Comparison

Altimeter Elevation Watch vs WristRoute Lite

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Altimeter Elevation Watch

Track your elevation and altitude gain in real-time with this app. Designed for outdoor enthusiasts, it provides a precise altimeter directly on your Apple Watch face or iPhone home screen widget, allowing you to focus on your activity.

Highlights
  • Real-time altitude and elevation gain
  • Apple Watch complication
  • iPhone home screen widget
  • Live Activity on iPhone
  • Graphical daily profile
  • Monthly and yearly analysis
Features
Read full description

Track your current altitude and elevation gain at a glance, whether you’re hiking, climbing, mountain biking, or driving mountain roads. Altimeter – Elevation Widget & Watch Complication gives you a precise altimeter for your Apple Watch and iPhone. Keep your current altitude visible on your watch face, home screen, and iPhone Live Activity. The native CarPlay dashboard is a separate view designed for the drive, with current altitude, climb or descent per minute, grade, direction, peak, and gain. Try Siri with: “Siri, start Live Activity in Altimeter.” You can also ask: “Siri, what is my current altitude in Altimeter?” This app is designed for outdoor lovers and works as: • A complication for Apple Watch Series 4 or newer (watchOS 10.6 or later) • A home screen widget for your iPhone Features: • Real-time altitude and elevation gain • Complication for Apple Watch faces • Native CarPlay dashboard: current altitude, climb/descent per minute, grade, direction, peak, and gain • Live Activity on iPhone: current altitude, peak, and gain on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island • Home screen widget for quick altitude checks • Siri, Shortcuts & Spotlight: start Live Activity, ask for current altitude, save altitude readings, and get ready for the new Siri experience this fall • Graphical daily profile and gain timeline • Heatmap + flowline for monthly and yearly analysis • Background significant-location updates for efficient day profiles • HealthKit Flights Climbed support for more robust gain calculation • Switch between meters and feet Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

WristRoute Lite

This app provides standalone GPS navigation for outdoor activities on your Apple Watch. It supports offline use with cached topographic and OpenStreetMap maps, allowing you to follow routes and track progress without an internet connection. Battery-saving options are included for extended use.

Highlights
  • Standalone Apple Watch GPS
  • Offline GPX file support
  • Topographic and OpenStreetMap maps
  • Cached maps for offline use
  • Battery saving options
  • Elevation profile tracking
Read full description

WristRoute Lite is a standalone Apple Watch GPS application for hiking, biking, and other offline activities. Neither the iPhone or Internet is needed for field operation. WristRoute Lite can read GPX files containing waypoints, routes, and tracks. Download a GPX file for an upcoming hike, load it on your watch, and now you can follow the route line on a map, or track your uphill progress against an elevation profile. WristRoute uses the latest generation of topographic maps from the USGS: US Topo. Outside the continental United States an OpenStreetMap derived map is used. Maps are cached for offline use. WristRoute is designed for all day use with battery saving options. GPS Battery Saver turns on the GPS only as needed. Map display can also be turned off, displaying just GPX route lines and waypoints. This free LIte version does not include ability to export watch created waypoints and tracks or to bulk cache maps. Please upgrade to full version (not "Lite") to use those features.

Screenshots

Altimeter Elevation Watch4 screens
WristRoute Lite3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Altimeter Elevation Watch at 4.3 against WristRoute Lite's 3.7. Altimeter Elevation Watch also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (69 vs 6). WristRoute Lite's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.6). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Altimeter Elevation Watch sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $12.99 per year and WristRoute Lite sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Altimeter Elevation Watch holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Altimeter Elevation Watch has 69 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 33% of Altimeter Elevation Watch's written reviews are positive against 40% of WristRoute Lite's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Altimeter Elevation Watch ships an update every 10 days, WristRoute Lite every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Altimeter Elevation Watch versus WristRoute Lite: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAltimeter Elevation WatchWristRoute Lite
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (69 ratings) — better3.7 (6 ratings)
Positive reviews32.8% of reviews40.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings69 — better6
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS17.612.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB21 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBernhard HeringEastridge Technology

Customer experience

Altimeter Elevation Watch

All ratings69 ratings
Positive82.6%
Neutral5.8%
Negative11.6%
Written reviews64 reviews
Positive32.8%
Neutral14.1%
Negative53.1%

WristRoute Lite

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive40.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative40.0%

Bugs and requests

Altimeter Elevation Watch

Reported bugs

29 issues
  • CarPlay screen is black
  • Elevation incorrect (50K feet off)
  • Cannot get past 'Location Access for Altimeter' page
  • App display language is a mix of German and English
  • App takes over iPhone operation, requires deletion
Show 24 more
  • Watch complications do not update automatically
  • Watch complications crash
  • Watch complications only display meters regardless of setting
  • App does not download to watch
  • Altitude does not change
  • App does not work
  • Not compatible with watch series 3 cellular
  • Watch app does not work
  • Cannot get it to read in feet on iPhone or Apple Watch
  • Wrong altitude displayed
  • Accuracy issues (changes while stationary)
  • Settings reset, must be set again
  • Watch app crashes
  • Complication does not update
  • Complication shows "Altimeter" instead of altitude
  • Watch app crashes on opening
  • App does not work on Series 3 watch
  • App does not work on Series 4 watch
  • Complication limited to 999 meters
  • Units not changeable to feet on watch
  • Complication does not work with certain watch faces
  • Complication does not update as advertised
  • Units change to meters when phone is not present
  • App does not work while flying

Requested features

10 requests
  • French translation for options
  • Basic widget for CarPlay
  • Watch complication with large number for elevation
  • Ability to set watch complications to feet
  • Larger complication size for watch face
Show 5 more
  • Elevation gain/loss on watch complication
  • Use watch's barometer
  • Graph of elevation changes on iPhone
  • Option to select complication size
  • Direction of travel indicator

WristRoute Lite

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Altimeter Elevation Watch

Subscriptions1
  • Support Development$12.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$34.99
1 purchases

WristRoute Lite

One-time1
  • WristRoute Lite Upgrade$9.99

Questions

Is Altimeter Elevation Watch free?
Altimeter Elevation Watch is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is WristRoute Lite free?
WristRoute Lite is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Altimeter Elevation Watch or WristRoute Lite?
Altimeter Elevation Watch is rated higher. Altimeter Elevation Watch averages 4.3 out of 5 from 69 ratings, while WristRoute Lite averages 3.7 from 6 ratings.
Do Altimeter Elevation Watch or WristRoute Lite have ads?
Neither Altimeter Elevation Watch nor WristRoute Lite shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Altimeter Elevation Watch or WristRoute Lite?
Altimeter Elevation Watch ships an update every 10 days, and WristRoute Lite every 4 months. Most recently, Altimeter Elevation Watch was updated on October 14, 2026 and WristRoute Lite on October 6, 2026.

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