Spring is here, and that means everyone is looking to purchase homes right now. Now the question is, which real estate search engine is the best? It all comes down to three things:

• Ease of use, fluidity
• Large variety of listings
• Information provided

Now before we begin, I want to say that buying a home is a stressful time, whatever the reasoning is. Always look on the bright side, you are going to be starting a new chapter of your life, and sometimes change is good.

These are all ranked on the criteria above (I use all of the apps listed frequently)

Best Real Estate Apps

1. Trulia

Trulia has had a recently updated design, making the app much more pleasing to the eye. It has a very fruitful variety of homes (from my experience, many more homes are listed on Trulia in comparison to the other apps on this list). In addition to this, the search map has overlays that can give you helpful information such as crime statistics, restaurants and stores, people statistics, commute times, and school statistics. Although the search filters aren’t as detailed as Redfin’s, they are plentiful enough to get an average home search done. Occasionally, there’s a 3D tour of a home.

Trulia Search Filter #1

Trulia Restaurant and Store Overlay

Trulia commute overlay

Trulia crime overlay

Trulia search filter #2

2. Redfin

Although Redfin isn’t available in all all areas, it has a very fruitful selection of homes. In addition to this, the vast number of options in the search filters will guide you to find your dream home. Some of these options include: must have a basement, waterview, green home, accessible, etc. The simple design provides a very stress-free search. A fun bonus is the ability to add a search partner. This partner can see your favorite homes and the comments you leave on them.

Redfin listing page

Redfin search page

Redfin listing map

3. Zillow

The reason why Zillow is at the bottom of the list is because it has a lower number of listings as compared to Redfin and Trulia. Other than that, the search filters are on par with Redfin, and the ease of use is on par with Trulia. In addition to this, Zillow occasionally has a “Why I love This Home” section where the previous owner gives a testimonial of the home.

Zillow listing map

zillow search #1

Zillow facts page

Zillow search #2

These are my top 3 real estate search apps. I have been using each of them for many years and my go to is Redfin because it has the highest number of listings in my area. Make sure to leave a comment below with more suggestions on what I should write about.