NCTX Buses vs Carousel
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
Read full descriptionHide full description
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.
Carousel
Plan your bus journeys, purchase mobile tickets, and view live departures. Access timetables, track service disruptions, and save your favorite routes for easy access. Contactless payment options are available for your convenience.
- Mobile ticket purchasing
- Live departure information
- Journey planning
- Route timetables
- Contactless journey history
- Favorite routes
- Service disruption alerts
Read full descriptionHide full description
Our new app has everything you need to get around High Wycombe and Buckinghamshire with Carousel Buses. It’s packed full of everything you’ll need to get mobile 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. It’s now even easier to plan ahead with Carousel Buses. Timetables: We’ve squeezed all of our routes and timetables into the palm of your hand. Contactless Journeys: View the journeys you have made using your contactless cards and a breakdown of charges and savings. Favourites: 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 disruption feeds inside the app. As always, we welcome your feedback. You can send it to us via the app.
Screenshots
Verdict
NCTX Buses and Carousel both sit at 4.9 stars, but that hides the real split: 57% of NCTX Buses's written reviews are positive against 32% of Carousel's. NCTX Buses also leads on ratings volume (64 vs 3). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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 5.0 for Carousel. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NCTX Buses has 64 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 57% of NCTX Buses's written reviews are positive against 32% of Carousel's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | NCTX Buses | Carousel |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (64 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 57.4% of reviews — better | 32.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 64 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 41 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nottingham City Transport Ltd | The Go-Ahead Group plc |
Customer experience
NCTX Buses
Carousel
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
Carousel
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
NCTX Buses
No in-app purchases
Carousel
No in-app purchases
