Comparison

CycleMaps vs Beacons

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

Head to head
About

CycleMaps

This app plans bicycle routes using multiple data sources, prioritizing cycle paths and quiet streets worldwide. It offers turn-by-turn navigation, offline maps, and Apple Watch integration for a seamless cycling experience. Track your rides, view elevation profiles, and import/export routes.

Highlights
  • Worldwide bicycle route planning
  • Turn-by-turn navigation
  • Offline maps
  • Apple Watch integration
  • Ride tracking & Apple Health sync
  • GPX/KML import/export
  • Cycle path overlays
Features
Read full description

BICYCLE ROUTES CycleMaps plans routes using data from multiple sources and prioritises cycle paths and quiet streets — everywhere. See your route’s elevation profile before you ride. TURN‑BY‑TURN INSTRUCTIONS Clear, glanceable guidance shows your next turn, street name, and distance — without getting in the way of the map. ASK SIRI Start navigation, add stops along the way, or share your ETA — hands-free with the new Siri in iOS 27. GARMIN VARIA Pair your Garmin Varia rear radar to see vehicles approaching from behind — direction and proximity shown both on the map as a lane overlay and in the cycling computer. Live alerts on iPhone and Apple Watch. FREECYCLE Track an unplanned ride and save it as a workout in Apple Health. OFFLINE MAPS Download any area to ride without data. Favorite routes download their corridor automatically, and offline packs are available by cycling country. APPLE WATCH Cutting‑edge routing and navigation on your wrist. Cycling computer with speed, distance, time, heart rate and a live elevation chart. Garmin Varia alerts. Use haptics for guidance and save rides as workouts. Works independently of iPhone. HANDOFF Start navigating on iPhone and pick up on Apple Watch — or the other way around. Hand off your map position or continue reviewing past rides on any nearby Apple device. LIVE ACTIVITY See your speed, distance and next turn right on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island — no need to unlock your phone mid-ride. COMPLEX ROUTES Plan routes with any number of stops — reorder them, optimise the order, or return to your starting point. GPX & KML SUPPORT Import routes from your club or any source — turn cues included, on iPhone and Apple Watch. Export your rides as GPX. CYCLE PATHS ON EVERY MAP Choose Apple Maps, Google Maps, or CycleMaps' own OpenStreetMap map — a crisp vector map, worldwide, with place names in your language. Cycle paths are drawn on all three; tap one to see what it is. FAVOURITE ROUTES Save your favourite routes. Create an account and sync across all your devices. CYCLE COMPUTER Mount your iPhone — or glance at your Apple Watch — for speed, distance cycled, distance remaining, elapsed time, heart rate, gradient, total ascent and ETA. A live elevation chart highlights your position along the route and alerts you when a climb is coming. Pause and resume your ride at any time — or let auto‑pause handle it when you stop. NEVER LOSE A RIDE Your ride is continuously checkpointed. If your phone or watch dies mid‑ride, CycleMaps recovers the ride and your workout is saved. SHARE YOUR ETA Share your ETA while riding. Premium riders share a live link: friends and family follow your ride on a map in their browser, no app needed. WIDGETS & SHORTCUTS Home Screen widgets for your favorites, cycling streak and weekly pace. Cycle home or start a FreeCycle from Control Center, the Lock Screen or Siri. AI RIDE RECAP A short, natural-language summary of any past ride — generated on your device, private and offline (requires Apple Intelligence). Found a problem or have a suggestion? Contact us at feedback@cyclema.ps CycleMaps is free to download. You can purchase CycleMaps Premium, a low‑cost yearly subscription that enables Apple Watch features, adds voice navigation and more. The subscription renews annually at the same price unless cancelled. Payment will be charged to your Apple Account, and renewal will be charged within 24 hours before the end of the current period. Auto‑renewal can be turned off in your account settings after purchase. Privacy policy: https://cyclema.ps/privacy Terms and conditions: https://cyclema.ps/terms

About

Beacons

Features
Read full description

Beacons AR turns your favorite places into luminous columns of light you can see through your camera. Raise your phone and look around: each saved location — your home, your office, a viewpoint on a hike — rises into the sky as a glowing colored beam, so you always know which way it is and how far. • See your places as colored light beams in augmented reality • Add a beacon from your current location, by picking a point on the map, or by entering coordinates • Name them, color them, edit or remove them anytime • On-screen labels show each beacon's name; far-away places stay visible on the horizon • Great outdoors for hikes and panoramas, and around town Inspired by the waypoint beacons of adventure games, brought into the real world. Your beacons stay on your device. No account, no ads, no tracking.

Screenshots

CycleMaps4 screens
Beacons3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Beacons at none against CycleMaps's 7. Beacons also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. CycleMaps sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per year. Beacons asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CycleMaps ships an update weekly, Beacons every 10 days. Both last shipped on October 10, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
CycleMaps versus Beacons: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCycleMapsBeacons
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews62.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 10 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size57 MB100 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developermotocode ltdJr Cabbry

Bugs and requests

CycleMaps

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Incorrect GPS location detection
  • Inability to sign up or reset password
  • Crashes or freezes when using certain features

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to avoid hills, stairs, or unpaved paths
  • Ability to reverse or edit saved routes
  • Automatic rerouting when going off course
  • Display of bike share station locations and availability
  • Voice navigation through connected Bluetooth headphones

Beacons

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

7 purchases

CycleMaps

Subscriptions4
  • CycleMaps Premium Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year
  • CycleMaps Premium Yearly$24.991 Year
  • CycleMaps Premium Family Year7 Days trial$29.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • CycleMaps Premium Family Year$29.991 Year
One-time3
  • Watch TrialFree
  • CycleMaps Premium Lifetime$69.99
  • CycleMaps Premium Family$99.99
None

Beacons

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is CycleMaps free?
CycleMaps is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Beacons free?
Beacons is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do CycleMaps or Beacons have ads?
Neither CycleMaps nor Beacons shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CycleMaps or Beacons?
CycleMaps ships an update weekly, and Beacons every 10 days. Most recently, CycleMaps was updated on October 10, 2026 and Beacons on October 10, 2026.

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