Comparison

Rail Scan vs Open Railroad Guide

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

Head to head
About

Rail Scan

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The ZEDAS Rail Scan App revolutionizes freight wagon identification. Now it's easier then ever for locomotive drivers, wagon inspectors and shunting staff to check rail freight wagons with AI-power.

About

Open Railroad Guide

Explore detailed railroad maps, historical imagery, and live train data. Features include AR track viewing, frequency finding, and community collaboration for rail enthusiasts and historians.

Highlights
  • Live train map
  • AR 3D Track View
  • Frequency Finder
  • Channel Log
  • Transit Map
  • Rail Community
  • Train Watch
  • FRA Records
Features
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OpenRailroadGuide puts detailed railroad maps and historical aerial imagery in your pocket so you can explore, save, and share the places that matter to railfans, historians, and planners. Enjoy a completely distraction free experience with no ads on any level! -**ORG Postchive:** -**Live train map:** View all Amtrak and VIA Rail trains on a Live Map -**AR 3D Track View:** See tracks in augmented reality to get quick identification. -**Frequency Finder:** Find the exact frequency of any rail line in NA to use on your scanner -**Channel Log:** Use side-by-side with your scanner to tag and organize your channels -**Transit Map:** View all transit lines in your local city, with color coded lines -**Rail Community:** Use the rail community to collaborate with other users to put user-made info on rail lines and train sightings that update in real time -**Train Watch:** Put specific points on the map to get alerts and see upcoming trains to that point - **FRA Records:** Get official records by the FRA on how much trains run through a railroad in the day, night, and weekly. - **Interactive Map:** Fast vector-tile map with smooth zooming and panning built for rail lines and right-of-ways. - **Grade Crossings:** View every railroad crossing in the US with full FRA Inventory records on them. -**Trainspotting Logs & AI Predictions:** Log every train you spot and use AI Overview to predict where & when the next train will be -**Railroad Lookup:** Lookup the selected Railroad directly on the internet within the app to get all the info you need - **Historical Imagery:** Slide through years of aerial imagery to compare past and present alignments. - **Saved Places & Folders:** Save coordinates with notes, organize them into folders, edit details, and quickly fly to any point. - **Local Edits & Annotations:** Draw and persist local edits and annotations right on the map; they render alongside map tiles. - **Seamless Device Sync:** Automatic background sync and backups via iCloud Key-Value Store keep your saved places and edits in sync across your devices. - **Restore & Backup:** One-tap restore and safe merge behavior prevent accidental data loss and detect when data are already up to date. - **Quick Access:** Add bookmarks from the map or the main menu and use a dedicated “View on Map” flow that reliably navigates and centers the map on saved places. - **Power Tools for Enthusiasts:** Street-view toggle, custom map styles and layers, and a compact UI designed for quick field reference. Privacy: Your saved places and edits are stored on-device and synced only via your iCloud account when enabled. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Rail Scan4 screens
Open Railroad Guide4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Rail Scan at none against Open Railroad Guide's 3. Rail Scan also leads on iOS requirement (14.1 vs 18). On price, ads and device support 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. Open Railroad Guide sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Rail Scan asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Rail Scan versus Open Railroad Guide: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRail ScanOpen Railroad Guide
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.9 (36 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—36 — better
Update frequency—Every 4 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS14.1 — better18
Further details — not scored
Size29 MB238 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperZEDAS GmbHIKworks

In-app purchases

None

Rail Scan

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Open Railroad Guide

One-time3
  • AI Tools for ORG$6.99
  • Open Railroad Guide Premium$14.99
  • Unlock All$20.00

Questions

Is Rail Scan free?
Rail Scan is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Open Railroad Guide free?
Open Railroad Guide is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Rail Scan or Open Railroad Guide have ads?
Neither Rail Scan nor Open Railroad Guide shows ads.

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