Comparison

thirdspace vs Traces

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

Head to head
About

thirdspace

This app facilitates spontaneous real-life meetups with friends. It allows users to quickly propose activities, with a short time window for friends to join, ensuring that plans are made and executed without overthinking.

Highlights
  • Propose spontaneous activities
  • 2-minute join window
  • Private location reveal upon acceptance
  • Capture and share meetup photos
  • Log of past spontaneous hangouts
Features
Read full description

thirdspace is where your existing friend group goes to have MORE FUN, together. You know that random Tuesday urge to get boba? The "someone come watch this sunset with me right now" moment? The "I just found the weirdest thrift store, get over here" energy? Those are sidequests. And thirdspace is built for exactly that. We made this app because we were tired of the same group chat cycle. Someone says "we should hang out," everyone says "definitely," and then nobody does anything for three weeks. thirdspace kills that cycle in two minutes flat. HOW SIDEQUESTS WORK 1. Start a Sidequest Snap a pic of whatever caught your attention, type what you're doing, and send it out. Could be anything. A spontaneous coffee run. A walk to nowhere. Finding the best taco within walking distance. Your nearby friends get notified instantly. 2. The 2-Minute Window Your friends have 2 minutes to join the sidequest. That's it. No "let me check my schedule." No "maybe later." You're either locking in or missing the moment. This timer exists because the best hangouts are the ones nobody overthinks. 3. Location Reveal Your location stays completely hidden until a friend accepts. Once they're in, maps unlock for both of you, and you're on your way to actually meeting up. Safety first, always. 4. Capture the Moment When you link up, take a pic together. No filters. No posing for 20 minutes. Just proof that you actually left the house and did something with your friends. Share it with your circle or post it publicly. Your Sidequest Log: Every hangout gets saved to your personal Memories. Scroll back through all the spontaneous coffee runs, the chaotic midnight drives, the "why did we walk here" adventures. A whole timeline of times you actually showed up for your friends. WHY YOUR FRIEND GROUP NEEDS THIS The 2-minute timer makes flaking basically impossible. You're in or you're not. No more "I'll let you know" texts that go nowhere. Locations stay private until someone commits. Your friends only see where you are after they accept the sidequest. This isn't another app for watching people live their lives through a screen. thirdspace is for people who want to be in the room, on the curb, at the spot. The whole point is to get you and your friends outside, doing things together in real life. Whether its your close friends or someone new in the group, the best connections happen when you stop scrolling and start showing up. thirdspace. stop scrolling. start questing.

About

Traces

This app creates a shared, private map where you and your friends can pin photos and locations to build a collective history. It focuses on personal moments and shared experiences without a public feed or algorithmic content. Watch your personal world map grow richer with every shared memory.

Highlights
  • Shared map for friends
  • Pin photos and locations
  • Build shared history
  • Private and personal
  • No feed or algorithm
  • Location-based memories
Features
Read full description

Your friends are out there, living moments worth remembering. Traces is a shared map for you and your people. Every photo, every place, every moment — pinned exactly where it happened, forever. No feed. No algorithm. No strangers. Just your world, mapped. Drop a trace at the restaurant you discovered together. The trip you took. The corner where something happened. Watch your shared history build over time into a map that's entirely yours. The longer you use it, the richer it gets. Your life, mapped with the people who matter. Download Traces and start building your world. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

thirdspace4 screens
Traces3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: thirdspace at none against Traces's shown. thirdspace also leads on ratings volume (94 vs 1) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). Traces's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Traces holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: thirdspace has 94 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

thirdspace ships an update every 4 days, Traces every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
thirdspace versus Traces: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterthirdspaceTraces
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (94 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews86.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings94 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterAd-supported
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size134 MB73 MB
Age rating17+12+
Developerthirdspace social inc.Ya Shiuan Lin

Customer experience

thirdspace

All ratings77 ratings
Positive89.6%
Neutral2.6%
Negative7.8%
Written reviews29 reviews
Positive86.2%
Neutral3.4%
Negative10.3%

Traces

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

thirdspace

No in-app purchases

None

Traces

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is thirdspace free?
thirdspace is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Traces free?
Traces is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, thirdspace or Traces?
Traces is rated higher. thirdspace averages 4.6 out of 5 from 94 ratings, while Traces averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do thirdspace or Traces have ads?
Traces shows ads; thirdspace does not.
Which is updated more often, thirdspace or Traces?
thirdspace ships an update every 4 days, and Traces every 3 days. Most recently, thirdspace was updated on October 24, 2026 and Traces on October 7, 2026.

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