# First Bus vs RideTandem Rider

The clearest difference is review sentiment: RideTandem Rider at 90% against First Bus's 23%. RideTandem Rider also leads on ads (none vs shown) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). First Bus's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (2.2K vs 1). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

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

RideTandem Rider 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 1, 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 90% of RideTandem Rider's.

First Bus ships an update every 9 days, RideTandem Rider every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | First Bus | RideTandem Rider |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (2.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/first-bus/id566586379/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ridetandem-rider/id1540070407/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **2.2K** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 22.5% of reviews | **90.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 days** | Every 4 months |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | **Free** |
| Size | 143 MB | 76 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.1** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [FirstGroup Plc](https://appshunter.io/developer/566586382) | [Ride Tandem](https://appshunter.io/developer/1540070409) |

## 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 mobile tickets. This app offers personalized tools for a convenient travel experience, including route planning, live bus tracking, and secure payment options for digital tickets.

**Highlights:** Real-time bus tracking, Journey planning and route finder, Mobile ticket purchasing and activation, Save favorite stops and services, Secure payment management, Departure board with filtering

**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


### RideTandem Rider

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ridetandem-rider/id1540070407)

Book, track, and manage your work commute. View live vehicle locations, route maps, and receive instant notifications for delays. Offers 24/7 customer support and is available in 11 languages.

**Highlights:** Book one-way or return trips, View route map and stops, Live vehicle location tracking, Instant delay notifications, 24/7 customer support, 11 language options

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is First Bus free?

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

### Is RideTandem Rider free?

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

### Which has better reviews, First Bus or RideTandem Rider?

RideTandem Rider is rated higher. First Bus averages 4.7 out of 5 from 2.2K ratings, while RideTandem Rider averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do First Bus or RideTandem Rider have ads?

First Bus shows ads; RideTandem Rider does not.

### Which is updated more often, First Bus or RideTandem Rider?

First Bus ships an update every 9 days, and RideTandem Rider every 4 months. Most recently, First Bus was updated on November 10, 2026 and RideTandem Rider on November 11, 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.*