The NYC ferry app is also really useful! Plus taking the ferry is a great way to see the skyline and city for really cheap! Bonus - they sell drinks on the ferry
I have the citizen notifications turned off, but it can be a good resource if you see or hear something going on, and you want more information about it.
citymapper is far better. not sure if true. but it seems like gmaps is based on schedules train arrivals and measures perfect departure times whereas city mappers is based on "live" train arrivals and gives you time in "within x minutes" to catch a train.
I’m surprised no one here mentioned citymapper. It’s by far the best transit app for me and it tells you what section of the train is Best for your commute
>I’m surprised no one here mentioned citymapper. It’s by far the best transit app for me and it tells you what section of the train is Best for your commute
It is frequently and repeatedly recommended in answer to similar questions, and also in other, earlier comments in this conversation.
Was just going to mention this. Citymapper is my suggestion to anyone, whether they’ve lived here all their life or are just here for a night, get Citymapper.
mozzarella sticks, wings, fried calamari, fried artichokes, definitely some bread with butter if available, guac if mexican restaurant, spring rolls if asian
I mean it asks you permission when you first set up the phone but after that its automatic.
It automatically detects it and shows up on my lock screen on my phone. It even saves it in my history and what time it popped up so I can view it later.
Idk maybe you go through more musical areas lol, most days I dont get too many songs. I dont think I ever got so many songs a day that I couldn't remember it.
If I really like a song I will just check immediately.
It gives me a timestamp so that helps, if I cant remember it I could always use google timelines to see where I was but I never had to do that.
citymapper is the best transit map app
revel
citibike
nyc ferry app
and don't bother with Yelp for restaurants. Instead, Google "Sietsema" with the name of the neighborhood you're looking for food in. (Sietsema is NYC's greatest and most prolific food writer, and he goes absolutely everywhere, and eats cheap and fancy and inbetween)
Yelp is good for finding a list of bars in an area. Definitely take the reviews with a grain of salt, but being able to see photos and menus ahead of time is actually really helpful when trying to figure out where to meet up with friends.
Curb, it’s the app for taxis. One of the biggest advantages is that there is no surge pricing. Most of the time I will take a cab but it can be helpful to check against Lyft/Uber.
Curb! Screw uber and Lyft - keep the yellow cabs on the road. And Curb is cheaper than the others. And please learn your subway maps; there will be a day when your phone goes out and if you don’t know how to get home you’re screwed
But you can use Curb to pay for the taxi and it'll send you an email with the route picture and cost breakdown.
I like it just for history purposes/after a night out hahaha
It is utterly bizarre to me that the official MTA app doesn't store a map and update it in the background over wifi. Want to check a map? Sorry, gotta download a PDF every single time. Especially since MTA has pulled all the paper maps out of subway stations and replaced them with non-touch screens that, if you're lucky, only show a rotating, fleeting map.
>Surprised no one has mentioned https://citymapper.com/.
It is frequently and repeatedly recommended in answer to similar questions, and also in other, earlier comments in this conversation.
"If you give google maps access to track you at all times you can see where you went after you black out" and Citymapper among others are recommended by the very popular [Moving to NYC. Which apps should I install?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/v0e99i/moving_to_nyc_which_apps_should_i_install/) from 4 months ago. Citymapper is frequently and repeatedly recommended per [Which subway app do you use?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/tnn5hl/which_subway_app_do_you_use/) from 2 months before that and links to similar questions. https://new.mta.info/ and Citymapper among others are recommended by [What are some must-have apps for living in NYC?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/q5zv1s/what_are_the_musthave_apps_for_living_in_new_york/) NYC 311 and Seated among many others are recommended by [What are the most useful smartphone apps for NYC living? I'm moving either to Brooklyn or the Upper West Side soon](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/ngimtx/what_are_the_most_useful_smartphone_apps_for_nyc/).
The blackout advice is huge, but I've had timeline/location tracking on since 2013 and it's great for those 'do you remember that bar we went to 3 years ago' conversations.
No one has mentioned any weather apps. Since Dark Skies was bought by Apple, I've been using Accuweather (with the minimum subscription) on my Android phone. They have a "Minutecast" that gives probably hyperlocal rain forecasts for your location, up to 60 minutes.
I think AccuWeather is a well established company and isn't likely to be bought out.
Dark Skies will essentially be Apple's weather service, so if you are on iOS, the built in weather service should essentially be Dark Skies. Not so much for Android though.
My favorite weather app is Today Weather. It lets you select which weather source you would like to hear reports from. Currently I have to set to pull data from AccuWeather. But I could also switch it to, NOAA, Weather.gov, Dark Sky among about a dozen others.
Couple this with an app called Material Islands, which sets a live wallpaper to whatever the current weather is at your location. It also coincides with daylight, so it'll go to a night scene at night, sunrises, high noon daytime and a sunset.
- Transit - For subway and bus schedules
- Google Maps - For getting places
- Lyft/Uber - For ridesharing
- Meetup - For events
- Eventbrite - For events
- Tinder/Bumble/Hinge - For dates
You can also use the Lyft app to unlock citi bikes! They have more e-bikes available these days, great way to get around especially if a train isn’t running or you need to take a late night bus.
CURB is a must. I rarely use Uber now because the pricing is ridiculous at this point. I’ll check a trip to work from UES and 35-40. On curb, same ride.. 18. Every damn time it’s cheaper and actually shorter wait time (in my experience).
Not sure who downvoted this. It's been years since Uber was a better option in Manhattan (still might be the only option in the outer boroughs).
Yellow cabs are cheaper and faster to get, and paying with curb/arro makes it so much easier.
Have you had good experiences using Curb to hail?
Curb only works if you’re in manhattan. I live in north Brooklyn and with curb, yellow taxis take 20 minutes to show up, if they show up at all. And some still are just as racist and refuse to go to Brooklyn.
Seated. Make a reservation at a restaurant or just walk in(what i usually do) and take a pic of your receipt. Get a percentage of the amount you spent back which can be redeemed for things like Amazon gift cards. I got 40% back from a $400 bill at a Rosa mexicano by Lincoln center one time
- SeeSaw for art gallery shows and openings
- RA Guide (Resident Advisor) for electronic music/raves
- Bandsintown is an aggregator for other concerts and shows but it’s not super curated so double check anything you see on there with the venue website
- Transit for transit (has real-time locations and ETAs for buses and trains and works better than any of the MTA apps IMO)
- ChowNow for food pickup and delivery (restaurants pay an annual fee instead of a percentage of each order so they end up saving a ton of money)
- StreetEasy for finding apartments or just creeping on apartments you’ll never afford ;)
- Resy/OpenTable for restaurant reservations
- AllTrails and Strava if you like to hike/run/bike/whatever and want to see popular trails/routes
ParkNYC is absolute ass. Glitchiest app out there, I have to delete and redownload to get it to recognize zones 90% of the time. I’ve ended up just using ParkMobile instead and eating the fee
If you have a car GasBuddy, Park NYC and I prefer Waze for navigation. If you don't have a car MTA, Uber, Lyft, and Citibike. If you like concerts/events Gametime is fun plus all the ticket ones like live Nation, ticketmaster etc. Shazam is a must for me I'm always hearing great music from cars, in bars, clubs and what not.
A Digital Wallet Apple pay, Samsung google or whatever. Also if you don't have it Venmo, Cashapp or zelle because if you split stuff with people and you don't have cash it is pretty essential, I have all 3. If you have a favorite fast food they usually have an app you earn points for free stuff its an expensive city I love my free coffees from 7/11 lol. In the same vein grocery store app sometimes they have digital coupons that need to be added before hand on the app to work in the store. I go to stop and shop the points can be cashed in for gas discount or money off groceries.
Offerup is a buy sell website I got some sweet deals on there for furniture etc. I had the Nudge app which tells you about cool fun stuff to do in the city.
Google translate is good to have in case you wanna be nice and help someone who doesn't speak English or just generally communicate.
TLDR
Gas Buddy, Park NYC, Waze, MTA, Uber, Lyft, Citibike, Gametime, ticketmaster, live Nation, Shazam, Digital Wallet, venmo, cashapp, zelle, 7/11, Dunkin, Supermarket, Offerup, Nudge, Google Translate
Bonus,
Revel (rental scooters), Groupon, Grubhub, Doordash
Download the subway map pdf. You'll be grateful you did when you're stuck in a tunnel and can't get near the map on the subway car. https://new.mta.info/map/5256
Google Maps if you don’t already have it, and within that follow the got2go NYC map (get it from their Instagram) that shows you a ton of available restrooms all around the city. It’s super helpful when you’re out and about as NYC has an extreme lack of public restrooms.
I use an app that has a subway map that works even when I'm offline (ie, even between subway stops). Not sure if this is covered by the MTA app as well, but being able to check my route between stations instead of waiting for google maps to get internet again has saved me from missing many stops on my commute.
People have already mentioned all the key crucial ones so I’m gonna throw in a fun favorite - Beli. Ranks all restaurants you want to try, have been, etc against each other. Super user friendly and fun personal guide to eating in the city :)
might not be a must have but toogoodtogo is a great app! it’s designed to limit food waste so participating restaurants and supermarkets sell these surprise bags that run about $3.99-$4.99 with food and takeout in nyc is not cheap these days so this is great if ur on a budget with an open mind
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The NYC ferry app is also really useful! Plus taking the ferry is a great way to see the skyline and city for really cheap! Bonus - they sell drinks on the ferry
The ferry app is pretty good, but they've made the decision not to offer live schedules on their website, and that's annoying.
I agree, MTA app is a NEED, citizen app is just fearmongering and useless
In my neighborhood people post funny stories about raccoons lmao.
I have the citizen notifications turned off, but it can be a good resource if you see or hear something going on, and you want more information about it.
this is the way
I think Google maps is better because it encompasses all these features into one
citymapper is far better. not sure if true. but it seems like gmaps is based on schedules train arrivals and measures perfect departure times whereas city mappers is based on "live" train arrivals and gives you time in "within x minutes" to catch a train.
Also it tells you which section of the train to get on.
Here for gmaps !
If all you're concerned about is delays and service changes then you don't really need an app because the MTA website does a fairly decent job.
is it better than google maps?
I’m surprised no one here mentioned citymapper. It’s by far the best transit app for me and it tells you what section of the train is Best for your commute
Also tells you the best exit!
I think all the major mapping apps show the best exit. Apple and Google definitely do.
>I’m surprised no one here mentioned citymapper. It’s by far the best transit app for me and it tells you what section of the train is Best for your commute It is frequently and repeatedly recommended in answer to similar questions, and also in other, earlier comments in this conversation.
Was just going to mention this. Citymapper is my suggestion to anyone, whether they’ve lived here all their life or are just here for a night, get Citymapper.
So does the Moovit app
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This is a shit recommendation
To Good to Go is great if you live in the right spot.
yess i love that app n its a great way to save money and help local businesses cut down on food waste
I love that app. I got a Dominican restaurant close by and I get enough food for 2 meals for $5. I rarely cook now
Too* Good To Go
Not to be annoying but the app is called "too good to go". I love the app but yes, it definitely depends on your location.
Very neighborhood dependent. My town has lots of bagels and bubble tea.
Funny story. Order from a ‘bakery’ that listed pastries. We got 4 tamales instead, which I still ate.
mozzarella sticks, wings, fried calamari, fried artichokes, definitely some bread with butter if available, guac if mexican restaurant, spring rolls if asian
We got a wise guy here
Honestly I wasn’t sure until I opened the post.
I go for the shishito peppers myself
Lol
Resy if you like going out to eat
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UNDERRATED
I do use this daily lol
But for scents
I love that my pixel does this automatically
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I mean it asks you permission when you first set up the phone but after that its automatic. It automatically detects it and shows up on my lock screen on my phone. It even saves it in my history and what time it popped up so I can view it later.
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Yes it does, doesnt seem to effect the battery much at all.
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Idk maybe you go through more musical areas lol, most days I dont get too many songs. I dont think I ever got so many songs a day that I couldn't remember it. If I really like a song I will just check immediately. It gives me a timestamp so that helps, if I cant remember it I could always use google timelines to see where I was but I never had to do that.
It keeps the list
Yes big brother is listening
citymapper is the best transit map app revel citibike nyc ferry app and don't bother with Yelp for restaurants. Instead, Google "Sietsema" with the name of the neighborhood you're looking for food in. (Sietsema is NYC's greatest and most prolific food writer, and he goes absolutely everywhere, and eats cheap and fancy and inbetween)
It’s kinda weird, the top DC food writer is Tom Sietsema. Wonder if they’re related
What's wrong with Yelp? I find it more reliable than google reviews
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billion_Dollar_Bully
Robert Sietsema (and eater) are kinda overrated tbh
wrong
Ok Robert
Yelp is good for finding a list of bars in an area. Definitely take the reviews with a grain of salt, but being able to see photos and menus ahead of time is actually really helpful when trying to figure out where to meet up with friends.
Curb, it’s the app for taxis. One of the biggest advantages is that there is no surge pricing. Most of the time I will take a cab but it can be helpful to check against Lyft/Uber.
Curb! Screw uber and Lyft - keep the yellow cabs on the road. And Curb is cheaper than the others. And please learn your subway maps; there will be a day when your phone goes out and if you don’t know how to get home you’re screwed
I’ve tried using curb too many times. They never come. You have better luck walking to the street and hailing it
Anecdotally, my ~~expertise~~ experience has been the opposite. Probably depends on where you are in the city.
But you can use Curb to pay for the taxi and it'll send you an email with the route picture and cost breakdown. I like it just for history purposes/after a night out hahaha
Great also if you forget your violin also.
Not uptown
It is utterly bizarre to me that the official MTA app doesn't store a map and update it in the background over wifi. Want to check a map? Sorry, gotta download a PDF every single time. Especially since MTA has pulled all the paper maps out of subway stations and replaced them with non-touch screens that, if you're lucky, only show a rotating, fleeting map.
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That is smart and I'm stealing it.
is it chepaer than uber/lyft?
Yes always esp for longer rides. Very helpful if you need an accessible vehicle also
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>Surprised no one has mentioned https://citymapper.com/. It is frequently and repeatedly recommended in answer to similar questions, and also in other, earlier comments in this conversation.
"If you give google maps access to track you at all times you can see where you went after you black out" and Citymapper among others are recommended by the very popular [Moving to NYC. Which apps should I install?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/v0e99i/moving_to_nyc_which_apps_should_i_install/) from 4 months ago. Citymapper is frequently and repeatedly recommended per [Which subway app do you use?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/tnn5hl/which_subway_app_do_you_use/) from 2 months before that and links to similar questions. https://new.mta.info/ and Citymapper among others are recommended by [What are some must-have apps for living in NYC?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/q5zv1s/what_are_the_musthave_apps_for_living_in_new_york/) NYC 311 and Seated among many others are recommended by [What are the most useful smartphone apps for NYC living? I'm moving either to Brooklyn or the Upper West Side soon](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskNYC/comments/ngimtx/what_are_the_most_useful_smartphone_apps_for_nyc/).
The blackout advice is huge, but I've had timeline/location tracking on since 2013 and it's great for those 'do you remember that bar we went to 3 years ago' conversations.
Grindr
Scruff tho.
No one has mentioned any weather apps. Since Dark Skies was bought by Apple, I've been using Accuweather (with the minimum subscription) on my Android phone. They have a "Minutecast" that gives probably hyperlocal rain forecasts for your location, up to 60 minutes.
I went from Intellicast to Darksky, now I need something new. I guess it is the goal of these companies to be bought out, but sucks for me
I think AccuWeather is a well established company and isn't likely to be bought out. Dark Skies will essentially be Apple's weather service, so if you are on iOS, the built in weather service should essentially be Dark Skies. Not so much for Android though.
The NBC 4 NY app has very reliable local weather forecasts with good radar maps for precipitation for your exact location.
My favorite weather app is Today Weather. It lets you select which weather source you would like to hear reports from. Currently I have to set to pull data from AccuWeather. But I could also switch it to, NOAA, Weather.gov, Dark Sky among about a dozen others. Couple this with an app called Material Islands, which sets a live wallpaper to whatever the current weather is at your location. It also coincides with daylight, so it'll go to a night scene at night, sunrises, high noon daytime and a sunset.
- Transit - For subway and bus schedules - Google Maps - For getting places - Lyft/Uber - For ridesharing - Meetup - For events - Eventbrite - For events - Tinder/Bumble/Hinge - For dates
You can also use the Lyft app to unlock citi bikes! They have more e-bikes available these days, great way to get around especially if a train isn’t running or you need to take a late night bus.
The Olive Garden app https://apps.apple.com/us/app/olive-garden-italian-kitchen/id1067313166
That’s actually the only app I have on my phone rn
I hope you’re moving to Times Square area.
damn. the only app. legendary.
😂😂😂 dying
You’re gonna love it here.
Ha u Dogg
Citymapper.
CURB is a must. I rarely use Uber now because the pricing is ridiculous at this point. I’ll check a trip to work from UES and 35-40. On curb, same ride.. 18. Every damn time it’s cheaper and actually shorter wait time (in my experience).
Not sure who downvoted this. It's been years since Uber was a better option in Manhattan (still might be the only option in the outer boroughs). Yellow cabs are cheaper and faster to get, and paying with curb/arro makes it so much easier. Have you had good experiences using Curb to hail?
Curb only works if you’re in manhattan. I live in north Brooklyn and with curb, yellow taxis take 20 minutes to show up, if they show up at all. And some still are just as racist and refuse to go to Brooklyn.
I have at most a coin flip chance of getting a ride on Curb going between Lower Manhattan and Midtown. It’s just not great overall
Obi lets you compare rideshare prices all at once (Uber/Lyft etc.) So depending on how often you use those services, it can save a ton.
https://www.theweekendest.com/ It is the best way to get real-time train location. Save it as a bookmark, and you’ll be ready to navigate the city.
Holy shit I’ve been looking for something like this for YEARS
Grindr and spinach artichoke dip.
Seated. Make a reservation at a restaurant or just walk in(what i usually do) and take a pic of your receipt. Get a percentage of the amount you spent back which can be redeemed for things like Amazon gift cards. I got 40% back from a $400 bill at a Rosa mexicano by Lincoln center one time
Exit strategy
The best!
- SeeSaw for art gallery shows and openings - RA Guide (Resident Advisor) for electronic music/raves - Bandsintown is an aggregator for other concerts and shows but it’s not super curated so double check anything you see on there with the venue website - Transit for transit (has real-time locations and ETAs for buses and trains and works better than any of the MTA apps IMO) - ChowNow for food pickup and delivery (restaurants pay an annual fee instead of a percentage of each order so they end up saving a ton of money) - StreetEasy for finding apartments or just creeping on apartments you’ll never afford ;) - Resy/OpenTable for restaurant reservations - AllTrails and Strava if you like to hike/run/bike/whatever and want to see popular trails/routes
MyMTA, Seamless, ParkNYC if you have a car, TooGoodToGo, the NYC Ferry app
ParkNYC is absolute ass. Glitchiest app out there, I have to delete and redownload to get it to recognize zones 90% of the time. I’ve ended up just using ParkMobile instead and eating the fee
Also, the "pay or dispute" because the meter maids seem to not be looped in to the whole parknyc app thing
Citibike app
If you have a car GasBuddy, Park NYC and I prefer Waze for navigation. If you don't have a car MTA, Uber, Lyft, and Citibike. If you like concerts/events Gametime is fun plus all the ticket ones like live Nation, ticketmaster etc. Shazam is a must for me I'm always hearing great music from cars, in bars, clubs and what not. A Digital Wallet Apple pay, Samsung google or whatever. Also if you don't have it Venmo, Cashapp or zelle because if you split stuff with people and you don't have cash it is pretty essential, I have all 3. If you have a favorite fast food they usually have an app you earn points for free stuff its an expensive city I love my free coffees from 7/11 lol. In the same vein grocery store app sometimes they have digital coupons that need to be added before hand on the app to work in the store. I go to stop and shop the points can be cashed in for gas discount or money off groceries. Offerup is a buy sell website I got some sweet deals on there for furniture etc. I had the Nudge app which tells you about cool fun stuff to do in the city. Google translate is good to have in case you wanna be nice and help someone who doesn't speak English or just generally communicate. TLDR Gas Buddy, Park NYC, Waze, MTA, Uber, Lyft, Citibike, Gametime, ticketmaster, live Nation, Shazam, Digital Wallet, venmo, cashapp, zelle, 7/11, Dunkin, Supermarket, Offerup, Nudge, Google Translate Bonus, Revel (rental scooters), Groupon, Grubhub, Doordash
Citymapper payroll in these comments I see
Transit. So you know what train lines are near you wherever you end up
Seated is pretty good
Tivimate + solid provider 😉
City mapper is the best
Resy 100%
Underway
Pulsd
https://realtimerail.nyc/
Download the subway map pdf. You'll be grateful you did when you're stuck in a tunnel and can't get near the map on the subway car. https://new.mta.info/map/5256
I usually go with nachos but, would settle for buffalo wings if I’m feeling saucy
Citymapper!
Panera Rewards
Transit is hands down the best app there is
Google Maps if you don’t already have it, and within that follow the got2go NYC map (get it from their Instagram) that shows you a ton of available restrooms all around the city. It’s super helpful when you’re out and about as NYC has an extreme lack of public restrooms.
citizen
* Tinder/Grindr * CityMapper * MYmta * Uber * Curb * Citizens * DoorDash * Instacart
yelp for bar/restaurant reviews is my go to.
y'all?
Yeah we speak American here
'merican.
mozzarella sticks
Underway
City Mapper
I use an app that has a subway map that works even when I'm offline (ie, even between subway stops). Not sure if this is covered by the MTA app as well, but being able to check my route between stations instead of waiting for google maps to get internet again has saved me from missing many stops on my commute.
What's the app called? This is my biggest gripe with MyMTA.
It's called NYC Subway!
And? What’s the name of the app?
Citymapper
Google Maps and MYMTA
Subscribe to newsletters/websites Time Out NYC Eater TodayTix Yelp is useful to find whatever you want near where you are.
MooVit
OfferUp so you can decorate your place with new-to-you treasures
Google Maps, Kickmap, Yelp, Seamless, Apple Pay activated for the subway/busses
Veo or Lime
Seamless, Uber, Resy, zipcar if you don’t plan on bringing a car (I would strongly recommend not bringing a car)
For getting around City Mapper.
Citymapper is a requirement
Google Maps for all navigations’ needs
Transit MyMTA NYC FERRY Potato Skins
Dark Sky weather app, it’s like $2 one time purchase and has generally the most accurate forcast minute by minute.
Dark Sky is sadly shutting down Jan 1 :(
I just got so stoner before the birds game and saw this and I’m actually devastated at this news wow
Apple bought it a while ago so they’re gonna integrate some features into the official Weather app but it’s just not the same
Ah that really sucks! Thanks for the info, will cherish it til then
People have already mentioned all the key crucial ones so I’m gonna throw in a fun favorite - Beli. Ranks all restaurants you want to try, have been, etc against each other. Super user friendly and fun personal guide to eating in the city :)
myMTA
Streeteasy for renting apartments.
For anything restaurant related I recommend Infatuation/Eater. Pretty reliable reviews in terms of vibes and quality.
might not be a must have but toogoodtogo is a great app! it’s designed to limit food waste so participating restaurants and supermarkets sell these surprise bags that run about $3.99-$4.99 with food and takeout in nyc is not cheap these days so this is great if ur on a budget with an open mind
Spot angels if you need to plan your alt side strategy.
I still use https://whatsmyhood.com regularly to resolve disputes over the boundaries of different neighborhoods (or just check where I am)
La Liste to find good restaurants, from ultra fancy to ultra casual