NCTX Buses vs Railcard
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
NCTX Buses
Plan your journeys, view live bus departures, and purchase mobile tickets for NCT services. Access timetables, save favorite routes, and stay updated on service disruptions.
- Mobile ticket purchase
- Live departure times
- Journey planning
- Bus timetables
- Save favorite routes
- Service disruption alerts
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The latest release of the app has everything you need to get around Nottingham with NCT Buses. It’s packed full of everything you’ll need to get mobile. NEW! Discover your fare: Find the fare for the journeys you are planning whether you want to buy a mobile ticket in advance or pay on the bus. Mobile Tickets: Purchase mobile tickets securely with Apple Pay or a debit/credit card and show the driver when boarding - no more searching for cash! Live Departures: Browse and view bus stops on the map, explore upcoming departures, or check out the routes from a stop to see where you could travel next. Journey Planning: Plan your commute, trip to the shops or night out with friends. With an upgraded planning engine it’ll be even easier to plan your trip with NCT. Timetables: We’ve squeezed all of our routes and bus times into the palm of your hand. Favourites: We’ve simplified saving favourites based on your feedback, so now you can quickly save your favourite Departure Boards, Timetables and Journeys, with quick access from one convenient menu. Disruptions: You’ll be able to keep up to date with service changes directly from our Twitter feed inside the app. As always, we welcome your feedback. You can send it to us via the app.
Railcard
Access and display your train ticket discounts directly on your mobile device. Never forget your discount card again and save on most train fares. Supports a wide variety of railcards for different traveler needs.
- Store railcards on mobile
- Save 1/3 on train fares
- Instant digital access
- Supports multiple railcard types
- Ready for next train journey
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With a Railcard, you'll enjoy ⅓ off most fares when you go by train. Download the app now so you will never forget your Railcard again- have your Railcard on your mobile, ready for your next train journey. Suitable for storing newly-purchased 16-25 Railcard, Santander 16-25 Railcard, 26-30 Railcard, Devon & Cornwall Railcard, Family & Friends Railcard, Senior Railcard, Two Together Railcard, Veterans Railcard, Disabled Persons Railcard, Network Railcard, and 16-17 Saver. *Most Railcards are available instantly on your mobile. However, 16-25 Railcards for those applying as mature students, Veterans Railcards and Disabled Persons Railcards may take up to 5 working days for approval.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: Railcard at 7.1K against NCTX Buses's 64. NCTX Buses's advantage is review sentiment (58% vs 44%) and update cadence (fortnightly vs monthly). On price, rating, 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for NCTX Buses against 4.8 for Railcard. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Railcard has 7.1K ratings behind it against 64, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 58% of NCTX Buses's written reviews are positive against 44% of Railcard's.
NCTX Buses ships an update fortnightly, Railcard monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | NCTX Buses | Railcard |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (64 ratings) — better | 4.8 (7.1K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 58.0% of reviews — better | 43.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 64 | 7.1K — better |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 43 MB | 43 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nottingham City Transport Ltd | National Rail |
Customer experience
NCTX Buses
Railcard
User reviews
NCTX Buses
From 64 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Real-time bus tracking
- 👍 Useful travel planning
- 👍 Convenient mobile tickets
- 👍 24-hour tickets save money
- 👍 Easy to use interface
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buses often late
- 🐛 App logs users out
- 🐛 Buses disappear from tracker
- 🐛 Mobile tickets fail to scan
- 🐛 App drains phone battery
Railcard
From 7.1K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💰 Great value
- 📱 Easy to use app
- 🚀 Fast digital delivery
- 🙌 Helpful customer service
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy app/website
- 🤯 Confusing renewal process
- 📵 Unusable without internet
- 🤖 Lack of accessibility features
Bugs and requests
NCTX Buses
Reported bugs
50 issues- App keeps logging users out
- App locks users out for extended periods
- Buses not arriving on time
- Buses disappearing from the app's tracker
- Mobile tickets failing to scan
Show 45 moreShow fewer
- App drains phone battery
- App says no internet connection when mobile data is working
- Lost money on tickets due to app issues
- App is down or not working
- App crashes when trying to view routes list
- Bus scanners not scanning properly
- App is lagging
- Cannot press 'continue' button after agreeing to terms
- Journey planner lost after boarding bus
- Apple Watch app not working
- Live bus times disappeared after latest update
- App size not fitting iPhone 12 mini
- App not working on latest Mac OS
- App shows only map and timetables
- Ticket activation issues
- App doesn't work without internet
- App doesn't orient on map
- Student verification issues
- App shows wrong arrival times (bus passes early)
- Mobile tickets open Apple Wallet
- App doesn't work on latest Mac OS
- Crashes on routes list
- Cannot search tickets easily
- App is a copy of another app
- Cannot press 'continue' button
- App is a joke, no other options
- Bad planning, not tested
- No option to rearrange favourites
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- No option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
Requested features
34 requests- Ability to rearrange favourites
- Setting to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Integration with Apple Wallet/Google Pay for bus passes
- Option to display cancelled buses in real-time
- Separate timetables for different route variations (e.g., 79 and 79a)
Show 29 moreShow fewer
- Map orientation to phone's direction
- Travel tickets available offline
- Apple Watch app functionality
- Return of live bus times after update
- Optimization for smaller phone screens
- 24-hour contact number for support
- Robin Hood style ticket across operators
- Option to buy tickets for someone else
- Improved search functionality for tickets
- Ability to see if specific buses are running late or cancelled
- User testing for route planning and directions
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
- Option to display time of day and minutes until next bus
Railcard
Reported bugs
3 issues- Railcard disappearing from app
- Download codes not working
- Incorrect/missing card details
Requested features
3 requests- Add to Apple Wallet
- Automatic renewal reminders
- Offline mode for digital cards
In-app purchases
NCTX Buses
No in-app purchases
Railcard
No in-app purchases
