# Backcountry Ski vs SummitCircle

The clearest difference is review sentiment: SummitCircle at 100% against Backcountry Ski's 63%. SummitCircle also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Backcountry Ski's advantage is ratings volume (261 vs 1) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Backcountry Ski sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per year. SummitCircle asks for nothing beyond the download.

SummitCircle holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Backcountry Ski has 261 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 63% of Backcountry Ski's written reviews are positive against 100% of SummitCircle's.

Backcountry Ski ships an update weekly, SummitCircle every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Backcountry Ski | SummitCircle |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (261 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/backcountry-ski-beta-app/id957813284/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/summitcircle/id6768124543/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **261** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 63.2% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Weekly | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 85 MB | 88 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **16.4** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Ski the Backcountry Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/411286133) | [Dakota Randall](https://appshunter.io/developer/1882920335) |

## What reviewers say

### Backcountry Ski

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/backcountry-ski-beta-app/id957813284)

Access critical avalanche forecasts, field observations, and real-time mountain weather data on a single map. Plan backcountry ski tours with tools like travel time calculators, route sharing, and slope maps highlighting avalanche terrain.

**Highlights:** Avalanche forecasts and observations, Real-time mountain weather data, Hourly NOAA weather forecasts, Trip planning tools, Topographic slope maps, GPS tracking, Offline topo maps

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Backcountry Beta Pro | $7.99 | per year |
| Lifetime Pro Subscription | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app combining everything
- 👍 Makes route planning easy
- 👍 Essential winter recreation app
- 👍 SNOTEL data is gold
- 👍 All tools in one app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Elevation data is wrong
- 🐛 Can't change password
- 🐛 Doesn't seem to work anymore
- 🐛 Awful design and UI
- 🐛 Slope angle overlay imprecise

**Reported bugs**

- Bug where avy report wouldn't load
- App never sends password reset email
- No current forecasts
- Maps won't download
- App freezes when starting a route

**Requested features**

- See local snowtel sites on map view
- Fix elevation data accuracy
- Improve slope angle overlay precision and legend
- Make map download intuitive
- Allow trial subscription cancellation within app/App Store


### SummitCircle

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/summitcircle/id6768124543)

Plan backcountry ski tours with 3D maps, weather forecasts, and avalanche conditions. Track your routes, connect with other skiers, and access local forums for trip reports and gear. Available for Colorado, Utah, and Washington, with more states coming soon.

**Highlights:** 3D terrain maps with slope shading, Spot weather corrected for elevation, Daily avalanche conditions, Plan and track ski tours, Offline access to saved tours, Local forums and zone chats, Gear marketplace

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Backcountry Ski free?

Backcountry Ski is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is SummitCircle free?

SummitCircle is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Backcountry Ski or SummitCircle?

SummitCircle is rated higher. Backcountry Ski averages 4.6 out of 5 from 261 ratings, while SummitCircle averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Backcountry Ski or SummitCircle have ads?

Neither Backcountry Ski nor SummitCircle shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Backcountry Ski or SummitCircle?

Backcountry Ski ships an update weekly, and SummitCircle every 5 days. Most recently, Backcountry Ski was updated on October 24, 2026 and SummitCircle on October 3, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*