times. Users can also view bus routes and save favorite locations.
- Real-time bus and train predictions
- Identifies WMATA and Ride On stops
- Location services or map navigation
- View WMATA bus routes
- Save favorite stops
- Apple Watch app and complications
Read full descriptionHide full description
New updated and modernized version of your favorite DC transit app! Now with an Apple Watch app and complications! A simple, but straightforward, location based application that identifies WMATA bus stop, WMATA metro stations, and Montgomery County Ride On bus stops with next bus and train predictions. Location can be determined by location services, or by your own map navigation. View WMATA bus routes and save your favorite stops. Bus and Metro information provided by the WMATA API. Montgomery County Ride On bus information provided by the Ride On API.
DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget
Navigate the Washington D.C. metro system with real-time train predictions and live incident updates. Personalize your commute with favorite stations and a home screen widget for at-a-glance information. Locate nearby stations and view the latest metro map.
- Real-time train predictions
- Home screen widget
- Favorite stations
- Nearby station locator
- Live incident alerts
- WMATA metro map
Read full descriptionHide full description
Upgrade your metro experience with DC Metro Buddy and discover a world where using the Washington D.C. metro system is easier than ever. Streamline your daily commute with a live updated home screen and in app widget rail predictions - with predictions as far out as 1 hour out for you to have a pulse on your day. Whether you’re a local or a tourist visiting the city for the first time, this app is for you to navigate the area using the WMATA DC metro! FEATURES - View arrivals and departure train predictions accurately in real time for all train stations in the DC region with support for all WMATA metro lines BY direction! Gone is your headache in having to filter out the trains heading in the opposite direction - Personalize your Summary page of favorite metro stations to help keep you on track at a glance - Favorite your most frequently used DC metro stations for your daily commute - Locate nearby stations with the tap of a button - optional with GPS - Find out live DC Metro rail/train incidents and elevator outages to help you get a pulse on any disruptions during your daily commute - See the latest WMATA DC metro rail map - just at your fingertips WIDGET - Real-time DC Metro rail predictions right on your home screen widget for your favorite stations to enhance your commute. - Create as many home screen widgets to help track different DC metro stations and paths along your commute to help get a higher level pulse of the train predictions - Try out the widget for free for 14 days and unlock unlimited use with a monthly or yearly subscription. If a subscription is not preferred, the widget may be used for free by watching a daily ad as well. Upgrade to a subscription to enable the ability to create unlimited widgets, display favorited DC metro station summaries, and remove all ads within the DC Metro Buddy app. PRIVACY - We never track, save, or share your location data - your location is for your eyes only Information is provided by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) but this app is not affiliated with them.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget at 100% against DC Next Bus's 40%. DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget also leads on rating (4.9 vs 2.8) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.0). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. DC Next Bus sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 25 and 9 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of DC Next Bus's written reviews are positive against 100% of DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget's.
DC Next Bus ships an update every 3 weeks, DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | DC Next Bus | DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.8 (25 ratings) | 4.9 (9 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 39.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 25 — better | 9 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 10 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 58 MB | 51 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Junebot, LLC | Toasty Bun, LLC |
Customer experience
DC Next Bus
DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget
Bugs and requests
DC Next Bus
Reported bugs
50 issues- Pornographic thumbnails
- App doesn't work at all
- Doesn't interface with WMATA data
- Shows every bus stop as having no arrivals
- Bus stop no longer on map
Show 45 moreShow fewer
- App struggles to catch up to bus line changes
- Clipboard copied into app
- Shows ghost buses
- Location button disappeared
- "No nearby buses" for all pins
- All over the map
- Not precise anymore
- Inaccurate timing
- Timing is off
- Unable to load errors
- Ride On bus not supported
- Some stops never show up
- Ride On buses don't show up
- Doesn't work for many bus lines at night
- Fails to download new stops database
- Takes almost a minute to update stops
- Shows buses that aren't scheduled
- Time displayed then disappears
- Redesigned app is useless
- Only shows stops within a block
- Transit predictions are off
- Doesn't support bus in Maryland area
- Routes are off
- Lots of stops don't work
- Predictions still have problems
- Stop with no info for months
- WMATA's crappy info
- Completely off
- Never accurate
- Map format annoying
- No maps
- Many other stops aren't there
- Gets worse with each improvement
- Times are never right anymore
- Shows three separate buses coming which never showed up
- New version no longer has bus schedules
- New upgrade is awful
- Last year it was great, now it keeps getting worse
- Went dead
- No information on any bus or route
- For entertainment use only
- Not accurate at all
- Awful
- Never accurate
- Not worth the money
Requested features
7 requests- Manual refresh button
- Search by station or route
- Trip planner functionality
- Bus destinations
- Favorites button
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- Larger countdown font
- Paid version without ads
DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
DC Next Bus
- DC Next Bus - No Ads$2.99
DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget
- Remove ads & unlock widgets14 Days trial$1.991 Month
- Unlock Widget Access14 Days trial$2.991 Month
- Remove ads & unlock widgets14 Days trial$24.991 Year
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Unlock Widget Access14 Days trial$29.991 Year
Questions
Is DC Next Bus free?
Is DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget free?
Which has better reviews, DC Next Bus or DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget?
Do DC Next Bus or DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget have ads?
Which is updated more often, DC Next Bus or DC Metro Buddy & Train Widget?
Other comparisons
