Comparison

ChiMarathon vs SVE Live!

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

Head to head
About

ChiMarathon

Prepare for the Bank of America Chicago Marathon with this comprehensive resource. Track runners live, view athlete profiles, and access real-time weather and course maps. Spectators can send digital cheers to be displayed on the course.

Highlights
  • Live runner tracking
  • Athlete profiles
  • Live broadcast streaming
  • Real-time weather
  • Interactive course map
  • Digital cheer submission
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon App, Powered by Tata Consultancy Services is the perfect resource to prepare for the 2026 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Whether you’re running or spectating, the free mobile app includes everything you’ll need to be prepared for a great race week experience. The app features unlimited live race day runner tracking, professional athlete profiles, live broadcast streaming, real-time weather, an interactive course map, participant bib share and more!

About

SVE Live!

Follow athletic events in real-time with live tracking for participants and spectators. View times, paces, and placings, and use interactive maps to follow progress. Receive push notifications and access event information, leaderboards, and social sharing features.

Highlights
  • Real-time participant times, paces, and placings
  • Interactive course and live map tracking
  • Track multiple participants simultaneously
  • Push notifications for event progress
  • Event information and messaging
  • Live leaderboards
  • Social sharing
Currently charting
Read full description

SVE Live! provides Real-Time Tracking for athletic events. Participants and spectators of listed events, this app is for you! Highlights: •Participant times, paces, estimates, and placings in real-time. •Interactive course map and live map tracking. •Easy tracking of multiple participants at the same time. •Push notifications as the event progresses. •Event info and messaging. •Live leaderboards. •Social sharing. PLEASE NOTE: Not all SVE Timing events are available for live tracking or listed in the SVE Tracking APP. Please see our SVE Timing APP for other events. Please contact us or your event coordinator for availability.

Screenshots

ChiMarathon4 screens
SVE Live!4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: SVE Live! at 96% against ChiMarathon's 33%. SVE Live! also leads on rating (4.9 vs 3.5) and ratings volume (178 vs 4). ChiMarathon's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 43 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

SVE Live! holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SVE Live! has 178 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of ChiMarathon's written reviews are positive against 96% of SVE Live!'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ChiMarathon ships an update every 2 weeks, SVE Live! every 43 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
ChiMarathon versus SVE Live!: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterChiMarathonSVE Live!
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (4 ratings)4.9 (178 ratings) — better
Positive reviews32.9% of reviews96.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4178 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 43 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
Best chart rank#178 — better#191
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.613.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size112 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTata Consultancy ServicesDilltree Inc

Customer experience

ChiMarathon

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews79 reviews
Positive32.9%
Neutral8.9%
Negative58.2%

SVE Live!

All ratings178 ratings
Positive98.9%
Neutral1.1%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews54 reviews
Positive96.3%
Neutral3.7%
Negative0.0%

User reviews

ChiMarathon

From 4 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great for tracking runners
  • 👍 Works well in the UK
  • 👍 Able to track runner entire time
  • 👍 Loved tracking friends
  • 👍 Very useful for watching friend run

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Map tracker not spectator-geared
  • 🐛 Mile markers inconsistent
  • 🐛 Map shows water stations for runners
  • 🐛 Units displayed incorrectly (miles vs km)
  • 🐛 App doesn't update times

SVE Live!

From 178 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Accurate tracking
  • 👍 User friendly
  • 🗺️ Detailed map view
  • ⏱️ Timely updates

Room to improve

  • ❓ Difficult map usage
  • 📶 Internet challenges
  • 📍 Hard to locate group
  • 🐛 Tracker stopped mid-race
  • ❓ Nickname selection difficult

Bugs and requests

ChiMarathon

Reported bugs

59 issues
  • Mile markers inconsistent
  • Map shows water stations for runners
  • Units displayed incorrectly (miles vs km)
  • App doesn't update times
  • Links in map don't work
Show 54 more
  • Won't connect to server
  • X-axis incorrect units (miles vs km)
  • Y-axis decreasing (unhelpful visualization)
  • Race day timer shows race is a day away
  • Cannot track racer, times out
  • Tracking feature not trustworthy
  • No way to switch to miles
  • Incredibly glitchy
  • No mile markers this year
  • Pace graph based on 100 seconds
  • Needs to track distance by miles
  • Default to kilometers with no option to change
  • Map not updated on race day
  • Worthless app
  • No buttons work
  • Cannot enter bib number
  • Live data shows server error
  • No way for runners to claim profile
  • Mixes up miles and kilometers
  • Pace graph based on minutes/100 seconds
  • App defaults in metrics
  • No ability to change pace to min/mile
  • Leaderboard defaults to male runners
  • App stalled, tracking didn't work
  • Tracking search bar doesn't work
  • App missed me at starting line and 15k mark
  • App reported time over an hour slower
  • Time still wrong on app after 2 days
  • Tracking isn't real-time, only check-in points
  • App insists on zooming back to user location
  • Tracking experience disappointing
  • Cannot connect to server
  • Rubbish app
  • Worst site for tracking a runner
  • App could never connect to server
  • Difficult to track multiple friends due to lack of splits
  • App splits calculated in kilometers
  • Doing calculations for miles/kilometers is not a good experience
  • Can't track runners on map
  • Useless app
  • Only gives times at 10k, 20k, 30k and finish
  • Impossible to track individual runner
  • Missed our runner
  • Doesn't work
  • App freezing
  • Cannot track anyone
  • Cannot connect to server
  • Map doesn't work
  • Program stalled
  • Tracking didn't work
  • Search bar doesn't work
  • App missed runner at start and 15k
  • App reported time over an hour slower
  • Time still wrong on app after 2 days

Requested features

31 requests
  • Geared towards spectators for map tracking
  • Display mile markers clearly
  • Option to switch between miles and kilometers
  • Update app design to be more modern
  • Real-time updates and alerts for runners
Show 26 more
  • Add mile markers
  • Option to convert kilometers to miles
  • Add spectator viewing route feature
  • Preload anticipated pace for recommended viewing points
  • Allow users to switch between miles and kilometers
  • Add option to change pace to minutes per mile
  • Allow users to change pace to minutes per mile
  • Add cheer cards feature
  • Improve customer support
  • Add automatic updates like Boston's app
  • Update map for current year's event
  • Fix tracking for runners
  • Add a toggle or default to miles
  • Provide a single click tracking link
  • Add splits every 5 miles
  • Streamline measurements (miles and kilometers)
  • Allow viewing splits in miles or kilometers
  • Add spectator 'viewing route' feature
  • Add ability to send real-time messages to runners
  • Add ability for runners to access messages easily
  • Fix search bar for runner information
  • Add end of race picture at finish line
  • Add feature to track self for PR
  • Add option to default to female runners on leaderboards
  • Improve GPS tracking data
  • Make tracking real-time

SVE Live!

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Map difficult to use during run
  • Tracker stopped tracking until almost the finish

Requested features

1 request
  • Easier nickname selection

In-app purchases

None

ChiMarathon

No in-app purchases

None

SVE Live!

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ChiMarathon free?
ChiMarathon is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SVE Live! free?
SVE Live! is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ChiMarathon or SVE Live!?
SVE Live! is rated higher. ChiMarathon averages 3.5 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while SVE Live! averages 4.9 from 178 ratings.
Do ChiMarathon or SVE Live! have ads?
Neither ChiMarathon nor SVE Live! shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ChiMarathon or SVE Live!?
ChiMarathon ships an update every 2 weeks, and SVE Live! every 43 months. Most recently, ChiMarathon was updated on October 16, 2026 and SVE Live! on October 18, 2026.
Which is more popular, ChiMarathon or SVE Live!?
ChiMarathon currently peaks at #178 in the App Store charts, and SVE Live! at #191. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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