Comparison

Polarsteps vs Metro Mapper

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

Head to head
About

Polarsteps

This travel app helps you plan, track, and share your journeys. Create custom itineraries, automatically record your routes, and turn your adventures into beautiful photo books. Keep friends and family updated on your travels in real-time.

Highlights
  • AI itinerary planner
  • Automatic route tracking
  • Photo and video capture
  • Trip sharing with friends and family
  • Printable travel books
  • Destination snapshots
  • Travel statistics
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Join 23M+ travelers using Polarsteps as their all-in-one travel app. Build unique itineraries with the travel planner, let the travel tracker record your route, share the journey with friends and family, and turn it into a photo book to relive later. Whether it's a six-month trip or a weekend canoeing close to home, Polarsteps is here to capture and share your journey as it unfolds. Awards ■ Top 26 Apps — Apple App Store (2026) ■ Top 3 Travel Apps — Apple App Store (2026) ■ App of the Day — Apple App Store (2025) PLAN ■ AI itinerary planner: Create a personalized adventure based on past trips or current goals. ■ Destination snapshots: Get a quick overview of each place, why it fits your travel style, and which friends have already been there. ■ Trip details: Add notes, accommodation details, and must-see spots and activities. ■ Transport planner: Choose how you'll get from A to B for every leg of the trip. ■ Inspiration: Follow other explorers, see where they went, and get ideas for your own trips. TRACK ■ Automatic route tracking: Accurately track the route you took on a beautiful digital world map. ■ Travel Buddies: Invite friends to track trips together. ■ Capture the adventure: Add photos, videos, and stories to each step to bring your journey to life. ■ Travel stats: See how much of the world you’ve traveled, with your total of countries visited, distances covered, and more. ■ Top spots: Add your favorite places and activities so they’re part of your story. ■ Transport mode: Select how you got from place to place, whether by plane, train, or even tuk tuk. SHARE ■ Trip updates: Share your journey so friends and family can follow along from anywhere, seeing where you are and what you’ve been up to. ■ Traveler tips: Leave suggestions for other travelers on what to see and do. ■ Privacy controls: Decide who sees your adventures: everyone, followers only, or you only. RELIVE ■ Digital memories: Scroll through the places, photos, stories, and stats you’ve captured across all your trips. ■ Trip Reels: With the press of a button, transform your trip into a memorable video (also perfect to share on socials). ■ Travel Books: Turn your trip into a beautifully printed Travel Book that showcases your route and memories. WHAT OUR USERS SAY: “Love this app! It tracks me on my vacation and provides real-time notifications to friends and family of my trip. At the end, I ordered a Travel Book of my photos which is very high quality.” “The Polarsteps app is great. I am totally addicted. It is so nice to keep up with all your travels. And friends and family can follow you wherever you go. The Travel Book, which you can order afterwards, is of very good quality.” “I’ve been using this app for years now. It’s always been good and it keeps getting better.” WHAT THE PRESS ARE SAYING ABOUT POLARSTEPS “The Polarsteps app replaces your travel journal, making it easier and more beautiful.” - National Geographic “Polarsteps helps you track and share your journeys in an easy and visually appealing way” - The Next Web “Polarsteps’ resulting travel log is impressive, and is the source of a severe case of itchy feet in your correspondent.” - TechCrunch

About

Metro Mapper

Discover every Paris metro station with comprehensive guides to nearby attractions and historical facts about each line. Complete station collections, unlock badges, and explore the city's underground network.

Highlights
  • Complete station guides
  • Nearby points of interest
  • Historical facts and anecdotes
  • Station collection challenges
  • Unlockable progression badges
Read full description

MetroMapper is a mobile application designed to help users discover and explore every station of the Paris metro network. The app provides: Complete station guides, with the best spots nearby: restaurants, bars, cafés, activities, parks and more Historical facts and anecdotes about each metro line A collection of stations to complete, line by line Fun progression with badges to unlock https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Polarsteps4 screens
Metro Mapper4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Polarsteps at 4.9 against Metro Mapper's 1.0. Polarsteps also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (10K vs 1). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Polarsteps sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Metro Mapper sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Polarsteps holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Polarsteps has 10K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 90% of Polarsteps's written reviews are positive against 95% of Metro Mapper's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Polarsteps ships an update every 4 days, Metro Mapper every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 15, 2026 and November 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Polarsteps versus Metro Mapper: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPolarstepsMetro Mapper
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (10K ratings) — better1.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews89.9% of reviews95.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings10K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#66 — better—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS17.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size218 MB68 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperPolarsteps B.V.Arian Chafa

Customer experience

Polarsteps

All ratings10,148 ratings
Positive97.8%
Neutral0.8%
Negative1.4%
Written reviews2,362 reviews
Positive89.9%
Neutral3.9%
Negative6.2%

Metro Mapper

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews20 reviews
Positive95.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.0%

Bugs and requests

Polarsteps

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Trouble uploading videos
  • Incorrect time zone and location tracking
  • Steps and photos randomly disappearing
  • Crashes and freezes during usage

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to collaborate on trips with others
  • Option to customize page layouts for travel books
  • Improved video support and integration
  • More flexible map and route editing tools
  • Synchronization across multiple devices

Metro Mapper

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Polarsteps

Subscriptions3
  • Plus Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Plus Yearly$34.991 Year
  • Plus Yearly$44.991 Year
3 purchases

Metro Mapper

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Mensuel3 Days trial$0.991 Month
  • Premium Annuel$4.991 Year
One-time1
  • Premium à vie$8.99

Questions

Is Polarsteps free?
Polarsteps is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Metro Mapper free?
Metro Mapper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Polarsteps or Metro Mapper?
Polarsteps is rated higher. Polarsteps averages 4.9 out of 5 from 10K ratings, while Metro Mapper averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Polarsteps or Metro Mapper have ads?
Metro Mapper shows ads; Polarsteps does not.
Which is updated more often, Polarsteps or Metro Mapper?
Polarsteps ships an update every 4 days, and Metro Mapper every 3 weeks. Most recently, Polarsteps was updated on November 15, 2026 and Metro Mapper on November 12, 2026.

Other comparisons