3.0
ParkAppsHub score
RingGo
RingGo (Arrive, formerly EasyPark Group)
Street parking payment · Free
Best for: UK drivers who want cashless street and car park parking with SMS/app reminders before their session expires
1.6
Google Play · 70K
4.8
App Store
10M+
Downloads
1
Country
Europe
AndroidiOSWeb
540+ UK local authorities
About this app
RingGo has been running pay-by-phone parking in Britain since 2005 and remains the closest thing the UK has to a default parking app. It is the contracted payment provider for hundreds of local authorities — including many London boroughs, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh and Bristol — plus numerous private and rail-station car parks, adding up to over 500 towns and cities and around 17,000 locations. Drivers enter the zone number displayed on signage (or pick it from the map), pay the operator's tariff plus a convenience fee of roughly 20p at most sites, and can extend or end sessions remotely. Optional text reminders and receipts cost a few pence each, and drivers without smartphones can pay through an automated phone line or the myringgo website. The service is now owned by Arrive (formerly EasyPark Group), and its 2024 migration onto the group's shared platform proved rocky: store ratings collapsed amid complaints about forced logouts, failed payments and chatbot-only support. Coverage, not polish, is RingGo's trump card — on many English streets there is no realistic alternative — and its multi-channel access, business accounts and emissions-based tariff support keep councils signing on despite driver frustration.
- Pay for on-street zones and car parks in 500+ UK towns using signposted zone codes or the in-app map
- Extend or stop a parking session remotely without returning to the car
- Optional SMS reminders before expiry and text receipts (small per-text fee)
- No-smartphone fallbacks: automated phone line (IVR) and myringgo web payment
- Multiple vehicles and cards per account, plus corporate accounts with VAT receipts
- Supports emissions-based tariffs (e.g. diesel surcharges in London boroughs)
- Digital enforcement by number plate — no paper ticket to display
Pricing & fees
Free · convenience fee (~20p) at most locations · optional paid SMS reminders
- Free to download and register; no subscription fee for the base app
- Convenience fee of roughly 20p per transaction at most council car parks (varies slightly by local authority, some are fee-free)
- Optional SMS parking-expiry reminders charged at a small per-message fee (typically around 10-15p per text)
- Extending a session remotely via the app or by phone incurs the same per-transaction convenience fee
- No charge for setting up or storing vehicle/payment details in the account
Accepted payment methods
Debit cardCredit cardApple PayGoogle PayPayPal
Ratings & scores
Editorial score set by the ParkAppsHub team using our five-criteria grid — see how we rate. Store ratings shown for reference.
What users say
▲ Most praised
- Saves time versus queuing at a pay-and-display machine, especially in the rain
- Reminder texts/notifications before the session expires prevent unwanted parking tickets
- Widely accepted across most UK towns so one app covers many trips
▼ Common complaints
- The ~20p convenience fee feels like an unnecessary tax on top of already high council parking charges
- App occasionally fails to load location codes or crashes at busy times, causing missed payment windows
- SMS reminder charges and account fees are seen as poorly disclosed until checkout
Summarised from recent user reviews on Google Play, the App Store and consumer platforms. Themes, not verbatim quotes.
Pros & cons
What we like
- Unmatched UK footprint: 500+ towns and ~17,000 locations, the mandated provider for hundreds of councils
- Remote extend/stop saves trips back to the meter and avoids overstay fines
- Works without a smartphone via phone line and web — rare among parking apps
- Two decades of council integration, including rail-station car parks and business accounts
What could improve
- The 2024 replatformed app drew mass complaints: login loops and forced password resets that can eat the payment grace period and lead to fines
- Recurring billing reports of duplicate or erroneous charges and unexpected add-on subscriptions
- Support is chatbot-first with no human phone line; Trustpilot rating sits around 1.2/5
- Convenience fees (~7p-20p per session, council-dependent) plus paid SMS reminders stack costs on top of the tariff
How to use RingGo
- Install RingGo, register with your mobile number, then add your vehicle registration and a payment card.
- At the parking location, find the RingGo zone number on nearby signage, or select the location from the in-app map.
- Enter the zone code, choose your duration, review the tariff and convenience fee, and confirm payment.
- Optionally enable an SMS reminder before your session expires (charged per text).
- Extend or stop the session from the app if your plans change; wardens verify your plate digitally, so no ticket is needed.
- No smartphone or signal? Pay by the automated phone number on the sign or via the myringgo website.
Editor’s tips
- Register your vehicle and card details in advance so you can start a session by phone call in seconds without opening the app in a rush
- Turn on push notifications instead of SMS reminders to avoid the per-text fee while still getting expiry alerts
- Check the location's exact tariff code (shown on street signage) before paying, as RingGo's convenience fee is separate from the council's own parking tariff
- Use the 'extend' feature from your phone before walking back to the car to avoid a fine if a meeting runs long
Editor’s verdict
RingGo earns its place on reach alone: no other UK parking app approaches its footprint of 500-plus towns and roughly 17,000 zones, and on many council-run streets it is effectively the only way to pay by phone. The fundamentals are sensible — zone codes on signage, remote extensions, an IVR fallback for non-smartphone users, corporate accounts with VAT receipts. The problem is execution. Since the 2024 replatforming under Arrive (formerly EasyPark Group), ratings have cratered to 1.6 stars on Google Play and around 1.2 on Trustpilot, with recurring reports of login loops that burn through payment grace periods, duplicate charges, and support that begins and ends with a chatbot. Add per-session convenience fees and paid SMS reminders, and RingGo can feel like a toll on top of a toll. The verdict: an unavoidable utility rather than a good app — most UK drivers will need it installed, but they should check every charge.
— The ParkAppsHub editorial team · 2026-08-06
How it compares
vs PayByPhone
PayByPhone covers more international cities (Canada, US, parts of Europe); RingGo has deeper UK council coverage and is the default option in many English towns.
vs EasyPark
Same parent company (Arrive) but EasyPark focuses on continental Europe and off-street garages, while RingGo is the UK-first on-street specialist.
vs JustPark
JustPark also lets you book and rent private driveways/spaces in advance, which RingGo does not offer, but RingGo has wider live on-street meter coverage.
Frequently asked questions
Is RingGo free to use?
The app is free to download, but you pay the parking operator's tariff plus a convenience fee at most locations — typically around 20p per session, though some councils set it lower (7p in Cheshire East) or absorb it. Optional SMS reminders and receipts cost a few pence extra.
Where does RingGo work?
United Kingdom only. It covers more than 500 towns and cities and about 17,000 locations, including most London boroughs, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh and Bristol, spanning council on-street zones, public car parks and many rail-station car parks.
Do I need the app to pay with RingGo?
No. Every RingGo location can also be paid via the automated phone line shown on signage or through the myringgo website, which helps drivers without smartphones or mobile signal.
Why is RingGo's store rating so low?
After the 2024 migration to parent company Arrive's (formerly EasyPark Group) shared platform, users reported forced logouts, failed payments, duplicate charges and chatbot-only support, dragging the Google Play rating down to about 1.6 stars.
Can I extend my parking session remotely?
Yes. Sessions can be extended or stopped from the app or by phone up to the location's maximum stay, and enforcement is done by number plate, so no ticket needs to be displayed.
What happens if I get a parking fine despite using RingGo?
RingGo is a payment intermediary, not the enforcement authority, so any parking charge notice (PCN) must be disputed directly with the local council or landowner, though RingGo can usually supply a payment confirmation as evidence.
Does RingGo support electric vehicle charging payments?
RingGo primarily focuses on parking payments rather than EV charging; some councils link EV bay parking fees through the app, but dedicated charging-session payment is limited compared to specialist EV charging apps.
Can I cancel or get a refund on a RingGo session?
Sessions can typically be ended early through the app, but the convenience fee is non-refundable and unused time on a pre-paid tariff is generally not reimbursed by the council.
About the developer
RingGo is a UK cashless parking payment service, part of Arrive (formerly EasyPark Group), a global mobility payments group also behind EasyPark. Founded in 2002, RingGo lets drivers pay for on-street and car park parking by app, phone call, or SMS across hundreds of UK local authorities, avoiding cash and ticket machines. The company has grown to become one of the most widely used parking payment apps in Britain, processing millions of transactions and partnering directly with councils to manage parking zones digitally.
Additional information
Developer
RingGo (Arrive, formerly EasyPark Group)
Founded
2002
Headquarters
Portsmouth, United Kingdom
Ownership
Arrive (formerly EasyPark Group)
Category
Street parking payment
Price
Free
Coverage
540+ UK local authorities
Downloads
10M+
Languages
English
Reviewed
2026-08-06
Where it works
540+ UK local authorities — including London, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Bristol, Leeds, Cambridge, Oxford.
United Kingdom
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Independent review. ParkAppsHub is not affiliated with RingGo (Arrive, formerly EasyPark Group). App name, logo and screenshots belong to their owners and are shown for identification and review purposes. Coverage, prices and features change — verify current conditions with the publisher. Last reviewed 2026-08-06.