Comparison

MapShifter vs MapSkins GPS

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

Head to head
About

MapShifter

Transform your everyday maps into stylized, game-inspired worlds with turn-by-turn navigation and offline capabilities. Explore millions of places with customizable skins and track your journeys.

Highlights
  • Customizable game-inspired map skins
  • Turn-by-turn navigation (driving, walking, cycling)
  • Offline maps for any region
  • Real-time place search
  • Journey tracking with achievements
  • Apple Watch and CarPlay support
  • Home Screen widgets
Features
Read full description

Your city, but reskinned by video games. Same streets. Same GPS. Whole different vibe. MapShifter replaces your everyday map with hand-crafted, game-inspired worlds — and gives you turn-by-turn navigation, place search, and offline maps inside each one. A map that evolves as you explore. FEATURES • Swap live between six map skins without losing your route • Turn-by-turn navigation for driving, walking, and cycling • Real search — restaurants, ATMs, landmarks — millions of places from OpenStreetMap • Offline maps — download any region and roam without a signal • Journey tracker — visited countries, history, streaks, and achievements • Apple Watch companion — the map on your wrist, in your favorite skin • CarPlay — your themed map, position arrow, route, search, and turn-by-turn guidance on the car display • Home Screen widgets — a live mini-map styled to match your theme SKINS AT LAUNCH • Old Wild Frontier II — sepia tones, serif typography, trail dust • Great Street Empire: SA — bold, graffiti-flavored urban cartography • Great Street Empire V — modern, dark style • Voxel Realm — pixelated, cubed, lush green biomes • Cybershock 2099 — dark, modern, glowy districts • Wastefield 4 — phosphor-green glow, radiated terrain New skins drop regularly. PRIVACY FIRST • No accounts. Install, open, go. • No ads, ever. • Anonymous product analytics and crash diagnostics; no advertising, attribution, or tracking SDKs. • We don't operate a server that logs your location. • We don't build behavioral profiles or sell data. MapShifter is an independent indie project — a love letter to the games that made us fall in love with maps. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any game studio, publisher, or franchise referenced. Every skin is original artwork and typography inspired by broader cartographic styles. All trademarks remain the property of their respective owners. Built on open foundations: OpenStreetMap (map data, © OSM contributors, ODbL), MapLibre (rendering), Project OSRM (routing), Photon + Nominatim (search), Wikidata (place info). Huge thanks to the communities behind each. Download free. Pick your world. Start exploring. Support: support@mapshifter.com Website: https://mapshifter.com/ Privacy: https://mapshifter.com/privacy.html Terms: https://mapshifter.com/terms.html

About

MapSkins GPS

Personalize your driving experience with custom map themes and turn-by-turn navigation. Choose from various visual styles, search destinations, and get clear directions with voice guidance. Make your commute more engaging and visually appealing.

Highlights
  • Custom map skins
  • Turn-by-turn navigation
  • Voice guidance
  • Route preview
  • Smart rerouting
  • Destination search
Features
Read full description

MapSkins GPS is a customizable navigation app that lets you turn your map into a themed driving experience. Choose from clean, cinematic, pixel-inspired, and game-inspired map skins, then search for a destination, preview your route, and start turn-by-turn navigation. Free features include classic map skins, destination search, and route preview. MapSkins Premium unlocks premium map skins, turn-by-turn navigation, voice guidance, and smart rerouting. Features: • Custom map skins • Destination search • Route preview with ETA, distance, and arrival time • Turn-by-turn navigation • Voice guidance • Smart rerouting • Home pin • Compass reset and recenter controls MapSkins GPS is designed to make navigation feel more personal while keeping the driving experience simple and glanceable. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://mapskingps.online/privacy

Screenshots

MapShifter4 screens
MapSkins GPS4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: MapShifter at none against MapSkins GPS's 3. MapShifter also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.4) and review sentiment (100% vs 74%). MapSkins GPS's advantage is ratings volume (45 vs 15) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. MapSkins GPS sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. MapShifter asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

MapShifter holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 15 and 45 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of MapShifter's written reviews are positive against 74% of MapSkins GPS's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MapShifter ships an update weekly, MapSkins GPS every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
MapShifter versus MapSkins GPS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMapShifterMapSkins GPS
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (15 ratings) — better4.4 (45 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better74.2% of reviews
Number of ratings1545 — better
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS18.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size116 MB161 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFilipp BazunJACKSON WILLIAM PICARD

Customer experience

MapShifter

All ratings15 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

MapSkins GPS

All ratings43 ratings
Positive81.4%
Neutral9.3%
Negative9.3%
Written reviews31 reviews
Positive74.2%
Neutral6.5%
Negative19.4%

In-app purchases

None

MapShifter

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

MapSkins GPS

Subscriptions3
  • MapSkins Premium$6.991 Month
  • MapSkins Premium1 Year trial$39.991 Year
  • Mapskins Yearly 39.99$39.991 Year

Questions

Is MapShifter free?
MapShifter is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MapSkins GPS free?
MapSkins GPS is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, MapShifter or MapSkins GPS?
MapShifter is rated higher. MapShifter averages 4.9 out of 5 from 15 ratings, while MapSkins GPS averages 4.4 from 45 ratings.
Do MapShifter or MapSkins GPS have ads?
Neither MapShifter nor MapSkins GPS shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MapShifter or MapSkins GPS?
MapShifter ships an update weekly, and MapSkins GPS every 2 weeks. Most recently, MapShifter was updated on November 1, 2026 and MapSkins GPS on November 1, 2026.

Other comparisons