Strut vs Mini Metro
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Strut
Explore the world by uncovering billions of virtual tiles on a global map. Track your travels by any means of transport, discover new routes, and compete with others on leaderboards. Earn medals and level up as you open up your world.
- Uncover billions of world tiles
- Track all forms of travel
- Explore surroundings and new routes
- Compete on global leaderboards
- Earn medals and level up
- Apple Watch integration
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Imagine the entire world is covered in billions of tiles. How many can you open up? Strut is a game of exploration where you compete with other players around the world to uncover the map of the earth. –––––– TRACK YOUR TRAVELS Whether you walk, run, bike, drive, sail, ride a goat or take a hot air balloon, use Strut to keep track of exactly where you've been in the world. Share your map with friends, or keep your wanderings private... we won't tell. EXPLORE YOUR SURROUNDINGS Take a new route to work. Go down that street you never walked through. Visit every nook and cranny of your city. See more of your neighborhood – who knows what you might find? OPEN UP YOUR WORLD Strut around, level up and climb to the top of the leaderboards – there's a top 10 for every city, state, country, and the entire world. There are also a ton of medals to earn, so keep exploring and see what pops up in your adventures around the globe. You can also now keep track of your tile counts and your Strutting status on your Apple Watch! –––––– *Please note that continued use of GPS running in the background could dramatically decrease battery life.
Mini Metro
Design and manage a subway system for a growing city. Draw lines, start trains, and adapt your network as new stations open. Strategically use limited resources to keep the city moving and achieve the highest score.
- Design subway maps
- Draw lines between stations
- Manage train routes
- Adapt to random city growth
- Utilize limited resources
- Over two dozen real-world cities
- Variety of upgrades
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Mini Metro, the sublime subway simulator, now on iPhone and iPad. • Included in the App Store Best of 2016 • Mac Game of the Year in over 30 countries • BAFTA-nominated • IGF award-winning • IGN Mobile Game of the Year nominee • Included in Gamespot's Best Mobile Games of 2016 Mini Metro is a game about designing a subway map for a growing city. Draw lines between stations and start your trains running. As new stations open, redraw your lines to keep them efficient. Decide where to use your limited resources. How long can you keep the city moving? • Random city growth means each game is unique. • Over two dozen of real-world cities to test your planning skills. • A variety of upgrades so you can tailor your network. • Normal mode for quick scored games, Endless to relax, or Extreme for the ultimate challenge. • Build your metro exactly how you want to with the Creative mode. • Compete against the world every day in the Daily Challenge. • Colorblind and night modes. • Responsive soundtrack created by your metro system, engineered by Disasterpeace. "If you love the city-planning aspect of Sim City but can't handle the pressure of playing god, then you may have just found your new favorite time-waster." - Ashley Feinberg, Gizmodo "Take my word for it that a game about mass-transit system design can be a tense, white-knuckle thriller." - Owen Faraday, Pocket Tactics "Mini Metro: fun game simulates planning and running public transit system." - Cory Doctorow, Boing Boing
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Strut at Free against Mini Metro's $3.99. Mini Metro's advantage is rating (4.9 vs 3.7) and review sentiment (89% vs 48%). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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
Strut is free to download; Mini Metro costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Mini Metro holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mini Metro has 31K ratings behind it against 67, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 48% of Strut's written reviews are positive against 89% of Mini Metro's.
Strut ships an update every 6 months, Mini Metro every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Strut | Mini Metro |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $3.99 |
| Rating | 3.7 (67 ratings) | 4.9 (31K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 48.0% of reviews | 88.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 67 | 31K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #14 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 179 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Thickpolicy LLC | Dinosaur Polo Club |
Customer experience
Strut
Mini Metro
User reviews
Strut
From 67 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🗺️ Innovative tile-based map exploration concept
- 👍 Well-designed, polished user interface
- 🎮 Gamification encourages exploration and travel
- 🚶 Motivates users to discover new places and routes
- 💰 Free app with optional donations
Room to improve
- 🔋 Severe battery drain and excessive heat generation
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and instability
- 📱 Background tracking stops or becomes unreliable
- 🔄 Slow server performance and syncing issues
- ❌ Abandoned development with infrequent updates
Mini Metro
From 31K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Simple and relaxing gameplay
- 🎨 Beautiful minimalist design
- ⏱️ Addictive and time-killing
- 🌐 Wide variety of cities to play
- 💰 Good value for money
Room to improve
- 🐛 Trains skipping stations
- 🤯 Overwhelming difficulty at times
- 🔍 Lack of clear instructions
- 🔀 Difficulty removing/rerouting lines
- 🕰️ No ability to save progress
Bugs and requests
Strut
Reported bugs
14 issues- App crashes on login, especially with Facebook/Twitter authentication
- Background tracking stops randomly and requires app restart
- Pending sync tiles accumulate and never fully sync
- Tiles lost during phone transfers or account recovery
- Medal and achievement counts not updating
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- City/town tile counts not updating for weeks or months
- Level-up banner cannot be dismissed without closing app
- Apple Watch app completely non-functional
- Map crashes when attempting to pan or interact
- iOS 7+ compatibility issues
- Crashes when camera app is opened during tracking
- Text contrast issues making score screens unreadable
- Slow server response times causing UI lag
- Donation achievements not registering
Requested features
14 requests- Battery optimization and GPS efficiency improvements
- Background tracking that works reliably
- Apple Watch app with full map functionality
- External GPS device support (Bluetooth GPS pucks)
- GPX file import/export capability
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- Alternative login methods (email, Apple ID)
- Data export and backup options
- Multiple leaderboard views (with/without flights)
- Ability to add historical travel data
- Friend finder and friends list feature
- Tile color customization based on visit frequency
- Improved map contrast and readability
- Android version release
- Monthly subscription option for ongoing support
Mini Metro
Reported bugs
3 issues- Leaderboard issues with daily challenges
- Crashes and compatibility problems on certain devices
- Unexpected behavior when trains skip stations
Requested features
5 requests- Undo/redo functionality
- Ability to create branching lines
- More detailed statistics and analytics
- Additional game modes (e.g. career, scenarios)
- Integration with real-world transit data
In-app purchases
Strut
No in-app purchases
Mini Metro
No in-app purchases









