Do you have difficulty walking and do you need help with shopping? Are you looking for a good babysitter in the area? Or do you want to stay informed of local news? It’s all possible with neighborhood apps. Thanks to these apps, you know what’s going on nearby.
The best neighborhood apps
The corona crisis means that a large part of the population is forced to stay at home. In order to maintain social contact, we increasingly use digital alternatives, such as neighborhood apps.
Thanks to local apps you can not only maintain contact with local residents, but also, for example, borrow each other’s stuff/services. This is useful for when you are looking for a ladder,
Funnily enough, thanks to all the technology, we increasingly have the urge to meet each other physically. Neighborhood apps respond to this need. You can use this to find contact with local residents, borrow or lend things and, for example, warn of the risk of burglary. These are the best neighborhood apps in our opinion.
1. Peerby: Marketplace, but for borrowing
Peerby is a very well-known neighborhood app. You can compare it to Marktplaats, but instead of buying things, you borrow them. Once you have registered you will see a map of your neighborhood with all green dots on it. These are local residents who are looking for an object.
Tap this to see exactly what people are looking for. You can then indicate whether you have this item, and what time is most convenient. Of course you can also request requests yourself, whether you are looking for a standing table, loaner car or drill. As soon as someone responds, you will be given the option to start a chat.
A big advantage of Peerby is that the app has a relatively large number of users, unlike some other neighborhood apps. It is a pity that the ratio of seekers/suppliers is skewed. Many more people are looking for stuff than products are offered.
2. NextDoor: Facebook for Neighborhoods 
Where Peerby is all about borrowing products, mutual contact is central to Nextdoor. This local app can best be described as Facebook, but at the neighborhood level. Local residents share news, pass on tips and keep each other alert to, for example, the risk of infringement.
The mutual contact is therefore the strength of Nextdoor. In these times of digitization you can still build a bond with local residents. On the other hand, this social cohesion also emphasizes the downside of Nextdoor. Where people talk to each other, there is gossip.
In addition, you have to take the privacy aspect into account. Not everyone likes it when Nextdoor, for example, immediately complains about a car parked crookedly, while you had to quickly unload something. Moreover, such accusations quickly add fuel to the fire of smothering neighbor disputes.
All in all, Nextdoor is a slick app reminiscent of Facebook. Unfortunately, the app also copies some of the negative traits of the largest social medium in the world, such as an overload of advertising. The app does succeed in bringing local residents into contact with each other.
3. Neighborhood app: between Nextdoor and Peerby 
Neighborhood app is similar to Nextdoor, but more personal. For example, immediately after starting up you can indicate what you consider ‘your neighbourhood’, instead of having the choice made for you. This allows you to filter at street, neighbourhood, district and city level.
In terms of functionality, Neighborhood App stands between Peerby and Nextdoor. Residents create a profile, after which you can chat with each other. For example, in your profile you indicate how long you have lived in the neighborhood and what your interests are. It is also possible to place calls. This is useful for when you are looking for a book club, for example.
Buurtapp is also used as a discussion club. For example, residents in my neighborhood are now calling on each other to place bears in front of the window as a distraction from the corona crisis. In addition, people chat in public messages about the opening of new shops and restaurants, or the disappearance of facilities.
Other Neighborhood Apps
The disadvantage of many neighborhood apps is that they have relatively few users, especially if you live in a small town. You can therefore also try whether local groups are active on Facebook, for example. This platform has many more users and can be ideal for keeping up with local developments.
There are also very specific local apps, such as Burgernet. This app keeps you informed of police reports. Moreover, you can do your part yourself in locating missing persons, or by reporting conspicuous appearances. Safe Neighborhood is a similar app and keeps you informed of local notifications, Amber Alerts and more.
Finally, you can also check if there is a local neighborhood watch WhatsApp group is active in your area. In these groups, local residents share useful news with each other, warn about suspicious people and invite people to drinks in the neighbourhood. You have to do the latter digitally for the time being, but the idea is nice.
Conclusion: there is not 1 best neighborhood app
As you can see, there are a lot of different neighborhood apps, each of which has its own strengths and weaknesses. Plus, you don’t even need to download a special neighborhood app when you’re happy with the local Facebook group or WhatsApp group chat.
In addition, be aware that you should also be careful about sharing data in neighborhood apps. After all, anyone can pretend to be a local resident.
For example, if you indicate in a group that you will soon be away from home for a few days, that is putting a cat on the fence for burglars. Your location is also important. While one neighborhood app in your area may be popular, you will hardly meet anyone with the next program. So try them out for yourself.
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