Nationly vs Bubbl
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Nationly
Automates location tracking for US expats and frequent travelers to simplify foreign earned income exclusion (FEIE) tax paperwork. It offers automatic tracking, form pre-filling, and timeline views to manage travel history and compliance.
- Automatic location tracking
- Form 2555 pre-fill
- Backfill via camera roll
- Timeline and calendar views
- Home screen widgets
- Global Entry renewal export
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Nationly automates your location tracking and helps streamline Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE) paperwork—so you can focus on what you want, not spreadsheets. Free Features Automatic Location Tracking — Nationly securely tracks your location in the background, ensuring an accurate timeline of your travels without the hassle of manual updates. Timeline & Calendar Views — Visualize your movement over time. Get a clear overview of each day, month, and year in an intuitive interface. Global Entry Renewal & More — Export a complete record of your trips to simplify Global Entry renewal, or for any other documentation needs. Premium Features (Subscription Required) Form 2555 Pre-Fill — Simplify expat tax filing. Export your location data directly into Form 2555 to prove FEIE eligibility quantitatively using the Physical Presence Test (PPT) or qualitatively under Bona-Fide Residency (BFR). Requires Plus or Premium subscription. Backfill via Camera Roll — Easily import location data from your photos to fill in any data gaps. Requires Plus or Premium subscription. Advanced Widgets — Monitor your location and upcoming travel deadlines right on your home screen. Keep tabs on FEIE eligibility and visa compliance at a glance. Requires Plus or Premium subscription. Who It's For Digital Nomads & US Expats: Automatically track qualifying days and generate FEIE reports. Frequent Travelers: Keep a thorough record for visa compliance and cross-border logistics. Any World Explorer: Enjoy peace of mind knowing your travel history is safely stored and easy to access. Subscription Info Nationly is free to download with basic location tracking, timeline views, and calendar features. Advanced features require a paid subscription. Plus Plan: Billed annually at the current Plus rate (price shown in the app). New subscribers receive a 3-month free trial. After the trial ends, the subscription automatically renews at the same annual rate unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the renewal date. Premium Plan: No free trial. Billed annually at the current Premium rate (price shown in the app). Billing begins immediately upon purchase. Automatically renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions can be managed and cancelled in Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions.
Bubbl
This platform connects like-minded individuals for shared travel experiences, moving beyond simple accommodation to foster community and meaningful connections. Discover curated co-stays for events, retreats, and adventures, with all trip details organized in one place.
- Discover curated co-stays
- Connect with like-minded people
- Organize trip details in one place
- Group chat and private messaging
- Leader-led co-stay experiences
- Build real connections
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The world is your Bubbl. Stop networking, start belonging. A hotel gives you a lonely room. An event gives you a packed schedule. A Bubbl gives you your people, your base, and your event extra meaning. Bubbl is the co-stay platform for retreats, festivals, conferences, ski trips, wellness weekends, founder houses, creative escapes and unforgettable experiences. A co-stay is not just accommodation. It is the people, the experience and the stay, brought together in one beautifully organized way. The best part of a trip is rarely ever the room you booked. It is the person you meet over breakfast. The conversation that keeps going long after the event ends. The walk back from the venue where someone becomes a friend. The kitchen-table idea that turns into a business, a collaboration, a hire, a memory, or a door you did not know existed. You never get that from staying alone. But you always get that in a Bubbl. When the right people are gathered in the right place, at the same time for a shared purpose. FIND YOUR PEOPLE Bubbl helps you discover curated co-stays created around the things you already want to do: retreats, festivals, conferences, sports weekends, ski seasons, founder trips, weddings, wellness escapes, community gatherings and more. Browse upcoming Bubbls. See who they are for. Apply to join. Get accepted by the Leader. Book your room or bed. Coordinate on chat and calendar before you go. Arrive already knowing your people. No walking into a house blind. You can see profiles, understand the vibe, message your Leader, and get clear on the plan before you even pack. CO-STAY, NOT JUST STAY Bubbl is building the new accommodation category of co-stay: a smarter, more social way to travel where like-minded people share a home, hotel setup, villa, chalet, retreat base, boat, or event RV around a common purpose. EVERYTHING IN ONE PLACE Your room or bed details. Your housemates' profiles. Your Leader's announcements. Group chat. Private messaging. Your activities. Arrival details. Door codes and Wi-Fi. Bulletin board updates. Payments and booking information. Plans, activities and important reminders. No scattered emails. No spreadsheet archaeology. No WhatsApp swamp. No wondering where the address went at midnight or what time is check in. BUILT FOR REAL CONNECTION Most travel platforms start with the property. Bubbl starts with the people. That is why each Bubbl has a Leader, a vibe, a purpose and a group. You are not just booking somewhere to sleep. You are choosing the people you want to be around and the experience you want to be part of. The friend. The collaborator. The investor. The co-founder. The ski buddy. The festival crew. The future client. The person who makes the whole trip ten times better. Opportunity is not always found on the event agenda. Sometimes it is already in the Bubbl. FOR LEADERS Have an idea for a co-stay? Lead it on Bubbl. Create a founder house for a tech conference. A villa for a festival. A ski chalet for the season. A retreat weekend. A wellness escape. A creative house. A community trip. A pop-up basecamp for your people. You bring the spark. Bubbl makes it seamless saving you over 66%. Leaders can build community, cover their own spot, earn from Leading, and become known as the super connector who brings the right people together. SAFER THAN "JUST FIGURE IT OUT" Co-staying should feel exciting, not scary. Bubbl is designed to make group travel clearer, safer and more accountable. Overnight Bubbls include ID verification. Members have real profiles. Leaders can screen applicants. Payments happen through the platform. Ratings help keep the community thoughtful, responsible and worth coming back to. BUBBL FOR BETTER Bubbl is not budget travel. It is better, smarter travel. More connection. More serendipity. More story. More opportunity. More value from the trip you were already taking. Life is better shared with the right people. Let's Bubbl.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Bubbl at none against Nationly's 3. Nationly's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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. Nationly sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Bubbl asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Nationly against 5.0 for Bubbl. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 4 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Nationly ships an update fortnightly, Bubbl every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and September 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Nationly | Bubbl |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) | 5.0 (4 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 4 — better |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.1 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 61 MB | 26 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | PPTt LLC | Bubbl Play |
Customer experience
Nationly
Bubbl
In-app purchases
Nationly
- Basic Plan Monthly1 Month trial$2.991 Month
- Basic Plan Annual3 Months trial$19.991 Year
- Premium Plan Annual$59.991 Year
Bubbl
No in-app purchases









