Comparison

Surveyor vs SideQuest

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

Head to head
About

Surveyor

This app transforms your real-world journeys into a collectible map. As you move, new map tiles are revealed, showcasing your explored areas and inspiring future adventures. It's designed for anyone who loves to explore, from daily commuters to long-distance travelers.

Highlights
  • Collectible map creation
  • Real-world travel tracking
  • Location/tile data privacy
  • Friend leaderboards
  • Background tracking
  • Manual backup and export
  • Multiple tile sizes
Features
Read full description

Explore the world. Unlock your map. Surveyor-64 turns your real-world travels into a living, collectible map. The whole planet starts hidden tiles. Each step, drive, or trip you take uncovers new tiles, revealing where you've been and inspiring where to go next. Rediscover your city through fresh eyes. Watch your personal atlas grow tile by tile, at three scales at once: macro tiles for regions, minor tiles for neighborhoods, micro tiles for streets. Light up a country's flag the first time you set foot in it. Compete with friends to see who's explored the most, or wander solo and enjoy the quiet satisfaction of unlocking the unknown. Built for explorers, travelers, and wanderers of every kind. Whether you're on a cross-country road trip or just taking a different route home, Surveyor-64 makes every movement meaningful. FEATURES - Obscured map at three tile sizes (regional, neighborhood, street-level), ready to be revealed - Country passport: 195 flags, each lit by your first visit - City detection with a live percentage for the city you're in - Statistics: global, per-city, discovery timeline, projected finish - Reveal tour: replay your travels as a cinematic fly-through, record it, share it - Friend leaderboards at every tile size, joined by invite code - Background tracking (with permission) and optimized battery performance - Cinematic and zen modes for a distraction-free map - Manual backup: export and import your save file at any time - Your location data stays on your device; only aggregate tile counts are shared with friends if you choose - Water Mode: lift the fog from the ocean so your map ends at the coast, at all 3 resolutions - Unreachable Cells: mark fenced-off sites and private land so your 100% is a 100% you can actually reach - Region focus: isolate a single city and see its progress alone https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

SideQuest

This app offers small, real-life challenges designed to encourage exploration and connection. Users can complete tasks like going for a walk or trying new things, then share their experiences with friends to see diverse perspectives on the same activities.

Highlights
  • Real-life challenges
  • Document experiences
  • Share with friends
  • See friends' perspectives
  • Connect through daily life
Features
Read full description

Go on a hike with your pet. Meet a new friend. Eat a great lunch. Each SideQuest gives you a small challenge for your life: just to make the plot a little more interesting. Anyone can create a new SideQuest, and anyone can complete one. Add yours to the mix, and see the silly, clever, and funny ways others participated. Document what you're up to. Share it with people who actually know you. See the weird, mundane, and beautiful stuff they're doing too. Stay connected with your friends in a way that actually feels good to look at.

Screenshots

Surveyor4 screens
SideQuest4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: SideQuest at none against Surveyor's 2. SideQuest also leads on ads (none vs shown) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Surveyor's advantage is ratings volume (20 vs 5). On price and update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Surveyor sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. SideQuest asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SideQuest holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 20 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 86% of Surveyor's written reviews are positive against 100% of SideQuest's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Surveyor ships an update weekly, SideQuest every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Surveyor versus SideQuest: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSurveyorSideQuest
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (20 ratings)5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings20 — better5
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 5 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.515.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size171 MB51 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperShrub Software LLCColden Bjorn Johnson

Customer experience

Surveyor

All ratings20 ratings
Positive95.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive85.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative14.3%

SideQuest

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Surveyor

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly Subscription3 Days trial$0.991 Month
One-time1
  • Lifetime$19.99
None

SideQuest

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Surveyor free?
Surveyor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SideQuest free?
SideQuest is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Surveyor or SideQuest?
SideQuest is rated higher. Surveyor averages 4.8 out of 5 from 20 ratings, while SideQuest averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.
Do Surveyor or SideQuest have ads?
Surveyor shows ads; SideQuest does not.
Which is updated more often, Surveyor or SideQuest?
Surveyor ships an update weekly, and SideQuest every 5 days. Most recently, Surveyor was updated on October 30, 2026 and SideQuest on October 11, 2026.

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