Comparison

Ingress vs GO FRIEND

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Ingress

Explore the real world as a battlefield in this augmented reality game. Choose a faction, discover hidden energy sources, and collaborate with others to control territories and influence the future of humanity. Your mission begins now.

Highlights
  • Explore real-world locations
  • Augmented reality gameplay
  • Choose between two factions
  • Capture and link virtual portals
  • Form teams and plan strategies
  • Participate in live global events
Read full description

ENTER THE INGRESS UNIVERSE Welcome, Agent. A mysterious energy source known as Exotic Matter (XM) has been discovered. Its origin is unknown, and its power is seemingly unlimited. Two Factions are racing to control it, and the future of humanity hangs in the balance. The newly enhanced Ingress Scanner is online, and waiting for you. THE WORLD IS YOUR GAME Step outside and turn the real world into your battlefield. Explore landmarks, monuments, and hidden corners of your city. Every public artwork and point of interest becomes a Portal: a gateway to gather XM and uncover the secrets that are shaping our world. CHOOSE YOUR FACTION Will you enlighten humanity’s evolution with The Enlightened, or defend free will from mind control with The Resistance? Your choice defines your mission, your allies, and your destiny. TEAM UP, THINK BIG Coordinate with Agents nearby and across the globe. Build strategies, plan operations, and take part in live events that reshape the map, and reality itself. CONTROL THE BATTLEFIELD Capture and link Portals to create massive Control Fields spanning entire cities. Compete for dominance, territory, and influence in a global, ever-changing war. YOUR MISSION STARTS NOW XM is everywhere. The battle is real. Download Ingress and join the fight. Note: Agents must be over 13 years old (for residents outside of the European Economic Area); or over 16 years old or such age needed to consent to the processing of personal data in the Agent's country of residence (for residents of the European Economic Area). Unfortunately, no children may play Ingress. The optional Adventure Sync feature integrates with HealthKit to credit your distance traveled Agent Stats, even when Ingress is in the background. Support Contact us in-game by going to Settings > Help Center > Go. Privacy Policy https://www.nianticspatial.com/privacy Terms of Service https://www.nianticspatial.com/terms

About

GO FRIEND

Connect with trainers globally to participate in remote raid battles. Host raids by posting details and recruiting guests, or join worldwide raids by searching active invitations and sending friend requests.

Highlights
  • Find trainers for remote raids
  • Host raids by posting details
  • Recruit guest trainers
  • Search active worldwide raids
  • Join raids via invitations
  • Send friend requests
Features
Read full description

GO Friend is an application to find trainers who want participate in Invitation Raid Battle. Let's participate Raids around the world using "Invitation Raid BBS" of GO Friend ! 【How to use Invitation Raid BBS】 ■Host Trainer (who invite Guest trainer to the raids) 1.Report Raids Tap the “+” button at the top of Invitation Raid BBS Enter the required contents such as Raid information and the number of recruitment, and post. 2.Approve the Friend Request from guests 3.Join the Raid and invite guests ■Guest Trainer (who invited to raids by the Host Trainer) 1.Search active Raids on BBS. Search the active raids reported worldwide. 2.When you find the Raid you want to join, tap “ENTRY”. 3.Send a Friend Request When you find the raid you want to join, copy the Host trainer's friend code and send a Friend Request to the trainer. 4.Wait for the invitation Join the raid when you get an invitation from your Host trainer.

Screenshots

Ingress4 screens
GO FRIEND4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Ingress at none against GO FRIEND's shown. Ingress also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.3) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Ingress sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and GO FRIEND sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Ingress holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Ingress has 5.4K ratings behind it against 982, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 45% of Ingress's written reviews are positive against 50% of GO FRIEND's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Ingress ships an update every 3 weeks, GO FRIEND every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and September 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Ingress versus GO FRIEND: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterIngressGO FRIEND
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (5.4K ratings) — better4.3 (982 ratings)
Positive reviews45.4% of reviews49.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings5.4K — better982
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size397 MB17 MB
Age rating9+17+
DeveloperNiantic Spatial, Inc.takumi suzuki

Customer experience

Ingress

All ratings5,428 ratings
Positive87.9%
Neutral3.7%
Negative8.4%
Written reviews1,674 reviews
Positive45.4%
Neutral6.8%
Negative47.8%

GO FRIEND

All ratings982 ratings
Positive83.9%
Neutral4.1%
Negative12.0%
Written reviews244 reviews
Positive49.6%
Neutral8.2%
Negative42.2%

User reviews

Ingress

From 5.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fantastic game concept
  • 👍 Great for getting exercise and exploring
  • 🌈 Enjoyable community and social aspects
  • 💡 Innovative location-based gameplay

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent bugs and crashes
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 🤖 Concerns about stalking and harassment from other players
  • 🤔 Confusing or cluttered user interface in newer versions

GO FRIEND

From 982 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast and convenient for raiding
  • 🌍 Ability to raid globally
  • 👥 Helps connect players for raids
  • 🏆 Useful for getting rare/legendary Pokémon

Room to improve

  • 🕰️ Long wait times to join raids
  • 💰 Expensive paid features (plugs)
  • 🤖 Hosts not sending invites
  • 🤯 Confusing rating system
  • 🔒 Lack of transparency/communication from developers

Bugs and requests

Ingress

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login issues and account problems
  • Inaccurate location tracking and portal detection
  • Inventory management and recharging bugs
  • Incompatibility with newer iOS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to change factions without contacting support
  • Better portal nomination and review process
  • More in-game events and community activities
  • Improved performance and stability on older devices

GO FRIEND

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Refreshing issues after hosting raids
  • Inability to rate players after raids
  • Randomly getting banned/locked out of app

Requested features

4 requests
  • Group chat functionality
  • Better raid coordination tools
  • Refund system for unused raid passes
  • Improved anti-abuse measures

In-app purchases

8 purchases

Ingress

Subscriptions1
  • C.O.R.E. Monthly$7.991 Month
One-time7
  • 1,200 CMU$0.99
  • 2,500 CMU Pack$1.99
  • 7,000 CMU Pack$4.99
Show 4 more
  • 15,000 CMU Pack$9.99
  • 32,000 CMU Pack$19.99
  • 90,000 CMU Pack$49.99
  • 200,000 CMU Pack$99.99
4 purchases

GO FRIEND

One-time4
  • 100 PLUGS (PREMIUM)$0.99
  • 550 PLUGS (PREMIUM)$4.99
  • 1100 PLUGS (PREMIUM)$9.99
Show 1 more
  • 2200 PLUGS (PREMIUM)$19.99

Questions

Is Ingress free?
Ingress is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is GO FRIEND free?
GO FRIEND is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Ingress or GO FRIEND?
Ingress is rated higher. Ingress averages 4.5 out of 5 from 5.4K ratings, while GO FRIEND averages 4.3 from 982 ratings.
Do Ingress or GO FRIEND have ads?
GO FRIEND shows ads; Ingress does not.
Which is updated more often, Ingress or GO FRIEND?
Ingress ships an update every 3 weeks, and GO FRIEND every 2 months. Most recently, Ingress was updated on September 27, 2026 and GO FRIEND on September 26, 2026.

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