MAD Next Bus vs Madison Bus Tracker
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MAD Next Bus
Find nearby bus stops and get real-time arrival information for Madison Metro Transit. Use your location or map navigation to discover stops, view routes, and save your favorites. An optional in-app purchase can remove ads.
- Location-based bus stop identification
- Real-time bus arrival information
- Map navigation for stop discovery
- View bus routes
- Save favorite stops
- Ad removal in-app purchase
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MAD Next Bus shows real-time bus arrival predictions for Madison, powered by live Madison Metro data. See nearby stops on the map, tap any stop for the next buses, and save favorites for quick access. Service alerts keep you posted on detours and delays. Rebuilt from the ground up for the latest iOS, MAD Next Bus now includes a companion Apple Watch app plus a Home Screen widget and Watch complication. Data provided by Madison Metro.
Madison Bus Tracker
Get real-time bus arrival predictions and explore route maps for Madison Metro Transit. Save your favorite stops and routes for quick access, and receive service alerts. An optional Pro version offers advanced features and an ad-free experience.
- Live bus arrival predictions
- Nearby stop finder
- Interactive route maps
- Save favorite stops and routes
- Service alerts
- Pro version with advanced features
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Check Madison bus arrivals, find nearby Metro Transit stops and explore route maps. See upcoming departures, choose your direction and keep your everyday stops close at hand. NEARBY STOPS & ARRIVALS Find nearby bus stops on the map and see upcoming arrivals for the routes serving each stop. Know whether a departure is a live prediction or a scheduled time. Use your location to find nearby service, or explore the map around Madison. ROUTE MAPS & DIRECTIONS Search routes by number or name. Choose a direction, view the route and its stops on the map, and follow direction arrows and start/end markers to understand where it goes. AROUND MADISON & CAMPUS Explore Rapid Route A (BRT) and UW-Madison campus routes, including 80, 81, 82 and 84. Service varies by route, date and campus calendar. FAVORITES & SERVICE ALERTS Save unlimited stops and routes for quick access. Open a saved stop to check departures, and review service alerts on stop and route pages. MORE WITH MADISON BUS PRO - Live bus locations on route maps when vehicle data is available - Stop schedules for the next 7 days - Departure widgets for your Home Screen - An ad-free app experience Nearby arrivals, route maps, service alerts and unlimited favorites are free. Pro features require an in-app purchase. Prices and available plans are shown in the app. ABOUT THE DATA Live predictions and vehicle locations depend on available transit data. Scheduled times are shown when live predictions are unavailable. Arrival times and service information may change. Madison Bus Tracker is an independent app and is not affiliated with the City of Madison, Metro Transit or the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Data provided under license granted by City of Madison, WI, Metro Transit. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Madison Bus Tracker at 3.8 against MAD Next Bus's 2.0. MAD Next Bus's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (21% vs 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. Madison Bus Tracker sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. MAD Next Bus asks for nothing beyond the download.
Madison Bus Tracker holds the better App Store score, 3.8 against 2.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 17 and 28 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 21% of MAD Next Bus's written reviews are positive against 0% of Madison Bus Tracker's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
MAD Next Bus ships an update every 6 weeks, Madison Bus Tracker every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MAD Next Bus | Madison Bus Tracker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.0 (17 ratings) | 3.8 (28 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 20.8% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 17 | 28 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 21 MB | 29 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Junebot, LLC | 婧嘉 郭 |
Customer experience
MAD Next Bus
Madison Bus Tracker
In-app purchases
MAD Next Bus
No in-app purchases
Madison Bus Tracker
- Monthly$1.991 Month
- Yearly7 Days trial$17.991 Year
- lifetime$39.99
