SEPTA vs BART (Official)
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SEPTA
Plan your entire journey with this transit app. Find nearby stops, get real-time updates, and manage your transit card. It offers a streamlined experience with trip planning and station details.
- End-to-end trip planning
- Real-time transit information
- SEPTA Key Card management
- Nearby stop and station finder
- Station-specific alerts and schedules
- Metro line integration
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SEPTA’s mobile app empowers riders to plan their trip end to end. Find stops and stations nearby, plan a trip, access real-time information, manage your SEPTA Key Card, and more! Improved performance and user experience - A more intuitive experience, now at faster speeds. Think ahead with the new Trip Planner - Plan your next ride without leaving the app. Get all of the Station Details - View station-specific alerts and schedules. Easily load up your SEPTA Key - Add funds and manage your SEPTA Key from the app. Get to know SEPTA Metro! - New letters and colors for our Metro lines fully integrated into the app. Stay in the know with Real-time Info - Get to-the-minute updates about upcoming routes. Find the closest stop with Nearby - Easily view (and favorite) nearby stations and routes. Get assistance from your pocket with Help - Report a concern or contact SEPTA straight rom the app. Improved features for riders with accessibility needs - Including full screen reader compatibility.
BART (Official)
Plan your Bay Area transit journeys with real-time train departures and official service alerts. This app offers end-to-end trip planning, step-by-step navigation, and customized notifications for a hassle-free commute.
- Real-time train departures
- End-to-end trip planner
- Step-by-step navigation
- Customized service alerts
- Contactless parking payment
- Service disruption information
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The official Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) app has arrived. It’s the easiest way to plan your trip and get accurate real time train departures with data straight from BART, along with official service alerts. The BART app offers exclusive features for hassle free travel for daily commuters, infrequent users and tourists alike: -Plan your entire end to end trip with BART’s exclusive Trip Planner giving you the fastest route from your starting point to your destination using BART and multiple modes of transportation, including connecting transit, biking, walking and driving. -Step by step navigation with personalized preferences and saved favorite stations and trips. -Real time departures and schedule timetable. -Customized in-app notifications about BART service and announcements. -Contactless in-app Daily Fee parking payment -Service disruption information linked to your trip itinerary. -Report a Biohazard that needs addressing and access our BART Watch App for reporting crimes. -Escalator and Elevator advisories. -Fleet of the Future train tracker. -Cancelled trip notices. -Easily see the last train of the evening by station when you’re planning your night out or your trip home from the airport. -Station information (including if it offers a parking lot and secured bike parking). -Seamless connection to bart.gov and BARTable for deals, events, and fun. -It’s ad free; who wants to be distracted when looking how far away your train is? BART is working on future features of the app to enhance your BART experience... Tell us about the features you want.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: BART (Official) at 30% against SEPTA's 13%. BART (Official) also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.4). SEPTA's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
BART (Official) holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 29K and 26K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 13% of SEPTA's written reviews are positive against 30% of BART (Official)'s.
SEPTA ships an update every 3 weeks, BART (Official) every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SEPTA | BART (Official) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (29K ratings) | 4.6 (26K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 13.1% of reviews | 29.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 29K — better | 26K |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 91 MB | 81 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority | San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District |
Customer experience
SEPTA
BART (Official)
User reviews
SEPTA
From 29K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Accurate real-time tracking
- 👍 Convenient keycard management
- 🚀 Improved user interface design
Room to improve
- 🐛 Inaccurate schedule information
- 🐛 Unreliable real-time updates
- 👎 Difficult to navigate and find information
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and bugs
- 👎 Removed useful features from previous version
BART (Official)
From 26K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Convenient in-app parking payment
- 👍 Accurate real-time train information
- 🚀 Easy to use app
- 👍 Helpful for planning trips
Room to improve
- 🐛 Unreliable real-time information
- 🔍 Confusing parking payment process
- 🔍 Lack of key features like checking Clipper card balance
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Not intuitive for first-time users
Bugs and requests
SEPTA
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login and password reset issues
- Inconsistent real-time data and schedule information
- Inability to add payment methods or reload transit cards
- Geolocation and mapping features not working properly
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to view full schedule instead of just point-to-point
- Notifications for service changes and delays
- Integration with mobile wallet for digital tickets
- More customization options for saved routes and favorites
BART (Official)
Reported bugs
4 issues- Real-time departure times not updating accurately
- Trip planning providing incorrect/nonsensical routes
- Login and password issues causing frequent logouts
- Parking payment not working as expected
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to check Clipper card balance
- Automatic license plate recognition for parking
- Offline mode for schedules and trip planning
- Better notifications for service advisories and delays
- More customization options for favorite stations
In-app purchases
SEPTA
No in-app purchases
BART (Official)
No in-app purchases
