Best parking apps iOS / Android

We all know how much of a pain it can be to drive somewhere and then spend precious minutes trying to find a good parking spot.

Thankfully, technology is here to help. There are heaps of apps out there that can allow you to find, secure and pay for your parking before you even get where you plan to go.

• Parking apps are available for short- or long-term stays
• Big name parking garages offer excellent app usability
• You can find a spot for your car if you don’t have a garage at home

Some of these apps are private developers that amass data from different locations to help you find a suitable spot, while others are from the big-name (big cost!) parking garages around the country. There’s even apps for long-term parking spaces, if you live somewhere that doesn’t have a spot.

Here are some of the most downloaded, best reviewed and highest rating parking apps for Australian drivers.

Wilson Parking

This isn’t a place to call out private parking companies like this for overcharging, but if you’ve ever thought “there’s got to be a cheaper way!”, then the Wilson Parking app could be a valuable addition to your smartphone.

Wilson Parking is Australia’s biggest car parking business - you need only walk down a main street in a major city to see a Wilson Parking station… or sometimes more than one.

The company’s app allows you to book online and potentially save quite a bit of money compared to simply showing up and parking “on demand”, with deals always being offered through the app. The app allows you to search for parking using maps, and also access the details of different parking stations, as well as pricing, to see what suits you.

You can also store your payment details, or use Apple Pay to enter the car park (scan your phone or card on entry and exit, where available).

Parkhound

According to the Parkhound site, this platform “is the easiest and cheapest way to lease and rent parking spaces from residents and businesses all over Australia.”

So, rather than pull up on the street, this app allows you to line up long-term parking for your car, motorbike, boat or anything else that you need to park. You can search your geographical region to find a suitable spot, set the parameters for what size of space you need, and see the space in pictures before you pay for it.

You can book by the day, week or month, and you can also get in touch with whoever has listed the parking space to ask any questions. The simple design of the app allows you to see at a glance what sort of space is on offer (indoor or outdoor, open or sheltered, secure or not), what it will fit (car, 4WD or SUV, van) and what sort of access is available.

And if you’re the sort of person who has a spare parking space and is looking to make some passive income, you can join the Parkhound app and do exactly that. The brand says you will receive monthly payments, and it’s free to list your space.

Parkopedia

Need to find where there’s free parking close to where you’re planning to go? Or just eager to find out what the parking rates are for the CBD before you drive in? You’re probably going to want to check out the “largest and most accurate parking services app on the planet”.

That’s what Parkopedia calls itself. It allows you to take a glance at a map and see where different parking options are and at what price points they operate. So, search Bondi, and you’ll see the Bondi Junction Westfield’s free parking show up and the rates at which the shopping centre charges after the first two hours.

It also has street parking rates, so if you wanted to park right near Bondi Beach, you’d see that there’s a four-hour maximum stay, and that if you park before 7am or after 7pm, it’s free.

The company’s site claims it is active in 90 countries, 20,000 cities, and with more than 90 million parking spaces listed. We didn’t check the numbers, but the searchability of this app is exceptional.

These apps are all better served to city dwellers, though that’s where parking is typically at its most treacherous. There are dozens more options out there, too, with some notable mentions including Kerb, Oscar and EasyPark.