Comparison

Transit.Tracker vs Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

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

Head to head

Transit.Tracker

Free

🗺️ Navigation

★ 4.53.4K ratingsView app →

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

Chicago Transit Authority bus

Free

🗺️ Navigation

★ 4.2184 ratingsView app →

About

Transit.Tracker

Plan your journeys and track public transit in real-time. Find nearby stations, view departure times, and get turn-by-turn navigation. Supports numerous transit agencies across multiple metro areas.

Highlights

Real-time vehicle tracking
Scheduled departure times
Nearest station finder
Built-in trip planner
Multi-metro area support
Today Widget and Watch App integration

Features

Read full description

Transit Tracker helps riders check public transit schedules, nearby departures, route stops, and trip options across supported transit systems. Choose your metro area, find nearby stops, search routes and stops, and view upcoming departures without digging through agency websites. Transit Tracker combines scheduled service data with real-time predictions where supported by the local transit provider. Use Transit Tracker to: - Find nearby bus, rail, subway, light rail, commuter rail, ferry, and other transit stops where available - View scheduled departures for the day - See real-time departure estimates where supported - Search route and stop information - Plan trips in supported regions - Save frequently used stops and trip plans - Use Apple Watch and widget support where available - Choose light, dark, or custom app themes Transit Tracker is built for daily commuters, occasional riders, visitors, and anyone who needs quick access to public transportation schedules and departure times. Coverage and feature availability vary by region. Schedule data, routes, trip planning, and real-time predictions depend on the data provided by each supported transit agency. Optional in-app purchases may be available for ad removal and trip-planning tokens.

About

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

Track Chicago CTA buses in real-time. Select your route, direction, and stop to view upcoming bus arrivals. Save favorite stops for quick access to arrival times.

Highlights

Live bus tracking
Route and direction selection
Stop arrival predictions
Save favorite stops
Fast and easy to use

Features

Read full description

Live bus tracker for Chicago CTA buses. Simply select a route, direction and stop to see the next bus arrivals. Save your favorite stops to see upcoming arrivals with a single touch. - CTA buses - Save unlimited number of favorites - Easy to use - Fast This is not an official app.

Screenshots

Transit.Tracker4 screens

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Chicago CTA Bus Tracker at 60% against Transit.Tracker's 20%. Chicago CTA Bus Tracker also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 6) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.0). Transit.Tracker's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 37 months) and rating (4.5 vs 4.2). 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. Transit.Tracker sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Chicago CTA Bus Tracker asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Transit.Tracker holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Transit.Tracker has 3.4K ratings behind it against 184, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 20% of Transit.Tracker's written reviews are positive against 60% of Chicago CTA Bus Tracker's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Transit.Tracker ships an update every 2 months, Chicago CTA Bus Tracker every 37 months. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level

Transit.Tracker versus Chicago CTA Bus Tracker: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter	Transit.Tracker	Chicago CTA Bus Tracker
Price	Free	Free
Rating	4.5 (3.4K ratings) — better	4.2 (184 ratings)
Positive reviews	20.3% of reviews	59.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings	3.4K — better	184
Update frequency	Every 2 months — better	Every 37 months
Ads	Yes	Yes
In-app purchases	Yes	No — better
Monetization	Free with in-app purchases	Ad-supported — better
Devices	iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better	iPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS	16.0	12.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size	77 MB	12 MB
Age rating	4+	4+
Developer	Raging Coders	Naiara Albaina

Customer experience

Transit.Tracker

All ratings3,139 ratings

Positive87.2%

Neutral4.2%

Negative8.6%

Written reviews79 reviews

Positive20.3%

Neutral6.3%

Negative73.4%

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

All ratings184 ratings

Positive78.3%

Neutral12.0%

Negative9.8%

Written reviews47 reviews

Positive59.6%

Neutral27.7%

Negative12.8%

User reviews

Transit.Tracker

From 3.4K App Store ratings

What we love

👍 Easy to use
🚀 Helpful for trip planning
💡 Useful for commuters

Room to improve

🐛 Inaccurate route and schedule information
🔍 Difficult to navigate
💰 Mandatory ads and paid features
🕰️ Unreliable real-time tracking

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

From 184 App Store ratings

What we love

👍 Easy to use and navigate
🚀 Fast and efficient
✅ Accurate time estimations
👍 Helpful for planning trips
👍 User-friendly for seniors

Room to improve

🐛 App doesn't update or refresh
🐛 Home page sometimes doesn't load
🐛 Inconsistent loading
🐛 No train tracking available
🐛 Ads are intrusive and annoying

Bugs and requests

Transit.Tracker

Reported bugs

4 issues

App freezes or crashes frequently
Incorrect route and schedule data
Issues with restoring paid upgrades
Location services not working properly

Requested features

4 requests

Improve real-time bus/train tracking
Expand coverage to more cities
Add more customization options
Fix bugs and crashes

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

Reported bugs

8 issues

App doesn't update
App doesn't refresh
Home page doesn't load
No information available when searching
App freezes sometimes

Show 3 more

No real-time info refresh
Doesn't load consistently
Takes a while to upload

Requested features

6 requests

Ability to rearrange favorites
Add a refresh button
Improve user-friendliness on the go
Add train tracking
Fix discrepancy between app and website

Show 1 more

Allow users to refresh current input

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Transit.Tracker

One-time6

Transfer Ticket$0.99
40 Tokens$0.99
100 Tokens$1.99

Show 3 more

180 Tokens$2.99
Ad Free$3.99
400 Tokens$4.99

None

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Transit.Tracker free?

Transit.Tracker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

Is Chicago CTA Bus Tracker free?

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

Which has better reviews, Transit.Tracker or Chicago CTA Bus Tracker?

Transit.Tracker is rated higher. Transit.Tracker averages 4.5 out of 5 from 3.4K ratings, while Chicago CTA Bus Tracker averages 4.2 from 184 ratings.

Do Transit.Tracker or Chicago CTA Bus Tracker have ads?

Both Transit.Tracker and Chicago CTA Bus Tracker show ads.

Which is updated more often, Transit.Tracker or Chicago CTA Bus Tracker?

Transit.Tracker ships an update every 2 months, and Chicago CTA Bus Tracker every 37 months. Most recently, Transit.Tracker was updated on September 21, 2026 and Chicago CTA Bus Tracker on September 4, 2026.