Comparison

Mountainwatch vs PowderRun

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

Head to head
About

Mountainwatch

Stay informed about snow conditions, forecasts, and news for Australian and New Zealand ski resorts. Get daily reports, live weather, and resort updates to plan your next snow adventure.

Highlights
  • 7-day snow & weather forecasts
  • Live snow cams
  • Daily snow reports
  • Live on-mountain weather
  • Resort conditions
  • Snow alerts
  • Snow news
Features
Read full description

Australia and New Zealand’s number 1 Snow app It's time to freshen up your skis or boards, grab a mate and head to the snow. The Mountainwatch Snow Report & Forecast App is all you need to stay on point for all snow conditions, snow forecasts and snow news. The app features include: • 7-day snow & weather forecasts • Live Snow cams • Daily Snow Reports • Live on-mountain weather • Resort conditions including roads and lift status • Snow Alerts • Resort Information • Snow News Enjoy the season! www.mountainwatch.com

About

PowderRun

Features
Read full description

PowderRun scores every ski run 0–100 using live weather data so you always know where the best snow is. Scores update every 30 minutes based on fresh snowfall, temperature, wind, sun exposure, freeze level, and ice risk. Open the app, pick your resort, and instantly see which runs are firing. HOW IT WORKS Each run gets a powder score from 0 to 100. The score combines real-time weather — snowfall in the last 24 hours, current temperature, wind speed and direction, solar radiation on the slope, and freeze level — with the run's aspect, elevation, and terrain features. North-facing sheltered runs score higher on sunny days. Windward slopes get penalised in a gale. It all happens automatically. FEATURES • Run-by-run scores — not just a resort average, but a score for every individual run • 10-day forecast — scrub through time to see how conditions will change hour by hour • Interactive terrain map — tap any run on the map to see its score and conditions • Detailed conditions — fresh snow, temperature, wind, freeze level, sun exposure, and ice risk for every run • Lift status — see which lifts are open and which runs they access • Filter by difficulty — show only green, blue, or black runs • Powder alerts — get notified when fresh snow drops overnight • Compare resorts — see scores across all your favourite mountains at a glance 86 RESORTS ACROSS 14 COUNTRIES Australia — Perisher, Thredbo, Mt Buller, Mt Hotham, Falls Creek New Zealand — Cardrona, Coronet Peak, Mt Hutt, The Remarkables, Whakapapa, Turoa Canada — Whistler, Lake Louise, Revelstoke, Fernie, Big White, Kicking Horse, Sun Peaks USA — Vail, Park City, Jackson Hole, Alta, Snowbird, Aspen, Mammoth, Telluride, Steamboat, Breckenridge, Stowe, Killington, Palisades Tahoe, Heavenly, Taos Japan — Niseko, Hakuba, Furano, Myoko, Nozawa Onsen, Rusutsu, Zao, Shiga Kogen France — Chamonix, Val Thorens, Courchevel, Tignes, Val d'Isère, Méribel, Les Arcs, La Plagne, Morzine, Avoriaz, Alpe d'Huez, Les Deux Alpes, Serre Chevalier Switzerland — Zermatt, Verbier, St Moritz, Davos, Saas-Fee, Wengen, Grindelwald, Crans-Montana Austria — Kitzbühel, Lech, Ischgl, Mayrhofen, Schladming, Sölden Italy — Cortina, Cervinia, Livigno, Val Gardena, Courmayeur, Sestriere, Campiglio Spain — Baqueira, Grandvalira, Sierra Nevada Norway — Trysil, Hemsedal Scotland — Cairngorm, Glencoe Argentina — Cerro Catedral, Las Leñas Chile — Portillo, Valle Nevado More resorts added regularly. Weather data sourced from Open-Meteo. Lift status via liftie.info.

Screenshots

Mountainwatch4 screens
PowderRun4 screens

Verdict

The call

Mountainwatch and PowderRun are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mountainwatch ships an update every 2 months, PowderRun monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Mountainwatch versus PowderRun: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMountainwatchPowderRun
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationAd-supported—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS16.415.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size51 MB109 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLiquid Snow ToursLuke Pipolo

In-app purchases

None

Mountainwatch

No in-app purchases

None

PowderRun

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Mountainwatch free?
Mountainwatch is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is PowderRun free?
PowderRun is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Mountainwatch or PowderRun have ads?
Neither Mountainwatch nor PowderRun shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mountainwatch or PowderRun?
Mountainwatch ships an update every 2 months, and PowderRun monthly. Most recently, Mountainwatch was updated on October 22, 2026 and PowderRun on October 3, 2026.

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