Boondocking vs USFS & BLM Campgrounds
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Boondocking
Discover over 2,100 free camping locations, primarily in the US, with detailed information available even offline. This crowdsourced app helps you find remote spots, check driving distances, view local weather, and filter options like water and toilet availability.
- 2,100+ free boondocking locations
- Offline access to location data
- Driving distance and time calculation
- Multiple map types (e.g., Open Street Map)
- Local weather information
- Filter locations by amenities
- Mark favorite locations
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Boondocking usually refers to free camping in remote areas. This app shows over 2,100 free boondocking locations (and growing), most within the US. The boondocking locations are obtained from crowdsourcing and are therefore subjective in nature. What one person describes as beautiful another may describe as worthless. - No Internet needed as the boondocking locations are contained with the app. - Shows driving distance and time from your current location to the boondocking location. - View multiple map types such as Open Street Map. - Get info about each boondocking location, even when offline. - Mark locations as Favorite locations. - Get the local weather for the location. - Find nearby hiking and biking locations. - View Flickr photos for the location (when available). - Filter the locations (water, toilets, big rig friendly, etc) so you only view the locations you what to see. - Send location data directly to our Road Trip Planner app. - No login or subscription necessary. Just start the app and use it! Happy Camping!
USFS & BLM Campgrounds
Discover over 5,600 USFS and BLM campgrounds across the USA. Find low-cost or free camping options with detailed information including weather, elevation, and images. Plan your route and navigate easily with offline access.
- Over 5,600 USFS/BLM campgrounds
- Low-cost or free options
- Local weather and elevation
- Internet images and Flickr search
- Offline map access
- Route planning integration
- GPX file import
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This app shows over 5,640 United States Forest Service (USFS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) campgrounds throughout the USA. These types of campgrounds tend to be low cost or free. Each location displays the campground name, which agency administers it (BLM or USFS), the local weather, elevation, Internet images and searches of the campground, Flickr geotag search, and more. Easily locate the campgrounds nearest you. Send location data directly to our Road Trip Planner app. Import routes from GPX files. This makes it much easier to find locations along your route. - No subscription fees; just a one-time purchase. - Show a route between your location and the campground. - Map layers include Apple, Google, and Open Street Maps. - No Internet connection required to view campground locations and info. - View Flickr photos of each location (if they exist). - View current weather of each location. - Database is updated monthly, subject to user submissions.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is monetization model: Boondocking at free against USFS & BLM Campgrounds's paid. On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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
Boondocking costs $0.99 and USFS & BLM Campgrounds $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Boondocking against 4.5 for USFS & BLM Campgrounds. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 9.5K and 4.3K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 51% of Boondocking's written reviews are positive against 46% of USFS & BLM Campgrounds's.
Boondocking ships an update every 4 weeks, USFS & BLM Campgrounds every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Boondocking | USFS & BLM Campgrounds |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | $0.99 |
| Rating | 4.6 (9.5K ratings) — better | 4.5 (4.3K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 51.5% of reviews — better | 45.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 9.5K — better | 4.3K |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #13 — better | #14 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 3 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | William Modesitt | Kyle Modesitt |
Customer experience
Boondocking
USFS & BLM Campgrounds
User reviews
Boondocking
From 9.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Best kept secret
- 👍 Excellent app
- 👍 Easy to use
- 👍 Accurate, updated, helpful
- 👍 Great travel tool
Room to improve
- 🐛 Needs anyone's ability to comment on sites
- 🐛 Nice concept but can't see the filters even when it says they are applied
- 🐛 User I/F needs great deal of work to make it more user friendly
- 🐛 Interrupts me to beg for a review
- 🐛 Not much here unless I'm missing something
USFS & BLM Campgrounds
From 4.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 🚀 Worth every penny
- 🌄 Excellent starting point for finding off-the-beaten-path campsites
- 📍 Current, accurate, and local information
- 🗺️ Comprehensive app for finding USFS campgrounds
Room to improve
- 🐛 Lack of pertinent information regarding campsites
- 🗺️ Limited information on BLM land and campgrounds
- 🔍 Hard to find location and show my location feature not working well
- 🗺️ Unclear map legend and state boundary definitions
- ℹ️ Missing information on campground amenities, pricing, and open dates
Bugs and requests
Boondocking
Reported bugs
5 issues- Filters not working properly
- Outdated location information
- Inability to add new locations
- Incompatibility with older devices
- Crashes and freezes
Requested features
6 requests- Ability to save locations
- Ability to make and see comments and/or reviews of the spots from other people who have stayed
- More user entries for boondocks locations
- Dark mode option
- Advanced analytics dashboard
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- Good guide to public libraries
USFS & BLM Campgrounds
Reported bugs
3 issues- Weather information not displaying correctly
- Campground locations sometimes inaccurate or outdated
- Filters not working as expected, missing relevant campsites
Requested features
5 requests- Add ability to view number of sites and amenities at each campground
- Integrate with state park systems for additional route planning
- Include more information on dispersed camping areas
- Add user-submitted photos and reviews for campsites
- Provide clearer indication of free vs. paid campsites
In-app purchases
Boondocking
No in-app purchases
USFS & BLM Campgrounds
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Boondocking free?
Is USFS & BLM Campgrounds free?
Which has better reviews, Boondocking or USFS & BLM Campgrounds?
Do Boondocking or USFS & BLM Campgrounds have ads?
Which is updated more often, Boondocking or USFS & BLM Campgrounds?
Which is more popular, Boondocking or USFS & BLM Campgrounds?
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