iOS vs Android: Similarities, Differences, and which is better

Apple iOS vs Android: iOS and Android are two different operating systems (OS) uses in mobile devices. Apple Inc. develops iOS while Google develops Android. This is just about the first and primary difference between these two OS. Android and iOS users are always going at each other as to which is better and this is why comparisons such as this exist.

So, in this iOS vs Android comparison, I’ll be sharing some similarities (if there are any), and the differences, and also let you know which is the better mobile operating system. To be fair, I’ll highlight key areas where one OS is better than the other at the end of this post.

I’ll also be sharing a summary table detailing the differences between the iOS and Android operating systems. There are a few things that make an OS good. And these things include security, user experience, interface, privacy, software updates, etc.

iOS vs Android

Developer, Availability, and Users

Apple Inc is the developer of iOS and it’s only available on Apple iPhones. While Google is the developer of Android but is open source and available to any phone manufacturer. And this is why there are more Android devices and Android users than there are iOS and iPhone users.

According to Statcounter, 72.11% of people use Android OS while 27.22% of people use Apple iOS Globally. This means that the users of Android are more than twice the users of iOS.

Global phone shipment 2022 — *Global phone shipments 2022 (stat: COUNTERPOINT)*

This is not shocking as more Android devices are shipped out each year compared to iOS devices. There are more than 10 phone manufacturers that ship millions of Android devices each year. According to a report by COUNTERPOINT, Apple Inc shipments market share in the first quarter of 2022 was 18% while Samsung alone shipped 23% within the same period (Samsung phones run on Android OS).

So, when you include other Android phone makers like Xiaomi, vivo, OnePlus, OPPO, etc, you’ll see that the Android OS is readily more available than the Apple iOS.

User Experience

The interface of an OS shows how advanced and how good an operating system is. The design of icons, the animations, and the navigation all play important roles in liking an OS. And the major difference between iOS and Android when it comes to user experience is an icon.

The icons on the Apple iOS are bigger than those on the Google Android OS. Although starting with Android 12, Google slightly increased the size of icons but overall iOS still have bigger icons. Aside from big icons, iOS starting from iOS 15 also make use of widgets more.

Even the incoming Apple iOS 16 brings lots of widgets customization for the iPhones. To match this, Google launched “Material You” starting from Android 12. With Material You, users can easily customize the Android OS to have a uniform color. The icon and other graphics will change to the color of your theme or wallpaper.

One major advantage of the Android OIS over the iOS when it comes to user experience is navigation. Android OS has support for navigation buttons that allows you to minimize, go directly home, or go back to the previous menu. But, Apple iOS does not have support for users to navigate all the way back as the android OS does.

Software Release

Apple Inc. likes to release a new iOS update anytime it launches new Apple iPhones. So, a new iOS software update is usually available for download starting from September every year. On the other hand, Google likes to release a new Android OS around August. So, starting a new Android software update is usually available for download starting from August every year.

However, Apple Inc. is quicker at pushing new iOS updates to its users because the company owns the software and iPhone. On the contrary, now all Android users get new Android OS updates because most Android phone makers won’t even push the latest Android OS to their users. If you need regular Android OS updates, then you should buy a Samsung phone or a Google Pixel phone.

Security

Generally, the Android OS and Apple iOS are secure operating systems. But, the differences are seen when pushing out security updates and external software downloads. Google does not push security updates for Android-powered smartphones. It’s left for the phone makers to push out these monthly security updates or security patches.

In some cases, most of these Android makers don’t make these monthly security updates available for users. This is not the case for Apple iOS. Apple iPhone users will often get software updates to improve the security of the iPhone. Samsung and Google provide better software update plans for Android users. Another reason why iOS is more secure than Android is the restriction of downloads from external or unknown sources.

Android allows its users to download and install apps from outside the Google Play Store which is good for flexibility but can also be dangerous. This freedom means users can download malware or harmful apps on their Android devices. On the contrary, it is near impossible for iOS users to download apps from outside the Apple App Store. This restriction makes it possible for iOS users to download and install apps vetted by Apple as safe.

Privacy

The Apple iOS and Google Android have respect for your privacy. In fact, while I was doing this iOS vs Android research, I found out that iOS and Android are very similar when it comes to user privacy. The similarity in privacy started with Android 12 and iOS 15.

Both iOS and Android have dashboards for users to track and monitor which apps have access to which data on their phones. Users can also decide to restrict apps that frequently have access to data and even block these apps from accessing these data.

Below is the summary table of the similarities and differences between the Apple iOS and Google Android

iOS vs Android: Similarities and Differences

Features	iOS	Android
Developer	Apple (not open source)	Google (but open source)
Latest version	Apple iOS 15	Android 13
First version Release Date	Appl iOS 1 (June 29, 2007)	Android 1.0 (Sep 23, 2008)
Languages	40 languages	100+ languages
Virtual Asst.	Siri	Google Assistant
App Store	Apple App Store (1.8M+ Apps available)	Google Play Store (2.5M+ Apps available)
Alternative App Store	NO (except you jailbreak the iPhone)	YES (download from other App stores)
Rooting & Bootloaders	Very difficult on iOS	Easily available on Android
Default Maps	Apple Maps	Google Maps
Default Browser	Safari	Google Chrome
Cloud Services	iCloud with 5GB free	Goole Drive with 15G free
Biometric Authen.	Touch ID & Face ID	Fingerprint & Face Unlock

iOS vs Android: Conclusion

So, between Apple iOS and Google Android, which is better? Well, it comes down to user preference and how you like your device. From the iOS vs Android comparison, you can see that both operating systems are secured, have nice interfaces, good user experience, and respect your privacy.

But, Android gives its users room to explore and tweak the OS if they choose. It even gives them access to download apps from external sources. While iOS won’t even allow you to play around with the OS and the OS restrict you from downloading apps from external sources.

Now, both of these options come with pros and cons. So you just have to choose which of the two conditions you’re able to live with. Some people will prefer the security and restrictions that come with iOS others will prefer the liberty that Android offers.