There’s the Big Mac and the Whopper. And there’s Mowingo and Tillster.
When it comes to mobile apps, the competition between McDonald’s and Burger King is just as heated as it is at countless highway stops across the nation. McDonald’s has used Mowingo to build its app since 2012, while Tillster is BK’s app developer.
The McD-BK mobile war comes into greater focus this week as McDonald’s/Mowingo is reportedly testing an order-ahead function in its apps.
Started in 2011, Mowingo specializes in retail apps. The company’s Mobile Customer Engagement Platform is designed to “help merchants retain and nurture their customer base.” What is unique about the Mowingo app is that it is completely cross-channeled — allowing for push notifications through SMS, email, QR, NFC, and beacons, and is available on both Android and iOS. It also has a full complement of features: analytics, reporting, loyalty programs, frequency cards, etc.
Mowingo most recently updated the McD app earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Tillster is the app company that launched Burger King’s new app this spring. Tillster was started in 2006, and has raised $85.6 million of funding to date, with its last round about a year ago, according to Crunchbase. The company has a particular focus on the retail food industry, building apps for Applebee’s, KFC, and Pizza Hut, among others, in addition to Burger King. It should be noted that there has been some controversy about the work environment at Tillster in recent months.
So which app reigns supreme? Well, on iTunes the McDonald’s app has an overall three-star rating, with the most recent version of the app garnering four stars. Burger King’s app overall gets two stars and its current version scores, gulp, one star.
Alas, iTunes offers no data on the Whopper vs. Big Mac.