Next Ascent vs Red
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Next Ascent
Discover climbing destinations worldwide with detailed maps, GPS navigation, and high-definition topos. Access comprehensive route descriptions, area history, and first ascent information for crags and bouldering spots. Download complete guidebooks for popular climbing areas.
- Real-time maps and GPS navigation
- High-definition topos and pictures
- Detailed route descriptions
- Crag and bouldering area information
- Downloadable guidebooks
- Route and area history
- First ascent information
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Next Ascent Guidebooks, rock climbing guidebook app is the most comprehensive rock climbing and bouldering app available. Real-time maps, GPS, and navigation guide you to crags all over the world. Hi-def topos, pictures, and the most detailed route descriptions available are what sets this app apart from the rest. Download complete guidebooks for the most popular climbing destinations. This rock climbing app will get you the most information you can find on local crags, bouldering areas, and climbing destinations. Expect to see arial drone topos, route and area history, first ascent information, and detailed descriptions of every route. End User License Agreement: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Red
Discover and navigate rock climbing routes with detailed 3D guides. Access climbing data for over 1300 walls globally, with offline download capabilities for remote areas. Quickly find climbs using a flexible search function.
- High-definition 3D climbing guides
- Offline crag and wall downloads
- Global climbing data (1300+ walls)
- Fast and flexible search
- Supports multiple continents
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Red-Point is the ultimate rock climbing companion. Find climbs easily with our high-definition 3D climbing guides. Download crags and walls for offline use when you're out climbing. Climbing data for over 1300 walls in Europe, North America, South America and Australia. Lightning fast, highly flexible search to find climbs at the crag.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Next Ascent at 4.0 against Red's 3.4. Red's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and in-app purchases 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. Next Ascent sells 36 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Red sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Next Ascent holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 10 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 50% of Next Ascent's written reviews are positive against 55% of Red's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Next Ascent ships an update every 2 months, Red every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Next Ascent | Red |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (8 ratings) — better | 3.4 (10 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 54.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 8 | 10 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 64 MB | 537 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Next Ascent, LLC | Alpha Outdoors Pty Ltd |
Customer experience
Next Ascent
Red
In-app purchases
Next Ascent
- Next Ascent Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
- Next Ascent Pro Annual$59.991 Year
- Free Traxx GuideFree
- Free Eliot Creek GuideFree
- Larch Mt Bouldering$3.99
Show 31 moreShow fewer
- Climbing & Bouldering Montdale$5.99
- Allentown Bouldering Guide$5.99
- Whiskey Springs Bouldering$5.99
- Chickies Rock Routes Guide$5.99
- Mid Valley Guidebook$5.99
- French's Dome Guide$6.99
- Mountainside Park Bouldering$6.99
- Forest City Bouldering Guide$6.99
- Allamuchy Climbing Guidebook$6.99
- Lost City & Boulder Mt, OR$7.99
- Ozone Guidebook$9.99
- Gunks: Near Trapps$9.99
- Northern NJ Bouldering$9.99
- Allamuchy Guidebook$9.99
- The Garden Bouldering Guide$9.99
- Allentown Bouldering Guidebook$9.99
- Broughton Bluff Climbing Guide$9.99
- Route 26 Crags Guidebook$9.99
- Lost Lake Bouldering Guidebook$9.99
- Pocono Bouldering Guide$12.99
- Peter's Kill Climbing Guide$12.99
- Mocanaqua Climbing Guidebook$12.99
- Boxcar Rocks$12.99
- Mocanaqua Bouldering Guidebook$12.99
- Carver Bouldering Guidebook$12.99
- Smith Rock Climbing Guide$14.99
- Safe Harbor Climbing Guidebook$14.99
- Sourland & Somerset$14.99
- Swan Falls Bouldering Guide$14.99
- Sugarloaf Climbing Guidebook$17.99
- Eldorado Canyon Climbing Guide$17.99
Red
- Red-Point+ Monthly3 Days trial$5.991 Month
- Red-Point+ Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
