We analyzed 70 negative reviews from the top 5 Packing List apps on the App Store. Here's what users hate most.
Ranked by frequency — how often each complaint appears in negative reviews.
43% of negative reviews mention this issue.
"Nobody wants to read the instructions when it comes to an app for packing! They just want it to be intuitive and straightforward. This is neither"
"This app is a shining example of how to take simple task and make it so complicated that it becomes worthless"
24% of negative reviews mention this issue.
"it crashes every second I add one item to my list"
"Just bought this app to create a list for an upcoming trip. It crashed three times, essentially every time I attempted to add an item"
21% of negative reviews mention this issue.
"I spent so much time creating new lists when it went to sync with iCloud it deleted ALL my lists!!!"
"After I opened the app on my iPhone, the sync feature reverted my list back"
19% of negative reviews mention this issue.
"it is not simple enough to customize. I added several items to a list, hit save, and they just don't show up"
"I was unable to do that as the editing tools in this app are terrible. I wanted to be able to do mass deletion of items"
14% of negative reviews mention this issue.
"it would be fantastic if my husband (different AppleID) could see my list, add things, check-off"
"I was very excited when I saw this app. Then I realized there is no way to collaborate with another person"
11% of negative reviews mention this issue.
"This app can be useful, but it's aesthetically challenged to the point of distraction"
"Very outdated design and crude animations made me switch my allegiance to other packing apps"
Design and usability issues driving negative reviews.
Users complain about excessive tapping and navigation required for basic tasks like adding a single item to a packing list
"This app requires me to hit about 7 buttons to add a pair of socks to my packing list"
The app's hierarchical structure of items, types, and categories confuses users who just want a simple checklist
"Trying to assign an 'item' to a 'type' doesn't auto populate"
Reusing templates doesn't create fresh lists, instead copying over previous check states
"If I try to create a new list based on an old one, it doesn't create a fresh one, it creates it with some things checked off & other things not checked off (like the list you copied)"
Users lose work without ability to reverse actions
"there's no undo, no way to move items"
Get the complete Packing List market intelligence report — including missing features, pricing insights, build recommendations, and competitor weaknesses.
View Full Report — $9.9930-day money-back guarantee