# First Bus vs McGill’s Buses

The clearest difference is ads: McGill’s Buses at none against First Bus's shown. McGill’s Buses also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and review sentiment (42% vs 23%). First Bus's advantage is ratings volume (2.2K vs 11). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

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

McGill’s Buses holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: First Bus has 2.2K ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 23% of First Bus's written reviews are positive against 42% of McGill’s Buses's.

First Bus ships an update every 9 days, McGill’s Buses fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | First Bus | McGill’s Buses |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (2.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/first-bus/id566586379/reviews) | **[5.0 (11 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mcgills-buses/id1435892003/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **2.2K** | 11 |
| Positive reviews | 22.8% of reviews | **42.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 days** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 149 MB | 41 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [FirstGroup Plc](https://appshunter.io/developer/566586382) | [McGill's Buses](https://appshunter.io/developer/1435892002) |

## What reviewers say

### First Bus

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/first-bus/id566586379)

Plan your bus journeys, track buses in real-time, and purchase digital tickets. Save favorite routes and stops for quick access. Manage your account and payments securely for a convenient travel experience.

**Highlights:** Journey planning, Live bus tracking, Digital ticket purchasing, Save favorite stops, Departure board, Gifting tickets

**Features:** Apple Wallet, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Helpful for planning journeys
- 🚀 Accurate live bus tracking
- 💡 Ability to save favorite stops
- 👍 Convenient ticket purchasing

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Unreliable bus arrival times
- 🐛 Buses disappearing from the app
- 🐛 Technical issues and app crashes
- 🤔 Confusing and unintuitive interface
- 🤔 Lack of service updates and notifications

**Reported bugs**

- App pausing music playback
- Inconsistent bus tracking and location data
- Inability to purchase certain ticket types

**Requested features**

- Offline ticket access
- Improved journey planning with timetables
- Service change notifications
- Simpler and more user-friendly interface


### McGill’s Buses

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mcgills-buses/id1435892003)

Purchase and use mobile tickets directly from your device, eliminating the need for paper tickets. Track your bus in real-time, plan your journeys, and find nearby stops. Access timetables and save favorite routes for convenient travel.

**Highlights:** Mobile ticketing, Real-time bus tracking, Journey planning, Find nearest stops, User-friendly timetables, Save favorite services

**Features:** Apple Wallet, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Handy for checking bus times
- 👍 Useful for planning journeys
- 👍 Good for knowing bus location
- 👍 Drivers are often nice
- 👍 App is easy to use

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buses are often late
- 🐛 Timetables are inaccurate
- 🐛 App crashes frequently
- 🐛 App is unreliable
- 🐛 Live tracking is inaccurate

**Reported bugs**

- App signs users out
- Account termination threats
- App causes iPhone to overheat
- App crashes when tracking transport
- App doesn't show any bus times

**Requested features**

- Add screen for next stop
- Fix the 66 bus route
- More 66 buses
- Add ability to know when bus is full/moderate/empty
- Add ticket gifting speed


## Frequently asked questions

### Is First Bus free?

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

### Is McGill’s Buses free?

McGill’s Buses is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, First Bus or McGill’s Buses?

McGill’s Buses is rated higher. First Bus averages 4.7 out of 5 from 2.2K ratings, while McGill’s Buses averages 5.0 from 11 ratings.

### Do First Bus or McGill’s Buses have ads?

First Bus shows ads; McGill’s Buses does not.

### Which is updated more often, First Bus or McGill’s Buses?

First Bus ships an update every 9 days, and McGill’s Buses fortnightly. Most recently, First Bus was updated on October 15, 2026 and McGill’s Buses on October 6, 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.*