Call Insider vs RoboKiller

Call Insider is a free caller-identification service available on Android and the web. It helps people assess unknown phone numbers by showing ratings during calls or in a pop-up. The mobile app uses a database with more than 300 million identified numbers, drawing data from more than 100 websites. A downloadable database covering more than 100 countries supports lookups without an internet connection. Users can rate numbers, read other users’ ratings, see yearly interest in a number, and sometimes view a landline location. The service is intended for calls such as telemarketing, surveys, courier contacts, and office calls. Free registration provides fewer ads, editable rating history, reply notifications, more daily comments, and easier reporting of harmful comments. Call blocking for potentially harmful and unsaved numbers is described as in development. The service was created in the Czech Republic in 2011.

RoboKiller is an Android and iOS app that blocks spam calls and filters spam texts. Its call-blocking algorithm analyzes call metadata in less than a millisecond and blocks calls it identifies as spam before they reach the phone. Audio fingerprinting compares robocall recordings against a database of more than 1.5 billion processed phone numbers and millions of audio fingerprints. RoboKiller says its technology is 99% effective at stopping spam calls. Text filtering uses block and allow lists, number reputation, and content analysis; the company says messages are never stored or shared. The free version includes a daily-updated blacklist, blocked-call notifications, weekly insights, spam reporting, and Spam Patrol. Answer Bots, Call Screening, and Personal Data Protection require a paid plan. Answer Bots play prerecorded messages to spam callers, while Call Screening asks unknown callers for their name and reason for calling. Both features require a carrier and plan that support Conditional Call Forwarding. Listed paid options include $4.99 a month, $31.99 a year, and $39.99 a year; a 7-day trial is also listed.