Travel preferences of iOS vs Android users in UK

While the latest figures on the UK smartphone market* reveal the dominance of Android with a 51.9% market share over Apple (38.6% market share), it is not the case when it comes to travel.

The travel search engine gopili.co.uk analysed the searches made on its mobile website over the past 6 months to get some insights into the transport and travel preferences of Android and iOS users on the British market. It reveals that iPhone lovers travel more than Android users and tend to choose different destinations as well as more expensive transport options.

iOS may have less market share than Android in UK, but its users tend to travel 40% more

When looking at the number of iOS vs Android users searching for a transport ticket to travel over the last 6 months, weighted with the Android & Apple market share in UK, the study reveals that iOS users travel 40% more than Android ones.

iPhone users have more interest for European destinations. Favourite British seaside destinations: Blackpool for Android, Brighton for iOS.

In terms of domestic searches, London, Manchester & Birmingham are the top 3 destinations for both rankings while the most popular British seaside destination differs as iPhone lovers are more likely to visit Brighton while Android users prefer Blackpool.

Meanwhile, the first European destination is Paris, ranked seventh on the iOS ranking and ninth on the Android’s one. The difference in the ranking highlights another major result: iPhone owners have more interest for European destinations with 17% more searches than Android users to cities outside UK.

iPhone owners tend to travel more by train & plane than Android users

While the train is the favourite mode of transport for both iOS and Android users, the study reveals key differences regarding the transport preferences: iPhone owners opt more to travel by rail (55% vs 49%) or by plane (6% vs 4%) than Android owners. Those on Android tend to be more price sensitive and less affected by the duration of the journey as they will more easily consider travelling by coach (38% vs 31%) or ride share (9% vs 8%).

Yann Raoul, CEO of Gopili, commented “48% of our traffic come from Mobile devices and it has become primordial for online travel actors to understand the Mobile usage and behaviours of travellers. The study reveals key differences between iOS & Android users, especially regarding the mode of transport, pointing out the different expectations of travellers.”

About the study

All the data analysed are based on the searches made on gopili.co.uk over the last 6 months via Android and iOS phones as well as on the final chosen option for the journey: train, coach, plane and ride share. The data have been weighted with Android and iOS market share figures which are based on the latest research from Kantar Worldpanel Comtech for the UK market: 51.9% for Android, 38.6% for iOS.

Gopili aims to make the research of a transport ticket easy and relevant for travellers by providing journey times and prices in real-time on all transportation modes: train, coach, ride share and plane. With 3.5 million monthly visits across Europe, it provides a unique library of data to analyse transport & travel trends. In December 2015, Gopili launched its mobile apps for iOS and Android users.