Android vs iOS - Difference and Comparison

Google's Android and Apple's iOS are operating systems used primarily in mobile technology, such as smartphones and tablets. Android, which is Linux-based and partly open source, is more PC-like than iOS, in that its interface and basic features are generally more customizable from top to bottom. However, iOS' uniform design elements are sometimes seen as being more user-friendly.

You should choose your smartphone and tablet systems carefully, as switching from iOS to Android or vice versa will require you to buy apps again in the Google Play or Apple App Store. Android is now the world’s most commonly used smartphone platform and is used by many different phone manufacturers. iOS is only used on Apple devices, such as the iPhone.

(3166 ratings)DeveloperVarious, mostly Google and Open Handset AllianceApple Inc.Initial releaseSeptember 23, 2008July 29, 2007First versionAndroid 1.0, AlphaiPhone OS 1, before named iOSLatest stable release and UpdatesAndroid 10 (September 3, 2019)iOS 13.3.1 and iPadOS 13.3.1 (January 28, 2020)Working stateCurrentCurrentCustomizabilityA lot. Can change almost anything.Limited unless jailbrokenSource modelOpen sourceClosed, with open source components.File transferEasier than iOS. Using USB port and Android File Transfer desktop app. Photos can be transferred via USB without apps.More difficult. Media files can be transferred using iTunes desktop app. Photos can be transferred out via USB without apps.WidgetsYes, except on lockscreenNo, except in Notification CenterInternet browsingGoogle Chrome (other browsers are available). Any browser app can be set as default.Safari (Other browsers are available but not as default)Web mapping serviceGoogle MapsApple Maps, default as of iOS 6 (Google Maps also available via a separate app download, but not as default, formerly used in iOS 5 and older)Available language(s)100+ Languages34 LanguagesVideo chatGoogle Duo and other 3rd party appsFaceTime (Apple devices only) and other 3rd party appsVirtual assistantGoogle AssistantSiriAvailable onMany phones and tablets. Major manufacturers such as Samsung, Oppo, OnePlus, Vivo, Honor and Xiaomi. Android One devices are pure Android. Pixel line of devices is made by Google, using a almost pure version of AndroidiPod Touch, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV (2nd and 3rd generation)Calls and messagingGoogle Messages. 3rd party apps like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Google Duo, Discord and Skype all work on Android and iOS both.iMessage, FaceTime (with other Apple devices only). 3rd party apps like Google Hangouts, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Google Duo, Discord and Skype all work on Android and iOS both.App store , Affordability and interfaceGoogle Play Store – 2,000,000+ apps. Other app stores like Amazon and Aptoide also distribute Android apps. (".APKs"). Apps containing virus rare, but existing.Apple App Store – 1,000,000+ apps. Apps containing virus very rare or nonexistent.Alternative app stores and side loadingSeveral alternative app stores other than the official Google Play Store. (e.g. Aptoide, Galaxy Apps)Apple blocks 3rd party app stores. The phone needs to be jailbroken if you want to download apps from other stores.Battery life and managementMany but not all Android phone manufacturers equip their devices with large batteries with a longer life.Apple batteries are generally not as big as the largest Android batteries. However, Apple is able to squeeze decent battery life via hardware/software optimizations.Open sourceKernel (Based on Linux), UI, and some standard appsThe iOS kernel is not open source but is based on the open-source Darwin OS.File managerYes. (Stock Android File Manager included on devices running Android 7.1.1)Files app, limited and less useful (iOS 12).Photos & Videos backupApps available for automatic backup of photos and videos. Google Photos allows unlimited backup of photos at a compressed quality. OneDrive, Amazon Photos and Dropbox are other alternatives.Up to 5 GB of photos and videos can be automatically back up with iCloud, more paid iCloud storage available via subscription. All other vendors like Google, Amazon, Dropbox, Flickr and Microsoft have auto-backup apps for both iOS and Android.SecurityMonthly security updates. Android software patches are available soonest to Pixel device users. Manufacturers tend to lag behind in pushing out these updates. So at any given time a vast majority of Android devices are running outdated OS software.Occasional security updates. Security threats rare, because iOS is locked and downloading apps out of the App Store is complicated.Rooting, bootloaders, and jailbreakingAccess and complete control over your device is available and you can unlock the bootloader.Complete control over your device is not available.Cloud servicesNative integration with Google Drive storage. 15GB free, $2/mo for 100GB, 1TB for $10. Apps available for Amazon Photos, OneDrive and Dropbox.Native integration with iCloud. 5GB free, 50GB for $1/mo, 200GB for $3/mo, 1TB for $10/mo. Apps available for Google Drive and Google Photos, Amazon Photos, OneDrive and Dropbox.InterfaceTouch ScreenTouch ScreenBiometric AuthenticationFingerprint and/or Face Authentication. Availability depends on manufacturer's hardware.Fingerprint or Face Authentication. Touch ID available on iPhone (5s and later) and iPad (Air 2 and later) but not on iPhone X or later. Face ID available on iPhone X and later, replacing Touch IDOS familyLinuxOS X, UNIXHeadphone JackSome current Android smartphones and many don't.None on iPhone 7 and later, lighting to 3.5mm no longer comes with phone after iPhone XS

Detailed comparison continued below.

Interface

iOS and Android both use touch interfaces that have a lot in common - swiping, tapping and pinch-and-zoom. Both operating systems boot to a homescreen, which is similar to a computer desktop. While an iOS home screen only contains rows of app icons, Android allows the use of widgets, which display auto-updating information such as weather and email. The iOS user interface features a dock where users can pin their most frequently used applications.

A status bar runs across the top on both iOS and Android, offering information such the time, WiFi or cell signal, and battery life; on Android the status bar also shows the number of newly received emails, messages and reminders.

A comparison of some of the features of the upcoming Android N (Nougat) and iOS 10 is here. Android N highlights include:

• split screen (even on phones that aren't large)

• display size setting to not only zoom in but also zoom out to make the most of the screen real estate

• customize which buttons/settings are available in the quick settings launcher

• support for Google Daydream, a virtual reality platform

To see how the current versions — Android Marshmallow and iOS 9 — compare, watch the video below:

For a similar comparison of Android Lollipop and iOS 8, watch this video. Many different manufacturers make Android phones and they often include some customization over the vanilla Android experience. e.g. HTC Sense or Samsung TouchWiz. Depending upon your device and carrier, there may be pre-installed apps that are bundled with your Android device.

User experience

Pfeiffer Report released in September 2013 rates iOS significantly better than Android on cognitive load and user friction.

The overall rating of user experience of mobile operating systems, Pfeiffer Report

Apps Available on iOS vs. Android

Android gets apps from Google Play, which currently has 600,000 apps available, most of which will run on tablets. However, some Android devices, such as the Kindle Fire, use separate app stores that have a smaller selection of apps available. Many originally iOS-only apps are now available for Android, including Instagram and Pinterest, and Google’s more open app-store means other exclusive apps are also available, including Adobe Flash Player and BitTorrent. Android also offers access to Google-based apps, such as Youtube and Google Docs.

The Apple app store currently offers 700,000 apps, 250,000 of which are available for the iPad. Most developers prefer to develop games for iOS before they develop for Android. Since a recent update, the Youtube app has become unavailable on iOS, but iOS still offers some exclusive apps, including the popular game Infinity Blade and Twitter client Tweetbot.

The bottomline when comparing Google and Apple's app stores is that most popular apps are available for both platforms. But for tablets, there are more apps designed specifically for the iPad while Android tablet apps are often scaled up versions of Android smartphone apps. Developers at startups often focus on one platform (usually iOS) when they first launch their smartphone app because they do not have resources to serve multiple platforms from the get go. For example, the popular Instagram app started with iOS and their Android app came much later.

Stability of Apps and the Operating System

The Crittercism Mobile Experience Report published in March 2014 ranked Android KitKat as more stable than iOS 7.1. Other findings from the report include:

• Android 2.3 Gingerbread has the highest total crash rate, at 1.7%. Other versions of Android — Ice Cream Sandwich, Jelly Bean, and KitKat — have a crash rate of 0.7%.

• iOs 7.1 has a crash rate of 1.6%., and the rates for iOS 7.0 and iOS 5 are 2.1% and 2.5% respectively.

• Phone versions of both Android and iOS are more stable than their tablet versions.

• Crash rates for apps vary by category — games are most likely to crash (4.4% crash rate) and e-commerce apps have the lowest crash rate of 0.4%.

Speed

An iPhone 6s handily beat a Samsung Galaxy Note 7 in on speed test that involved opening several apps one by one, cycling through a set of apps twice. The same set of apps were used for both devices. The iPhone was able to complete two laps in 1m21s while it took the Galaxy Note 2m4s to finish the same task. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 boasts better hardware specs and is a much newer phone compared with the iPhone 6s.

However, it should be noted that the difference could be in how app publishers develop their apps for Android vs. iOS. Just because the same apps are on both platforms does not mean their internal workings are the same.

Software upgrades

Although Google does update Android frequently, some users may find that they do not receive the updates on their phone, or even purchase phones with out-of-date software. Phone manufacturers decide whether and when to offer software upgrades. They may not offer an upgrade to the latest version of Android for all the phones and tablets in their product line. Even when an upgrade is offered, it is usually several months after the new version of Android has been released.

This is one area where iOS users have an advantage. iOS upgrades are generally available to all iOS devices. There could be exceptions for devices older than three years, or for certain features like Siri, which was available for iPhone 4S users but not for older versions of iPhone. Apple cites hardware capability as the reason some older devices may not receive all new features in an upgrade.

Device Selection

A wide variety of Android devices are available at many different price points, sizes and hardware capabilities.

iOS is only available on Apple devices: the iPhone as a phone, the iPad as a tablet, and the iPod Touch as an MP3 player. These tend to be more expensive than equivalent hardware using Android.

Call Features

Android allows the user to send one of a number of self-composed texts as autoreplies when declining a call.

iOS’s phone app has many abilities, including the ability to reply to a phonecall with a canned text message instead of answering, or to set a callback reminder. It also has a Do Not Disturb mode.