# National Park Trail Guide vs PackLight for Backpacking

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: National Park Trail Guide at none against PackLight for Backpacking's 1. PackLight for Backpacking's advantage is review sentiment (95% vs 65%) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. PackLight for Backpacking sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. National Park Trail Guide asks for nothing beyond the download.

PackLight for Backpacking holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.5K and 1K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of National Park Trail Guide's written reviews are positive against 95% of PackLight for Backpacking's.

National Park Trail Guide ships an update every 6 weeks, PackLight for Backpacking every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | National Park Trail Guide | PackLight for Backpacking |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (1.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/national-park-trail-guide/id1031987936/reviews) | **[4.8 (1K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/packlight-for-backpacking/id1054845207/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.5K** | 1K |
| Positive reviews | 64.8% of reviews | **95.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 6 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 108 MB | 4 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Adventure Projects Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/452308787) | [Mark Oliveira](https://appshunter.io/developer/1054845206) |

## What reviewers say

### National Park Trail Guide

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/national-park-trail-guide/id1031987936)

Discover and explore national parks with detailed trail information, offline maps, and live GPS tracking. Plan your perfect trip with hike difficulty ratings, curated lists, and essential park insights. Never get lost and find family-friendly trails or hidden gems.

**Highlights:** Offline trail data and descriptions, Live GPS position on terrain/satellite maps, Hike search by map or curated lists, Hike difficulty and elevation profiles, Family-friendly and 'Gems' hike lists, Hike tracking and location sharing

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Offline maps and GPS
- 👍 Detailed trail information
- 📷 Helpful photos and ratings
- 🗺️ Accurate location tracking
- 🗓️ Useful to-do list feature

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 🚫 Missing parks and trails
- 📱 Compatibility issues
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate app
- 🔍 Outdated information

**Reported bugs**

- App locks up and becomes unresponsive
- No data or information displayed
- Unable to create an account
- Trouble downloading or updating data

**Requested features**

- Ability to delete downloaded content
- Option to adjust text size
- Search by keywords (e.g. difficulty, views)
- Separate North and South Rim for Grand Canyon
- Include all National Parks and Monuments


### PackLight for Backpacking

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/packlight-for-backpacking/id1054845207)

This app helps backpackers create lightweight packing lists by organizing gear, tracking weights, and visualizing their impact. It allows users to build custom lists, share them, and even import from other services. An optional supporter edition unlocks advanced features for a one-time purchase.

**Highlights:** Organize gear by name, weight, and category, Build weight-aware packing lists, Visualize pack weight impact, Packing checklist functionality, Share packing lists via link or CSV, Import lists from LighterPack, Offline access to data

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Supporter Edition | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Helpful for planning and organizing gear
- 👍 Useful for tracking gear weights
- 👍 Great for creating custom packing lists
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Lack of custom categories
- 🔍 No ability to add notes or details to gear items
- 🔍 No option to track purchase price or date
- 🔍 Inability to easily share lists with others
- 🔍 No cloud sync or backup functionality

**Reported bugs**

- Occasional issues with alphabetical sorting of lists
- Reported bug with displaying the correct list when selected

**Requested features**

- Add ability to track purchase price and date for gear items
- Implement custom category creation
- Include option to add notes and details to gear items
- Implement cloud sync and backup functionality
- Add sharing capabilities to easily collaborate with others


## Frequently asked questions

### Is National Park Trail Guide free?

National Park Trail Guide is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is PackLight for Backpacking free?

PackLight for Backpacking is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, National Park Trail Guide or PackLight for Backpacking?

PackLight for Backpacking is rated higher. National Park Trail Guide averages 4.5 out of 5 from 1.5K ratings, while PackLight for Backpacking averages 4.8 from 1K ratings.

### Do National Park Trail Guide or PackLight for Backpacking have ads?

Neither National Park Trail Guide nor PackLight for Backpacking shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, National Park Trail Guide or PackLight for Backpacking?

National Park Trail Guide ships an update every 6 weeks, and PackLight for Backpacking every 2 months. Most recently, National Park Trail Guide was updated on November 1, 2026 and PackLight for Backpacking on November 2, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*