Comparison

ExploreHere vs Roadside 66

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

Head to head
About

ExploreHere

This app transforms your drives into engaging audio journeys. It automatically plays stories about historic landmarks and hidden places as you travel, allowing for a hands-free and immersive discovery experience.

Highlights
  • Hands-free audio stories
  • Automatic landmark discovery
  • Walking and driving tours
  • Offline access (Pro)
  • Nearby history alerts
  • Save favorite stops (Pro)
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Turn every drive into a story. ExploreHere is a hands-free road trip guide that plays stories automatically as you travel. Discover historic landmarks, hidden places, and unforgettable moments, without ever touching your phone. Whether you're cruising cross-country, exploring a small town, or wandering a new city, ExploreHere reveals the stories that shaped the places around you. Made for the Road - 240,000+ Historic Landmarks across the U.S. - Auto-Play Audio as you pass places worth knowing - Hands-Free Travel Mode for safe driving - Walking & Driving Tours through cities, parks, and scenic highways - Nearby History Alerts so you never miss a story Pro Features - Offline access for no-service road trips - High-Quality Immersive Audio - View public lands, national parks & forests and native lands - Smart proximity alerts - Save and organize favorite stops Perfect For Road trippers • RV travelers • National park explorers • History lovers • Families on vacation • Curious travelers ExploreHere transforms highways into story-filled journeys and ordinary stops into unforgettable discoveries. See the history around you. Start exploring today. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy: http://explorehere.app/privacy

About

Roadside 66

Discover offbeat and essential landmarks along U.S. Route 66 with detailed maps, trip planning tools, and captivating stories. Explore over 1,600 points of interest, from classic attractions to quirky sights and giant statues.

Highlights
  • Over 1,600 points of interest on Route 66
  • Detailed maps and trip planning tools
  • Stories and photos of landmarks
  • Information on classic and quirky sights
  • Backseat Know-It-All factoids
  • Route Zealot mode for more POIs
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Roadside 66 ® places offbeat and essential landmarks from U.S. Route 66 in the hands of road trippers. The legendary Chicago-to-LA highway celebrates its 100th year in 2026. Plan and navigate your adventures without missing anything! • Powered by offbeat travel authority RoadsideAmerica. Jam-packed with the thorough research and wit fans have come to expect. • Save lists, create trips, mark Been Theres -- synced via iCloud to your devices. • Navigate detailed maps & use trip planning tools • Beautiful photos (some by veteran Roadie photographers). • 1,700+ points-of-interest (POIs) in Route 66 corridor — See popular classics! The Blue Whale, Jackrabbit Trading Post, St. Louis Arch — Quirky sights! Singing Highway, Bottle Tree Ranch, Santa Anna's Leg, road phantoms, Uranus! — Giant statues. Neon signs, Restored gas stations and motels — Folk art environments, murals, weird museums — Over-the-top tourist traps and photo ops! ** Backseat Know-It-All ** Our arcane knowledge booster -- starts each driving day with an illuminating factoid or two. ** Route Zealot ** For hardcore Rt. 66 veterans, a mysterious toggle reveals even more points-of-interest. ** Snappy Reports from the Roadside America Team ** Our writers talk to unique characters, from the savvy huckster to the sleepless owner, from the over-caffeinated local booster to the otherworldly artist. ** The Team That Unlocked the "Muffler Men" Mystery! ** The Roadside 66 team is led by original Roadside America book authors, who pioneered a previously undefined tourism category (offbeat, ironic, quirky) and a unique approach to road trips. They (re-)discovered, named, and mapped “The Muffler Men,” fiberglass giants and enduring Route 66 icons. Ready to open that spare eyeball? Room in the trunk for souvenirs? This app is your indispensable highway spirit guide.

Screenshots

ExploreHere4 screens
Roadside 664 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ExploreHere at Free against Roadside 66's $7.99. ExploreHere also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.9) and update cadence (every 10 days vs every 2 months). Roadside 66's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 18). On ads, chart position, device support and iOS requirement 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

ExploreHere is free to download; Roadside 66 costs $7.99 up front. ExploreHere sells 18 in-app purchases, starting at $2.00 per month. Roadside 66 asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ExploreHere holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ExploreHere has 809 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of ExploreHere's written reviews are positive against 50% of Roadside 66's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ExploreHere ships an update every 10 days, Roadside 66 every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
ExploreHere versus Roadside 66: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterExploreHereRoadside 66
PriceFree — better$7.99
Rating4.7 (809 ratings) — better3.9 (7 ratings)
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings809 — better7
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank#71#24 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.4 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size160 MB25 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperWesley VanceThis Exit LLC

Customer experience

ExploreHere

All ratings797 ratings
Positive91.8%
Neutral3.1%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews57 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral7.0%
Negative26.3%

Roadside 66

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

ExploreHere

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • App crashes when viewing multiple items
  • Crashes on app launch/opening
  • Continuous tracking feature not working on iPhone
  • CarPlay compatibility issues
  • Audio descriptions cut off mid-sentence
Show 3 more
  • Double charging incidents
  • App freezing and becoming unresponsive
  • Incomplete marker database coverage

Requested features

8 requests
  • Automatic audio reading when passing markers for drivers
  • City-based browsing instead of marker name search
  • Improved voice quality and complete audio descriptions
  • Better map visibility with lighter road colors
  • Automatic location detection on app launch
Show 3 more
  • Free filtering options without upgrade requirement
  • Continuous tracking feature improvement
  • Offline marker access capability

Roadside 66

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

18 purchases

ExploreHere

Subscriptions15
  • Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$2.001 Month
  • Pro - Monthly$3.001 Month
  • Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$4.001 Month
Show 12 more
  • Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$5.001 Month
  • Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$6.001 Month
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
  • Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Pro - Monthly7 Days trial$10.001 Month
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$10.001 Year
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$16.001 Year
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$20.001 Year
  • Pro - Yearly$25.001 Year
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$35.991 Year
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$50.001 Year
One-time3
  • Pro - Lifetime$24.99
  • Pro - Lifetime$60.00
  • Pro - Lifetime$90.00
None

Roadside 66

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ExploreHere free?
ExploreHere is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Roadside 66 free?
Roadside 66 costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ExploreHere or Roadside 66?
ExploreHere is rated higher. ExploreHere averages 4.7 out of 5 from 809 ratings, while Roadside 66 averages 3.9 from 7 ratings.
Do ExploreHere or Roadside 66 have ads?
Neither ExploreHere nor Roadside 66 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ExploreHere or Roadside 66?
ExploreHere ships an update every 10 days, and Roadside 66 every 2 months. Most recently, ExploreHere was updated on October 26, 2026 and Roadside 66 on October 25, 2026.
Which is more popular, ExploreHere or Roadside 66?
ExploreHere currently peaks at #71 in the App Store charts, and Roadside 66 at #24. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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