# Sleeping Bear Trails vs ParkFerndale

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Sleeping Bear Trails at 100% against ParkFerndale's 23%. Sleeping Bear Trails also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.4) and update cadence (every 4 months vs every 17 months). ParkFerndale's advantage is ratings volume (410 vs 8). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Sleeping Bear Trails holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ParkFerndale has 410 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Sleeping Bear Trails's written reviews are positive against 23% of ParkFerndale's.

Sleeping Bear Trails ships an update every 4 months, ParkFerndale every 17 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Sleeping Bear Trails | ParkFerndale |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sleeping-bear-trails/id530045054/reviews)** | [4.4 (410 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/parkferndale/id1384685917/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 8 | **410** |
| Positive reviews | **100.0% of reviews** | 22.7% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 4 months** | Every 17 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 7 MB | 109 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Jonathan Reid](https://appshunter.io/developer/530045057) | [City of Ferndale, Michigan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1384685916) |

## What reviewers say

### Sleeping Bear Trails

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sleeping-bear-trails/id530045054)

Explore a national park with detailed trail maps, descriptions, and photos for hiking, biking, skiing, and more. Get directions to trailheads and discover local insights for an enhanced outdoor experience.

**Highlights:** Detailed trail maps, Trail descriptions, Photos of trails, Route to trailhead, GPS trailhead locations, Local star ratings and comments

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### ParkFerndale

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/parkferndale/id1384685917)

Manage your parking sessions easily and securely from your smartphone. Pay for parking, receive alerts before your session ends, and extend your time without returning to your vehicle. View future parking rates and access your parking history.

**Highlights:** Pay for parking on the go, Extend parking sessions remotely, Receive parking session end alerts, View future parking rates, Manage parking history, Receive email receipts

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and intuitive user interface
- 🚀 Quick setup process (under 5 minutes)
- 📱 Convenient remote parking management
- ⭐ Easy to use once configured
- 💳 No need to visit parking kiosks

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent location services errors
- 🐛 App crashes and freezes regularly
- 🐛 Network errors during transactions
- 🔒 Requires storing credit card information
- ❌ Missing Apple Pay support

**Reported bugs**

- Location services not available error despite permissions granted
- Input fields non-functional or partially working
- Network errors during PIN creation and confirmation
- App fails to extend parking time
- Charges multiple times for single transaction attempts

**Requested features**

- Apple Pay integration
- PayPal payment option
- Manual parking spot entry without location services
- Ability to cancel/refund unused parking time
- Vehicle management feature


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Sleeping Bear Trails free?

Sleeping Bear Trails is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is ParkFerndale free?

ParkFerndale is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Sleeping Bear Trails or ParkFerndale?

Sleeping Bear Trails is rated higher. Sleeping Bear Trails averages 4.9 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while ParkFerndale averages 4.4 from 410 ratings.

### Do Sleeping Bear Trails or ParkFerndale have ads?

Neither Sleeping Bear Trails nor ParkFerndale shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Sleeping Bear Trails or ParkFerndale?

Sleeping Bear Trails ships an update every 4 months, and ParkFerndale every 17 months. Most recently, Sleeping Bear Trails was updated on October 23, 2026 and ParkFerndale on October 29, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*