compare
verb
kəmˈpeə(r) 
kəmˈper 
1 (abbr. cf., cp.) [transitive] to examine people or things to see how they are similar and how they are differentcompare A and B It is interesting to compare their situation and ours.We compared the two reports carefully.compare A with/to B We carefully compared the first report with the second.My own problems seem insignificant compared with other people's.I've had some difficulties, but they were nothing compared to yours (= they were not nearly as bad as yours).Standards in health care have improved enormously compared to 40 years ago.2 [intransitive] compare with somebody/something to be similar to somebody/something else, either better or worseThis school compares with the best in the country (= it is as good as them).This house doesn't compare with our previous one (= it is not as good).Their prices compare favourably with those of their competitors.3 [transitive] compare A to B to show or state that somebody/something is similar to somebody/something elseThe critics compared his work to that of Martin Amis.Idioms
compare notes (with somebody)
if two or more people compare notes, they each say what they think about the same event, situation, etc
We saw the play separately and compared notes afterwards.you can't compare apples and oranges
(North American English) it is impossible to say that one thing is better than another if the two are completely differentThey are both great but you can't compare apples and oranges.No, you're trying to compare apples and oranges.
Usage note: contrastHighlighting differencesThis survey highlights a number of differences in the way that teenage boys and girls in the UK spend their free time.One of the main differences between the girls and the boys who took part in the research was the way in which they use the Internet.Unlike the girls, who use the Internet mainly to keep in touch with friends, the boys questioned in this survey tend to use the Internet for playing computer games.The girls differ from the boys in that they tend to spend more time keeping in touch with friends on the telephone or on social networking websites.Compared to the boys, the girls spend much more time chatting to friends on the telephone.On average the girls spend four hours a week chatting to friends on the phone. In contrast, very few of the boys spend more than five minutes a day talking to their friends in this way.The boys prefer competitive sports and computer games, whereas/while the girls seem to enjoy more cooperative activities, such as shopping with friends.When the girls go shopping, they mainly buy clothes and cosmetics. The boys, on the other hand, tend to purchase computer games or gadgets. Language Banks at generally, illustrate, proportion, similarly, surprisingUsage note: illustrateReferring to a chart, graph or tableThis bar chart illustrates how many journeys people made on public transport over a three-month period.This table compares bus, train, and taxi use between April and June.The results are shown in the chart below.In this pie chart, the survey results are broken down by age.This pie chart breaks down the survey results by age.As can be seen from these results, younger people use buses more than older people.According to these figures, bus travel accounts for 60% of public transport use.From the data in the above graph, it is apparent that buses are the most widely used form of public transport. Language Banks at evidence, fall, increase, proportion, surprising