Comparison

NYC Underground vs SubwayNow

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

Head to head
About

NYC Underground

This app provides real-time New York City subway arrival information and a comprehensive subway map. It offers live train times, station locations, and nearby station rankings, all without requiring an account or displaying ads.

Highlights
  • Real-time train arrivals
  • Full MTA subway map
  • Location on map
  • Nearby stations ranking
  • Automatic arrival refresh
  • Offline map functionality
Features
Read full description

NYC Underground turns your iPhone into a fast, native New York City subway companion. The complete MTA subway map is bundled right into the app: pinch to zoom anywhere, tap any station, and see real-time train arrivals the instant you look. No account, no sign-up, no ads. Your location never leaves your device. FEATURES • The whole subway map: the full New York City subway map is built in and renders at high resolution. Smooth pinch-to-zoom and pan, even at street level. • Real-time arrivals: tap any station to see live train times, straight from the MTA's official real-time feeds, grouped by direction with colored line bullets. • Your location on the map: an optional GPS dot shows exactly where you are on the subway map, so you always know which station is closest. • Nearby stations: one tap shows the closest stations ranked by distance, each with live arrivals. • All 445 stations: every line, every borough, with proper station complexes and direction labels sourced from official MTA data. • Always current: arrivals refresh automatically every 30 seconds. No API key, no login, nothing to configure. PRIVATE BY DESIGN NYC Underground does not collect analytics, has no trackers, and requires no account. Your GPS location is used only on your device to place the dot on the map and find nearby stations; it is never transmitted anywhere. The app's only network requests are to the MTA's public real-time data feeds. HOW IT WORKS 1. Open the app, the subway map loads instantly. 2. (Optional) Allow location to see your position and nearest stations. 3. Tap any station to see real-time arrivals by direction. 4. Tap the location banner for a ranked list of nearby stations. REQUIREMENTS • iPhone running iOS 18 or later. • An internet connection for live arrival times (the map itself works offline). NYC Underground is an independent app and is not affiliated with, authorized, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) or New York City Transit. "MTA", the subway map, and the route symbols are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here only to describe and display the transit system this app helps you navigate. Real-time and schedule data is provided by the MTA under its open-data program.

About

SubwayNow

Features
Read full description

SubwayNow shows the next New York City subway trains at the stations that matter to you, with live MTA data and no account. LOCK SCREEN WIDGETS Add SubwayNow under your clock and glance at the next trains in both directions. Three widgets to choose from: Nearest Station, Pinned Station 1, and Pinned Station 2. Also available as Home Screen widgets in small, medium, and large sizes. NEAREST STATION Tap refresh and SubwayNow finds the closest stations to you, with walking time and the next arrivals in each direction. PIN YOUR STATIONS Pin the stations you use every day: your home stop, your work stop. They show first in the app and power the Pinned Station widgets. EVERY LINE, EVERY STATION All 472 stations and every route, including the Staten Island Railway, in the official MTA colors you already know. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your location is read only when you refresh, never tracked in the background. SubwayNow collects no data and has no accounts, ads, or analytics. Arrival times come from the MTA's public real-time feeds. SubwayNow is an independent app and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Screenshots

NYC Underground4 screens
SubwayNow3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: SubwayNow at every 4 days against NYC Underground's every 3 weeks. On price, ads, 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NYC Underground ships an update every 3 weeks, SubwayNow every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
NYC Underground versus SubwayNow: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNYC UndergroundSubwayNow
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerkitdesai, LLCXingliang Chen

In-app purchases

None

NYC Underground

No in-app purchases

None

SubwayNow

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is NYC Underground free?
NYC Underground is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SubwayNow free?
SubwayNow is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do NYC Underground or SubwayNow have ads?
Neither NYC Underground nor SubwayNow shows ads.
Which is updated more often, NYC Underground or SubwayNow?
NYC Underground ships an update every 3 weeks, and SubwayNow every 4 days. Most recently, NYC Underground was updated on October 28, 2026 and SubwayNow on October 24, 2026.

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