Comparison

LeadNav GPS vs SonsOfSmokey

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

Head to head
About

LeadNav GPS

Plan, coordinate, and navigate off-grid with this powerful GPS tool. Designed for demanding environments, it offers advanced features for mission planning, team communication, and detailed trip recording. Ideal for professionals and outdoor enthusiasts operating without reliable cellular service.

Highlights
  • Mission planning and coordination
  • Offline mapping and navigation
  • Team location tracking
  • Route creation and sharing
  • Audible and visual warnings
  • Track recording and analysis
  • GPX file support
Read full description

LEADNAV GPS is the professional off-road GPS for iPhone and iPad. Plan the route at home, run it with turn-by-turn voice guidance where there are no roads, and put your whole team on one map. Built for teams that work and travel off the grid: search and rescue, security details, expeditions, hunting camps, work crews, race teams and their chase crews. NAVIGATE WHERE THERE ARE NO ROADS • Turn-by-turn voice guidance from routes you build or import. Waypoints speak by name as you approach them. • Red warning rings and blue proximity rings that adjust to your speed, so the call comes when you need it. • Any ring you cross alerts, on the route or off it. Serpentine points keep you on the line without a word. • Works with no signal at all. Navigation never needs a connection. • Record tracks, convert them to routes, reverse a route to come back the way you went. • Drop markers for anything you want to find again. Recon, Aviation and Hunting marker sets are included for everyone. • Compatible with Bluetooth headsets, helmet intercoms and speakers for eyes-free navigation. TRIP PACKAGES • One file per trip, event or property: routes, tracks and markers together, with categories and Recently Deleted. • Built on the GPX standard. Import from and export to any GPS device or planning software. • Share a whole Trip Package with your team by AirDrop, Messages or email. • Route Editor with Undo, Join Multiple Routes, Convert Markers to Audio Waypoints, Export to GPS Unit for Garmin, Lowrance and other units. YOUR WHOLE TEAM ON ONE MAP • Group tracking is included with the app. One Team Code, a QR or an invite link builds the team. Teammates join in seconds and see each other live. • Runs over any internet connection: cellular, Wi-Fi at camp, or vehicle-mounted satellite internet such as Starlink. • Keeps sharing with the screen locked when you turn on background tracking. • No account, no login, nothing to sign up for. Your team identity is a random code you can reset any time. COMMS (PRO LICENSE) • Hold to talk with your teams from the pad on the map or from a wireless button. Release to send. • Every message is written out as text in the team thread, so a call you missed at speed is still there when you look down. • Several teams at once, each with its own channel and switch. Faster updates, teammate speed, off-screen arrows and breadcrumb trails. PRERUNNING TOOLS (PRO LICENSE) • PreRunner Bar and Pocket PreRunner: one-tap waypoint drops at speed, with a wipe-safe screen lock. • Wireless buttons: drop waypoints, record tracks, zoom and talk with your hands on the wheel. Part of our patent-pending prerunning system. • Waypoint Mic: hands-free voice notes at speed through your helmet comms. • Speed Highlighter: paint the route green, yellow and red as you run it. • Package Rules: proximity rings and marker symbols by name, saved in the file for everyone you share it with. • Off Route Alert: hear it the moment you leave the line, and which side the route is on. • Edit at speed: tap any waypoint in run mode to edit or delete it. OFFLINE MAPS • Free online map sources include USGS Satellite, USGS Topo and OpenStreetMap. • The Entry and Pro Licenses add offline map imagery for every map type, MBTiles import and overlays, and custom map URLs. Select areas and store them before you go. Maps are provided by outside services and are subject to change. LICENSES The app is a one-time purchase. Entry and Pro are auto-renewing licenses, managed in your Apple account. Details at leadnavgps.com/pricing. NOTES • This is a high-powered GPS and needs power for prolonged use in the field. Continued background GPS use can dramatically decrease battery life. • Wi-Fi-only iPads have no internal GPS chip. Use a cellular model, or an external GPS receiver with the app. • Group tracking and Comms need an internet connection. Navigation does not.

About

SonsOfSmokey

This app helps users identify and report illegal dumping on public lands. Users can geo-tag and photograph dump sites, then mark them as cleaned up. It aims to unite public land users and volunteers in restoring natural areas.

Highlights
  • Identify illegal dump sites
  • Geo-tag and photograph debris
  • Real-time trash map
  • Mark locations as cleaned up
  • Volunteer for cleanup projects
Features
Read full description

Sons Of Smokey - SOS app is uniting public land users of all types and volunteers looking to help restore public land for future generations! Use the SOS app to identify and clean up illegal dump locations on public land. Geo tag and photograph abandoned vehicles, dump sites, etc. and update our real-time trash map. Scout out these marked locations for clean up projects and mark them as cleaned up when you're done. How it works: - Download the app and Sign-In with Apple - Open the SOS app while using public lands - If you see dumped debris, select the large "+" button in the middle of the screen, provide a description of what it is and take a few photos - You will see the trash icon appear within the app - If you can clean up a trash location, do so and tap the 'Clean Up' to provide some new photos and describe what you did

Screenshots

LeadNav GPS4 screens
SonsOfSmokey4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SonsOfSmokey at Free against LeadNav GPS's $19.99. SonsOfSmokey also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 13). LeadNav GPS's advantage is review sentiment (67% vs 45%) and update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 3 months). On rating, 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

SonsOfSmokey is free to download; LeadNav GPS costs $19.99 up front. LeadNav GPS sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. SonsOfSmokey asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.9 for LeadNav GPS against 3.8 for SonsOfSmokey. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: LeadNav GPS has 116 ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 67% of LeadNav GPS's written reviews are positive against 45% of SonsOfSmokey's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

LeadNav GPS ships an update every 5 weeks, SonsOfSmokey every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 10, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
LeadNav GPS versus SonsOfSmokey: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLeadNav GPSSonsOfSmokey
Price$19.99Free — better
Rating3.9 (116 ratings) — better3.8 (17 ratings)
Positive reviews67.4% of reviews — better45.5% of reviews
Number of ratings116 — better17
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#26 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.5
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB43 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLeadNav Systems LLCSons of Smokey

Customer experience

LeadNav GPS

All ratings116 ratings
Positive69.8%
Neutral4.3%
Negative25.9%
Written reviews89 reviews
Positive67.4%
Neutral1.1%
Negative31.5%

SonsOfSmokey

All ratings17 ratings
Positive64.7%
Neutral11.8%
Negative23.5%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive45.5%
Neutral18.2%
Negative36.4%

Bugs and requests

LeadNav GPS

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • Subscription renewal issues
  • Restore purchases not working
  • App shuts down when opening tracks
  • App dumping out when plotting routes
  • Add-ons not purchasable
Show 4 more
  • Support link not working
  • Location inaccurate
  • Battery draining even after force closing
  • License not recognized on new devices

Requested features

18 requests
  • Option to disable confirmation notifications for edits for a period
  • Alphabetical order for collections/files
  • Call out waypoints in advance
  • iCloud Sync
  • Apple CarPlay Support
Show 13 more
  • More user training videos
  • Dark mode option
  • Advanced analytics dashboard
  • Ability to upload multiple files at once
  • Download off-road maps along the route
  • Ability to download maps for offline use without high cost
  • Support for metric units
  • Easier way to contact developers
  • Photos for markers
  • Custom names for downloaded areas
  • Smaller on-screen buttons (zoom, speed)
  • Hide unnecessary UI elements by tapping map
  • Dark mode

SonsOfSmokey

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

13 purchases

LeadNav GPS

Subscriptions5
  • Entry License Monthly$6.991 Month
  • Pro License Monthly$24.991 Month
  • Entry License$69.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Satellite Group Tracking$149.991 Month
  • Pro License$249.991 Year
One-time8
  • Hunting Markers$4.99
  • Aviation Markers$4.99
  • Recon Markers$4.99
Show 5 more
  • Advanced Pack (1Year Subscription) - Map to Advanced Upgrade$19.99
  • Advanced Subscription (1 Year)$69.99
  • Advanced to Pro Upgrade$179.99
  • Map to Pro Upgrade$199.99
  • Pro Pack Subscription (1 Year)$249.99
None

SonsOfSmokey

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is LeadNav GPS free?
LeadNav GPS costs $19.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is SonsOfSmokey free?
SonsOfSmokey is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, LeadNav GPS or SonsOfSmokey?
LeadNav GPS is rated higher. LeadNav GPS averages 3.9 out of 5 from 116 ratings, while SonsOfSmokey averages 3.8 from 17 ratings.
Do LeadNav GPS or SonsOfSmokey have ads?
Neither LeadNav GPS nor SonsOfSmokey shows ads.
Which is updated more often, LeadNav GPS or SonsOfSmokey?
LeadNav GPS ships an update every 5 weeks, and SonsOfSmokey every 3 months. Most recently, LeadNav GPS was updated on October 10, 2026 and SonsOfSmokey on October 4, 2026.

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