Elevation vs Topo Maps US
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Elevation
Easily find your current elevation, altitude, and height above sea level. This app allows you to check elevations by touching the map, entering an address, or using your device's GPS or barometer. It also provides valuable data for flood prediction and outdoor planning.
- Find current elevation and altitude
- Check elevation by map touch or address input
- Utilize GPS and barometer for altitude
- Record and display GPS altitude path
- Standalone barometer functionality
- Support for UTM and MGRS coordinates
- Export timestamp, altitude, pressure, and coordinates
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Find your current elevation, altitude, and height above sea level easily with this altimeter/barometer app. ## Elevation Finder ## This app helps you observe the elevations of all locations on the surface of the earth by simply touch and move the map around, or input the address/location name. You can also find the elevation of your current location by using online database, built-in GPS, or barometer on your device. Elevation data benefits flood prevention, prediction of water levels in rivers, lakes, and seas, etc. Thus, knowing the elevation of places is very crucial if you are looking for a flood-free house, or planning for a hiking trip, and more. ## Cloud-based Altitude Data ## The easiest way to find altitude of any location on earth. By simply point on the screen, you can get the elevation data from a coordinate location point. “Range Mode” is available for altitude comparison (by graph and line) of each point between two selected locations. ## GPS Altitude Data ## Use built-in GPS on your device to determine the altitude of your current location. The altitude data of the area you walked-through will be recorded and displayed as a multicolored line on the map. The colors presented on the line indicate different heights. Precision indicators (horizontal resolution and vertical resolution) are displayed on the screen. ## Barometric Altitude Data ## Use built-in barometer on your device to determine the elevation of your current location. You can either measure the elevation from raw barometric data, or relative pressure from sea-level. Like GPS data, the result is displayed as a multicolored line. To get the most accurate data, it is recommended to adjust the sea level pressure and temperature prior to the measurement, and set the offset or calibration value if necessary. ## Standalone Barometer ## You can use this app as a standalone barometer. ## Air Pressure / Altitude Calculator ## Atmospheric pressure and/or altitude at your current location are calculated from known altitude, pressure of the location, temperature and/or sea level pressure. ## Support of Coordinate Formats ## This app not only displays regular latitude and longitude data, but also supports many coordinate systems such as, Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinate system and Military Grid Reference System (MGRS) and more. ## Export of Data ## From this app, you can export many useful information including timestamp, altitude, pressure, and coordinates. Subscription ------------- Elevation - Sea Level Map is completely free to use with all features. You can subscribe to this application to remove ads and reduce data retrieving delay by 50%. Device subscriptions are available in these plan and will renew automatically each month, six months or year, unless cancelled. (Per month) - $4.49 (Per six-months) - $25.99 (Per year) - $48.99 Pricing shown is for the United States store. Pricing in other stores will vary. Payment for subscriptions will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period Subscriptions may be managed by going to your iTunes Account Settings after purchase or by clicking the “Purchase / Manage Subscription. Auto-renewal may be turned off by going to Account Settings after purchase. Subscription cannot be cancelled during the active subscription period More information: https://mapnitude.com/elevation Privacy policy: https://mapnitude.com/privacy-policy Terms of use: https://mapnitude.com/terms-of-service
Topo Maps US
Access and download detailed topographic maps of the United States for offline use. Track your location, mark waypoints, and record your routes for outdoor activities. Navigate with direction arrows and measure distances on the map.
- Download US topographic maps
- Offline map viewing
- GPS location tracking
- Add and import waypoints (flags)
- Import and share GPX/LOC files
- Record and share trails
- Elevation profile charts
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Download USGS topographic maps of the United States and use them offline, with no account and no subscription. Topo Maps US is built for people who go where cell service doesn't: hikers, backpackers, hunters, anglers, paddlers, mountain bikers, geocachers, and anyone who wants a real topographic map in their pocket. MAPS Choose from three USGS map layers: standard topographic, aerial imagery with a topographic overlay, or plain aerial imagery. OFFLINE Tap the map squares you want and download them before you leave. Downloaded maps work with no Internet connection and use no cell data in the field. TRAILS AND POINTS OF INTEREST BUILT IN Every map download includes the trails, summits, lakes, campsites, and other named places in that area from OpenStreetMap, so you can search them by name while you're offline. TRAIL RECORDING Record where you go. Recorded trails show your path on the map with distance, elapsed time, and average speed. Recording stops automatically when you start driving, and any drive at the start or end of a trail is trimmed off. ELEVATION PROFILES Every recorded or imported trail gets an elevation profile with distance labels and color-coded grade shading. Drag along the chart to see the matching point on the map, its elevation, and the time you passed it. FLAGS Mark your current location or any spot on the map. Flags record coordinates and elevation, and you can add notes and organize them by color: geocaches, trailheads, summits, camps, and so on. NAVIGATION Pick a flag and follow the direction arrow, driven by your compass heading, with the distance remaining. Handy for geocaching and for finding your way back to camp or the car. LOCATION See where you are on the map, your elevation, speed, and the accuracy of the GPS fix. MEASURE Trace a route on the map to measure its distance, then save it as a trail to follow later. IMPORT AND SHARE Import trails and waypoints from GPX files and geocache LOC files. Share your flags and trails by email, Messages, or AirDrop as standard GPX files that work with any GPS unit or mapping software. Back up your maps and data to a computer over Wi-Fi. Designed for iPhone and iPad. Note: Continued use of GPS in the background can noticeably reduce battery life.
Screenshots
Verdict
Elevation and Topo Maps US both sit at 4.5 stars, but that hides the real split: 88% of Topo Maps US's written reviews are positive against 30% of Elevation's. Topo Maps US also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ads (none vs shown). Elevation's advantage is ratings volume (5.5K vs 213) and update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, rating, 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
Both are free to download. Elevation sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.49 per month. Topo Maps US asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Elevation against 4.4 for Topo Maps US. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Elevation has 5.5K ratings behind it against 213, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 30% of Elevation's written reviews are positive against 88% of Topo Maps US's.
Elevation ships an update every 4 weeks, Topo Maps US every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Elevation | Topo Maps US |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (5.5K ratings) — better | 4.4 (213 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 29.9% of reviews | 87.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 5.5K — better | 213 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 53 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Mapnitude Company Limited | DC Cloud Apps, LLC |
Customer experience
Elevation
Topo Maps US
User reviews
Elevation
From 5.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Works great
- 👍 Helpful for research
- 👍 Useful for tracking elevation during storms
- 👍 Easy to use
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes on opening
- 🐛 Elevation readings are inaccurate
- 🐛 Doesn't work consistently
- 💰 Too many ads
- 🤔 Confusing user interface
Topo Maps US
From 213 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Intuitive and simple user interface
- 📱 Works completely offline with downloaded maps
- 💰 Free app with no subscriptions or ads
- 🗺️ High-quality USGS topographic maps
- 📍 Accurate GPS location tracking
Room to improve
- 🐛 White/gray blocks appearing on offline maps
- 🔋 High battery drain during route recording
- ❌ Limited color options for flags (only red)
- ⚠️ Route recording stops unexpectedly
- 🔍 No search functionality for trails/landmarks
Bugs and requests
Elevation
Reported bugs
3 issues- Elevation readings not working
- App freezes or crashes frequently
- Inconsistent behavior across locations
Requested features
3 requests- Add search functionality
- Display elevation in feet instead of meters
- Improve accuracy of elevation readings
Topo Maps US
Reported bugs
8 issues- White and gray blocks appearing on downloaded offline maps
- Route recording stops unexpectedly mid-hike
- High battery drain during route tracking
- GPX file import issues in iOS 13+
- Map display issues near borders
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Flags cluttering the view
- Inconsistent zoom functionality
- Route tracking drops without saving
Requested features
18 requests- Pause/resume tracking during hikes
- Search feature for trails and landmarks
- Apple Watch app support
- CarPlay integration
- Slope shading visualization
Show 13 moreShow fewer
- Ability to select and download multiple tiles at once
- Background map downloading
- Map transfer between devices
- iCloud backup for GPS tracks
- Older USGS topographic map versions
- Time stamps in GPX export for fitness tracking
- Quadrangle identification display
- Built-in compass with map orientation
- Laptop map manager for easier updates
- Community Q&A section
- Multiple color options for waypoints
- Auto-save feature for long recordings
- Larger downloadable map areas
In-app purchases
Elevation
- Plus Upgrade$4.491 Month
- Plus Upgrade$25.996 Months
- Plus Upgrade$48.991 Year
Topo Maps US
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Elevation free?
Is Topo Maps US free?
Which has better reviews, Elevation or Topo Maps US?
Do Elevation or Topo Maps US have ads?
Which is updated more often, Elevation or Topo Maps US?
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