Comparison

OnlyTrails vs Compass

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

Head to head
About

OnlyTrails

Features
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Your hike is saved on your phone before anything else. Not in an account, not after a sync: the recording, the route and the map are on the device in your hand from the moment you press start. It works with no signal and no account. Download a trail’s topo tiles once and follow it with the radio off. Finish and save a hike with no session, no server and no bars. Apple Watch runs the same navigation, not a remote control for it — the route, the off-route alarm and the eyes-free cues are on the watch, and stay there when the phone is in your pack. OFFLINE TOPO MAPS • OpenTopoMap tiles with true contour lines and hillshade, plus USGS Topo and standard basemaps • Download the tile corridor along the whole route, not a rough box around it • Trail lines colored by steepness, with an elevation profile and grade chart NAVIGATION THAT SURVIVES THE DAY • Off-route alarm plus a saved breadcrumb log for retrace and where-am-I, offline • Eyes-free mode: spoken and haptic fork cues on a near-black glance screen • Adaptive GPS drops to coarse between forks and counts steps with the motion coprocessor, waking full GPS at the decision points • A battery-versus-ETA budget that tightens power saving as your charge drops BRING YOUR OWN ROUTE • Open any .gpx from Files, AirDrop or another app • Draw a route on the map, snap it to real paths, or fork someone else’s and edit it • Automatic distance, elevation gain and drop, grade and difficulty ALWAYS FREE, NEVER GATED • Starting, finishing and saving a recording • Opening an offline map you have already downloaded • Exporting your own routes and recordings as GPX • Following a route, the off-route alarm, retrace and where-am-I • Watch navigation of a route on the phone • The app itself, without an account, offline, indefinitely THE CATALOG, HONESTLY The community catalog is deepest in Chiang Mai and northern Thailand today — that is where the hikers and the verified routes are. Anywhere else, bring your own: import a GPX, draw a route, or just record as you walk. Recording, navigating and saving work the same everywhere on earth. COMMUNITY • Share and discover routes, with crowd difficulty voting and reviews • Junction markings (Bee · Thorn · Slippery · Fork) and “What-the-Fork” photos pinned to confusing forks • Group hikes and events, with a poster you can paste straight into a chat Map tiles © OpenTopoMap (CC-BY-SA) and © OpenStreetMap contributors. USGS Topo tiles courtesy of The National Map.

About

Compass

Features
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Compass: GPS Altimeter brings the geographic information you need for driving, cycling, hiking and everyday exploration into one clean, focused app. 【About Product】 · Precision compass: See live heading, degrees, coordinates, location status and local weather. A detailed dial and level-calibration cross make orientation easy to read. · Live altitude: Check altitude, GPS accuracy, a 24-hour altitude chart, pressure, oxygen ratio and magnetic-field data. · GPS speedometer: Follow live speed, distance, duration, average speed and top speed. The reading returns to zero promptly when you stop. · Track records: Save walks, rides and drives. Pause, confirm before stopping, review route details, recenter on your location and open the route in Maps. · Geo Camera: Photos and videos automatically retain coordinates and time, plus unlocked altitude and pressure data. Use front or rear cameras, zoom, tap to focus, browse, delete and save to Photos. · Pro membership: Unlock precise altitude, pressure, oxygen and magnetic data, plus an ad-free and unlimited experience. 【Auto-Subscription Terms】 · Payment: iTunes account charged at end of free trial after purchase confirmation · Auto-Renewal: Charged within 24 hours before subscription ends, period extends automatically · Cancel: Manage/cancel auto-renewal in iPhone Settings → iTunes Store & App Store → Apple ID → Subscriptions 【Related Agreements】 · Terms of Service: http://app.fuchun.vip/babydiary/UserAgreement.html · Privacy Policy: http://app.fuchun.vip/babydiary/PrivacyPolicy.html · By using this app, you agree to the above terms. Location, altitude, speed and heading readings can be affected by device hardware, satellite signal, surrounding conditions and system services. They are for everyday reference only and must not be the sole basis for surveying, rescue or safety decisions.

Screenshots

OnlyTrails4 screens
Compass4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: OnlyTrails at none against Compass's 4. OnlyTrails also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs fortnightly). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Compass sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per 7 days. OnlyTrails asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OnlyTrails ships an update every 2 days, Compass fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
OnlyTrails versus Compass: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOnlyTrailsCompass
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
DevicesiPhone, Apple WatchiPhone, Apple Watch
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size62 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMEET SOFTWARE COMPANY LIMITED冬 杨

In-app purchases

None

OnlyTrails

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Compass

Subscriptions3
  • 指南针周会员7 Days trial$6.997 Days
  • 指南针连续包月会员$9.991 Month
  • 指南针连续包年会员3 Days trial$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • 指南针终身会员$29.99

Questions

Is OnlyTrails free?
OnlyTrails is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Compass free?
Compass is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do OnlyTrails or Compass have ads?
Neither OnlyTrails nor Compass shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OnlyTrails or Compass?
OnlyTrails ships an update every 2 days, and Compass fortnightly. Most recently, OnlyTrails was updated on October 25, 2026 and Compass on October 31, 2026.

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