FOWIRL vs Trace World
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
FOWIRL
This app uses real-time GPS tracking to reveal your surroundings on a "fog-of-war" map. As you move, visited areas are uncovered, turning every journey into an adventure of discovery. Your travel history is stored locally for privacy and control.
- Fog-of-war map view
- Real-time GPS tracking
- Reveals visited areas
- Personal map of journeys
- Privacy and control
- Clear history option
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Rediscover your surroundings with FOWIRL—an immersive “fog-of-war” map that reveals only places you’ve actually visited. Whether you’re on a daily commute, on foot exploring a new town, or driving cross-country, feel the thrill of uncovering hidden corners of the world in real time! Key Features • Fog-of-War Map View — Start with a map cloaked in mysterious fog. As you move, only the roads and areas you’ve physically traversed appear, making each journey feel like a brand-new adventure. • Real-Time GPS Tracking — Your location updates on the fly, peeling back the fog in your current vicinity. Watch your traveled paths expand over time as you build a personal map of your life’s journeys. • Privacy & Control — All visited locations are stored on your device. You can easily clear your history or disable tracking at any time. Why FOWIRL? — Turn everyday errands into a fun quest. — Rediscover your hometown or explore new places with an extra layer of excitement. Step into a world of exploration where the unknown beckons — reveal the roads less traveled, one trip at a time!
Trace World
This app creates a personal exploration map that reveals areas as you travel through the real world. Your visited locations are saved locally, and you can customize your recent path. It offers different map styles and prioritizes user privacy with no account or data uploads.
- Exploration map reveals visited areas
- Recent track customization
- Auto-recording for travel
- Exploration level progression
- Multiple map styles
- Privacy-first design, no account needed
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TraceWorld turns every walk, ride, and trip into a personal map of where you have really been. Reveal the world as fog lifts, see density as a heatmap or dots, place your photos on the map, and look back through travel stories — privately, on your iPhone. ONE MAP, THREE VIEWS • All — your full journey at a glance: Fog, Heatmap, or Dots • 7 Days — a closer look at the past week • Today — focus on what you are doing right now RECORD AS YOU GO • Start recording when you head out; keep going in the background when you allow Always location • Choose how hard GPS works: Standard, Power Saver, or Ultra Saver (premium options for longer battery life) PHOTOS ON THE MAP • Show geotagged photos where you took them • Browse an aggregated all-photos view when you want the big picture • Photos stay on your device; TraceWorld does not upload your library FOOTPRINT MAP • See countries, regions, and cities you have lit up • Spot airports and other explored places • Open the real map and list for details, visit dates, and a clearer browse TRAVEL STORIES & IDENTITIES • Travel Stories — a timeline of trips and moves (premium) • Identities — keep commute, travel, and other lives on separate maps (extra identities are premium; your main identity stays free) BACKUP & PRIVACY • Optional iCloud backup of your exploration data to your own Apple ID • No TraceWorld account, no ads, no analytics SDK, no upload to our servers LANGUAGES Follow the system, or pick English, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese (Brazil), or Italian. TraceWorld Pro is an optional one-time unlock for premium features such as Travel Stories, extra identities, and Footprint Map details. Mapping overview, recording, and the main identity stay free.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: FOWIRL at none against Trace World's 1. FOWIRL also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7). Trace World's advantage is review sentiment (87% vs 75%) and ratings volume (6 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and monetization model 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. Trace World sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. FOWIRL asks for nothing beyond the download.
FOWIRL holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Trace World has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of FOWIRL's written reviews are positive against 87% of Trace World's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
FOWIRL ships an update every 6 days, Trace World weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | FOWIRL | Trace World |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | 4.7 (6 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | 87.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 6 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 days — better | Weekly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 97 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Mathieu Dutour | 高锋 李 |
Customer experience
FOWIRL
Trace World
In-app purchases
FOWIRL
No in-app purchases
Trace World
- TraceWorld Pro$3.99









