Comparison

Guru Maps vs Scenic Map Alaska

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

Head to head
About

Guru Maps

Navigate the world without an internet connection using detailed offline maps and turn-by-turn GPS directions. Plan multi-stop routes, record your adventures, and discover millions of points of interest with rich 3D terrain views. Sync your data across devices for seamless exploration.

Highlights
  • Offline maps and navigation
  • Turn-by-turn voice directions
  • Multi-stop route planning
  • GPS track recording
  • 3D relief and terrain views
  • Offline search for places
  • Sync across devices
Features
Read full description

Explore the world offline with Guru Maps — detailed maps, turn-by-turn navigation, and GPS track recording that keep working when you have no signal. Download maps once and use them anywhere (powered by OpenStreetMap). Plan routes, record adventures, save favorite places, and sync everything across devices. OFFLINE MAPS • Download maps for countries or regions and use them fully offline. • Rich detail and millions of places. Monthly map updates. NAVIGATION THAT WORKS OFFLINE • Voice-guided, turn-by-turn directions with automatic rerouting. • Lane guidance for clearer driving in complex junctions. • Modes: car, bike, truck, walk, plus straight-line navigation (great for sailing or off-road). ROUTE PLANNING • Build multi-stop routes with custom waypoints. • Choose fastest or shortest route and save your plans. • Export routes to GPX/KML to share or back up. TRUE 3D RELIEF & TERRAIN • Preview hills and valleys in True 3D Relief. • High-detail terrain: contour lines, hillshade, and topographic overlays. • Elevation profiles and slope charts for smarter planning. GPS TRACK RECORDING • Record tracks with one tap (even in the background). • Live stats: speed, distance, time, altitude. • Analyze tracks with interactive graphs and export to GPX/KML. FAST OFFLINE SEARCH • Search by name, address, category, or coordinates — offline. • Instant results as you type, with multi-language support. POI & ORGANIZATION • Save places with custom pins and icons. • Organize everything into folders and share with friends. OPENING HOURS • See opening hours for places when available. SYNC ACROSS DEVICES • Sync and back up your markers, tracks, and collections with one Guru Maps account across iOS, macOS, and other platforms. CARPLAY • Use Guru Maps on Apple CarPlay with offline maps and voice directions. NO ADS. PRIVACY FIRST. • No advertising. Your location stays on your device. Power features: one-finger zoom, compass & scale, coordinate grids (MGRS/UTM), GeoJSON overlays, MBTiles/sqlitedb import, and more. Upgrade to Pro for: • Unlimited offline map downloads • Unlimited markers and GPS tracks • Pro map sources, including Satellite and specialist layers (cycling, outdoors, marine, ski, etc.) Choose monthly or yearly subscription (7-day free trial) — or a one-time lifetime purchase. Download Guru Maps and explore with confidence — anywhere, anytime. Terms of Service & Privacy Policy: https://gurumaps.app/terms_of_service Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.

About

Scenic Map Alaska

Explore detailed 3D topographic maps of Alaska and the entire world, with offline access and satellite imagery. Navigate, track your location, and customize map views for hiking, driving, or boating.

Highlights
  • Offline 3D topographic maps
  • Global online map coverage
  • Satellite image overlays
  • GPS location tracking
  • Customizable map views
  • GPX track import/export
  • 3D tilt and flight simulator modes
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

A 3D topo map of State of Alaska, USA. The vector map data is contained within the app and can be used without an internet connection. Use it in a car, a boat, a plane or while hiking. It is like having the entire state in your pocket. Scenic Map now covers the entire world via online maps. The maps are cached automatically so they can still be used when there is no cell coverage. Turn on Online Map in the Settings menu and you can then scroll or go to any location on the planet. Satellite image overlays add breathtaking detail and realism to the maps (tap preset 2 or 4 when Online Map is enabled). You can use them as you travel to see what is hidden from view at ground level. This takes moving maps to a whole new level. Use the two finger vertical swipe gesture to tilt the map for a 3D view. Scroll like a map or fly like a flight simulator. Enable Joystick Gestures in the Settings menu and then fly around the terrain using a virtual joystick. Prefer only 2D maps? Enable the 2D Map option in the Settings menu. Scenic Map is simply the best 3D topo map available for a mobile device. You will see incredible detail while scrolling, rotating and zooming perfectly smoothly. You will see every road even if you zoom out to the altitude of a satellite. As you zoom in, you will see every small bump and hollow of the Earth and terrain features as small as ten meters. Unlike old fashioned topo maps, Scenic Map’s roads and trails are up to date thanks to OpenStreetMap.org. It contains polygons for urban areas, shopping malls, an ever growing number of buildings and many other features, The best lake, pond, stream and rivers from the USGS and Canadian public databases are also included. Tap the GPS center button to begin tracking your location. As you move, you will generate a track file. Tracks can be replayed with video like controls to speed up, slow down, pause, restart or skip to the end. You can display existing tracks while recording another if you want to retrace your route. When online, you can automatically create a route from your current GPS location to any other point on the map. Tracks can be received from or sent to other apps in GPX format. GPS recording stops automatically after you have remained stationary for some time or you can choose to manually stop tracking by tapping on the top track in the Tracks view. Never before have maps been this customizable. For example, you can turn on or off the roads. You can change the lighting direction or remove terrain shading entirely. You can display contour lines even over satellite images. There are five presets which let you quickly switch between map styles. Use Metric, English or Nautical units and choose one of four different coordinate displays including UTM. Want to learn more about a map feature? Tap the target icon and center the feature under the compass rose to display its name, type, urban area, county, state, elevation and coordinates. You will also see a bearing line back to your current GPS location or from your location to a selected waypoint. The status bar shows the bearing direction and distance along with the map and GPS elevation, the track length, and your current speed and direction of travel. In-app documentation is provided in the Help section at the top of the Settings menu. Links are provided in the documentation to detailed coverage maps, tutorial videos, installation guide and blog at ScenicMap.com Map data © OpenStreetMap and contributors under the Open Database License Scenic Map supports GPS tracking while the app is in the background. Caution: Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.

Screenshots

Guru Maps4 screens
Scenic Map Alaska4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Guru Maps at Free against Scenic Map Alaska's $1.99. Guru Maps also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (3K vs 4). Scenic Map Alaska's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3). On rating, ads, chart position 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

Guru Maps is free to download; Scenic Map Alaska costs $1.99 up front. Guru Maps sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Scenic Map Alaska asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Guru Maps holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Guru Maps has 3K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Guru Maps's written reviews are positive against 63% of Scenic Map Alaska's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Guru Maps ships an update every 10 days, Scenic Map Alaska every 6 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Guru Maps versus Scenic Map Alaska: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGuru MapsScenic Map Alaska
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.7 (3K ratings) — better4.5 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews76.1% of reviews — better62.5% of reviews
Number of ratings3K — better4
Update frequencyEvery 10 days — betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank#143 — better#198
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.1
Further details — not scored
Size112 MB65 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEvgen BodunovGrangerFX

Customer experience

Guru Maps

All ratings2,975 ratings
Positive92.3%
Neutral2.9%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews410 reviews
Positive76.1%
Neutral7.1%
Negative16.8%

Scenic Map Alaska

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive62.5%
Neutral12.5%
Negative25.0%

Bugs and requests

Guru Maps

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Crashes after recent updates
  • GPS not working reliably offline
  • Incorrect map data in some areas
  • Syncing issues between devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Route planning and turn-by-turn navigation
  • Elevation/terrain data display
  • Ability to add custom waypoints and annotations
  • Improved search functionality
  • Easier map download and import process

Scenic Map Alaska

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Guru Maps

Subscriptions2
  • Guru Maps Pro Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Guru Maps Pro Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • One-Time Purchase$89.99
None

Scenic Map Alaska

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Guru Maps free?
Guru Maps is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Scenic Map Alaska free?
Scenic Map Alaska costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Guru Maps or Scenic Map Alaska?
Guru Maps is rated higher. Guru Maps averages 4.7 out of 5 from 3K ratings, while Scenic Map Alaska averages 4.5 from 4 ratings.
Do Guru Maps or Scenic Map Alaska have ads?
Neither Guru Maps nor Scenic Map Alaska shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Guru Maps or Scenic Map Alaska?
Guru Maps ships an update every 10 days, and Scenic Map Alaska every 6 months. Most recently, Guru Maps was updated on November 1, 2026 and Scenic Map Alaska on November 1, 2026.
Which is more popular, Guru Maps or Scenic Map Alaska?
Guru Maps currently peaks at #143 in the App Store charts, and Scenic Map Alaska at #198. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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