HMRC vs Smart Pension
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
HMRC
Manage your taxes, benefits, and savings securely and easily. Check your tax code, claim refunds, and track your State Pension. Access Self Assessment and Child Benefit information, and find your National Insurance number.
- Quick secure sign-in
- Check tax code and pay
- Claim tax refunds
- View State Pension details
- Self Assessment payments
- Manage Child Benefit
- Find National Insurance number
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Take control of your money and tax with the HMRC app It’s secure, free to download, and easy to use. Get on it, and join millions of people already saving time with the HMRC app. Key Features: - Quick setup: sign in using face recognition, fingerprint scan, or a six-digit PIN - Stay in control: check your tax code and see your pay before it even shows in your bank, so you know you're paying the right amount - Claim a tax refund: find out if you’re due any tax back from us and quickly claim a refund if you’re owed one - Check your State Pension: see how much State Pension you could get, when you can get it and how to increase it, if you can - Self Assessment: a safe and secure way to make Self Assessment payments and get information you'll need to file - Child Benefit support: claim, manage, and update your Child Benefit details - National Insurance: find and save your National Insurance number so you have it when you need it - Go paperless: opt to receive key messages from HMRC online Download the HMRC app today and stay on top of your money and taxes
Smart Pension
Manage your workplace pension savings with ease. Track your fund's performance in real-time, adjust contributions, and explore investment options. Access exclusive discounts and customer support directly from your phone.
- Real-time pension balance tracking
- Investment fund selection
- Contribution level adjustments
- Enhanced security features (Face ID, Touch ID)
- Access to exclusive discounts
- Live chat customer support
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The Smart Pension Employee App will transform the future of pension saving for a new generation. It allows you to pick and choose the most suitable investment funds, track your pension balance in real time on your phone and increase contribution levels when you can afford it. Engaging you with your pension like never before! Key features: 1. Enhanced security: • Face ID • Touch ID • Password 2. Real-time access to pension fund valuations, to check how much your pension pot is worth. 3. Immediate updating of fund selection, strategy & contributions. But that’s not all... It can also be used to: • Access to Smart Rewards for discounts across thousands of shops & websites • Access live chat with our dedicated customer service team • Read your notifications and letters • Manage your membership, update your personal details & your beneficiary's details • Change your security preferences Note: Currently, you must be a member of a Smart Pension workplace pension scheme to use this App.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: HMRC at 583 against Smart Pension's 6. HMRC also leads on review sentiment (47% vs 31%) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Smart Pension's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.8). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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.
Smart Pension holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HMRC has 583 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 47% of HMRC's written reviews are positive against 31% of Smart Pension's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
HMRC ships an update monthly, Smart Pension every 5 weeks. Both last shipped on September 26, 2026.
| Parameter | HMRC | Smart Pension |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (583 ratings) | 5.0 (6 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 47.3% of reviews — better | 30.9% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 583 — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 34 MB | 88 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | HMRC | Smart Pension Limited |
Customer experience
HMRC
Smart Pension
User reviews
HMRC
From 583 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Straightforward payment process
- 💡 Useful information and updates
- 🔒 Secure authentication
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent login issues and app crashes
- 🤔 Confusing navigation and UI
- ⚠️ Lack of communication about tax changes
- 🕰️ Slow and unresponsive app
Smart Pension
From 6 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 💡 Pension calculator helpful
- 📈 Up-to-date values
- 📱 Convenient mobile access
- 💻 Can do same as computer
Room to improve
- 🐛 App crashes frequently
- 🐛 App not loading
- 🐛 Login issues
- 🐛 App freezes
- 🐛 Basic functionalities not working
Bugs and requests
HMRC
Reported bugs
4 issues- Endless login loops and redirects
- App freezing and becoming unresponsive
- Inconsistent behavior after app updates
- Issues with Face ID and biometric authentication
Requested features
4 requests- Improved notification system for tax updates
- Ability to view and manage tax details in-app
- Better integration with banking apps for payments
- More user-friendly design and navigation
Smart Pension
Reported bugs
47 issues- App crashes shortly after launch
- App never lets you update details
- Cannot log into the app after recent update
- App or website will not load
- Stuck on loading screen
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- Transaction or growth details not showing
- Redirected to transaction tab and stuck on loading wheel
- Cannot edit beneficiaries
- App opens website via browser embed and is glitchy
- Unable to access the App, stuck on Smart logo
- Takes forever to log in and stuck on login screen
- App hasn’t been able to pass the 1st screen
- Worked OK for a few months, now won’t open
- Not able to access account through the app for days
- Doesn’t function any longer
- Latest version doesn’t load up
- App is not loading
- App no longer works
- Won’t open beyond the company logo
- Stuck on the opening screen after update
- App literally “blue screens”
- App frequently freezes on a dark blue screen
- App freezes on opening screen
- App closes as soon as I try to open
- App freezes when it first opens or when using features
- App doesn’t fit properly on screen
- Have to close and reopen app to get back to main screen
- Back arrow at the top of screen, cannot press it
- Crashes out on load
- Crash upon first launch after install
- Takes ages to load and sometimes can’t log in
- Dashboard UI is like from 90’s
- Information missing, cannot update fund value
- Cannot find option to message customer service
- App stuck on a message with no back button
- Login with Google account not supported, app stuck on Google Developers website
- Hasn’t worked since getting iPhone 11
- Takes a long time to login
- Keeps logging out
- Error when logging in with normal details
- After updating, have to re-enter biometrics
- Login keeps asking for biometric and then password
- Can’t open app
- Cannot see beyond the front page
- App stops working
- Unable to login after upgrading
- App is slow
Requested features
5 requests- Show profit or loss on investment
- Receive notification for new contribution
- Improve app design and UI
- Implement in-app form for pension transfers
- Add dark mode
In-app purchases
HMRC
No in-app purchases
Smart Pension
No in-app purchases
