Add your friends
Scan a friend's QR code, find contacts already on Rex, or share your referral link. Your recommendations are only ever visible to friends you have accepted.
Now in TestFlight beta · iPhone
Stop reading reviews.
Ask your friends.
Rex is a recommendation app built on your real friend network, not anonymous strangers. Every place you see was personally vouched for by someone you know.
Free while in beta · iPhone · Requires iOS 16 or later
Five stars from a stranger stopped meaning anything.
Review sites are drowning in fake ratings and generated text. Meanwhile the recommendation you actually act on is still the same one it has always been: the place a friend tells you about. Rex is just that, kept somewhere you can find it again.
How it works
Three steps, then it just works
Add your Rex
A Rec is one place you vouch for. Any restaurant, hotel, café, barber or plumber. Pick the place, choose a signal, add a note. Ten seconds, done.
Search like you'd ask a friend
"Pizza in Amsterdam." Rex answers with the places your circle has actually been to, and tells you exactly who recommended each one.
Search
Only places your friends vouched for
Search any city for anything: pizza, sushi, a hotel, a hairdresser. Every result carries the name of the friend who recommended it and how strongly they meant it. No result is there because someone paid for it.
Narrow it down by category, area, signal strength, or by who recommended it. And when nobody in your circle has a pick yet, ask them.
Explore
Your friends' favorites, on a map
Open Explore and see every place your circle has recommended around you. Wandering a new neighborhood or landing in a new city? Pan the map, tap "Search this area", and see who has been where.
Tap any pin for the place, its Google rating, and the friends behind it, with a one-tap handoff to Maps when you're ready to go.
Signals
Three signals, no five-star mush
Nobody actually means anything different by 3.8 and 4.1 stars. So Rex has three honest levels instead, and asks you to be straight about it because your friends trust your taste.
-
Good
Solid choice -
Great
Highly recommend -
Must Go
Life changing
Rec requests
Ask your circle directly
Going somewhere and don't know where to eat? Send a Rec request: say what you're looking for and where, pick which friends to ask, and let it run.
Their answers come back as real recommendations, collected in one place instead of scattered across four group chats. Got a follow-up question about a spot? Ask it right on the Rec.
My Places
The places you love, and the ones you still want to try
Everything you've recommended lives in My Places, the running list of the spots you'd send anyone to. Edit or remove them any time.
And when a friend's Rec catches your eye but you're not there yet, save it to Want to go. It'll be waiting the next time you're nearby.
And the rest
Small things that add up
Want to go
Bookmark any place you're saving for later, from anywhere in the app.
Questions on a Rec
Ask a friend what to order, or whether it's worth booking ahead.
From your circle
A quiet feed of what your friends have recommended lately.
Good for…
Tag a place for date night, working, or a long lunch, then filter by it.
Google, where it helps
Ratings, photos, opening details and a jump to Maps, as a footnote, not the point.
Gentle notifications
A ping when a friend answers your request or recommends somewhere new.
Sign in with Apple or Google
No password to invent. Apple's private relay is fully supported.
English and Dutch
Rex speaks both, and follows your phone's language automatically.
No ads. Ever.
No sponsored placements, no promoted listings, nothing sold to advertisers.
Built and run by one person
Rex has no ads, no investors and no interest in selling your recommendations. If the app has helped you find somewhere good, a small tip covers the running costs and keeps it independent. Entirely optional, and thank you for being here.
Get the beta
Rex is in open beta through Apple TestFlight while the last rough edges get sanded off. It's free, and feedback goes straight to the person building it.
Join the TestFlight beta
App Store, coming soon
iPhone · iOS 16 or later · Android is coming later
FAQ
Questions, answered
What exactly is a "Rec"?
A Rec is one place you personally vouch for, tied to you and to that place. You get one Rec per place, with a signal (👍 Good, 💎 Great or 🔥 Must Go) and an optional note. The plural is Rex, hence the name.
Is Rex free?
Yes. It's free during the beta, with no ads and no sponsored places. If you want to chip in toward the running costs there's a Ko-fi link, but nothing in the app is gated behind it.
Why is it on TestFlight instead of the App Store?
Rex is still in beta. TestFlight is Apple's official way to run beta builds, and it lets the app ship fixes quickly while the first users shake out the rough edges. You'll need Apple's free TestFlight app installed first.
When will it be on the App Store? What about Android?
The App Store release comes once the beta settles. Android is planned but further out. Rex is one person's project, so it happens one platform at a time.
How do I find my friends on Rex?
Three ways: scan a friend's QR code in person, check which of your phone contacts are already on Rex, or send them your referral link. Friendships are mutual. Both people have to accept.
Who can see my recommendations?
Only the friends you've accepted. Rex isn't a public review site; there's no feed of strangers and no way for someone outside your circle to browse what you've recommended.
Do you sell my data?
No. Rex has no advertisers to sell it to. Full detail of what's collected and why is in the privacy policy.
How do I delete my account?
From inside the app: Profile → Delete Account. That removes your personal data. If you'd rather do it by email, or want a copy of your data first, see the support page.
Which countries does it work in?
Anywhere. Places come from Google Places, so Rex can find and recommend somewhere in any city in the world. What it can show you depends entirely on where your friends have been.