Hiking Project vs Ikon Pass
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hiking Project
Discover and navigate over 74,000 miles of trails with detailed GPS route information, elevation profiles, and high-resolution maps. Find featured hikes near you or in a searched area, with insights from local experts. Download trails for offline use, ensuring you can explore even without cell reception.
- GPS route information
- Elevation profiles
- Interactive trail maps
- Offline trail downloads
- High-resolution photos
- Local expert insights
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Hiking Project is your comprehensive guide to the best hikes near you, wherever you are. With the thoroughness of a printed map, we offer full GPS route info, elevation profiles, interactive features, photos, and more. Like a guidebook, we suggest the best featured hikes to explore—either near your current location or in an area you search for. Local experts show you the highlights, challenging features, and insights you need to plan a great day on the trails. • Find over 74,000 miles of trail to hike with your crew. • New trails are constantly added to our incredibly detailed hiking database. • Your exact location is shown on the trail. • Downloaded trails work offline for when you’re off the grid. (No cell reception required!) • Enjoy high-resolution photos and detailed topographical trail maps. • We’ll sync with your to-do list and check ins on HikingProject.com. By using GPS, we can show your location on trails and vertical profiles. Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.
Ikon Pass
This app helps you maximize your mountain experience at over 70 destinations. It offers interactive maps for amenities, in-app payments, and real-time updates on parking and events. Connect with friends, track your stats, and manage your pass details all in one place.
- Interactive amenity maps
- In-app food and drink payment
- Real-time parking availability
- Pass management and tracking
- Friend group messaging and location sharing
- Mountain activity tracking
- Event browsing
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The official Ikon Pass app is your tool to maximize fun at over 70 Ikon Pass destinations worldwide. Whether you're an Ikon Pass holder or using a local pass or day ticket, the Ikon Pass app helps you make the most of your mountain experience – all in one place. New Features for 25/26: - Find dining, retail, and rentals with interactive maps - Pay for food and drinks in-app - Track your mountain credits - Manage your family’s pass profile - Check parking availability in real time - Browse live events at participating destinations All Features: Manage your Pass - See your days remaining and blackout dates - Choose favorite destinations and set preferences - Keep track of exclusive deals and vouchers - Track your mountain credits - Manage your family’s pass profile, pass photos, and more Amplify Your Adventure - Track stats like vertical, run difficulty, and current altitude - Track activity on Apple Watch - View weather and condition reports before you go - Find dining, retail, and rentals with interactive maps - Pay for food and drinks in-app - Map you and your crew on the mountain - Check parking availability in real time - Browse live events at participating destinations Connect With Your Crew - Create daily friend groups to message, compare stats, and track each other's locations - Challenge the Ikon Pass community on the Leaderboard - Map you and your crew on the mountain Ikon Pass helps you navigate at 60+ destinations worldwide. In the 25/26 season, it will replace the local apps at the following mountain destinations: Arapahoe Basin, Big Bear Mountain Resort, Blue Mountain, Crystal Mountain, Deer Valley Resort, June Mountain, Mammoth Mountain, Palisades Tahoe, Schweitzer, Snow Valley, Snowshoe, Solitude, Steamboat, Stratton, Sugarbush, Tremblant, Winter Park Resort.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Hiking Project at 53% against Ikon Pass's 14%. Hiking Project also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). Ikon Pass's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 weeks) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Ikon Pass holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Ikon Pass has 28K ratings behind it against 2K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 53% of Hiking Project's written reviews are positive against 14% of Ikon Pass's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Hiking Project ships an update every 5 weeks, Ikon Pass every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Hiking Project | Ikon Pass |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (2K ratings) | 4.7 (28K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 53.4% of reviews — better | 13.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2K | 28K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | #146 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 16.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 85 MB | 336 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Adventure Projects Inc. | Alterra Mountain Company |
Customer experience
Hiking Project
Ikon Pass
User reviews
Hiking Project
From 2K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great for planning hiking trips
- 🗺️ Useful offline maps and trail info
- 👍 Helpful for finding new trails
- 🗺️ Accurate trail details and elevation data
- 🌳 Useful for exploring nature and the outdoors
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
- 🔍 Limited trail coverage in some areas
- 🗺️ Offline maps not always reliable
- 🔍 Difficult to search and find trails
- 🔍 Missing key features like recording hikes
Ikon Pass
From 28K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Tracking features
- 👍 Buddy tracking and group functionality
- 🌄 Mountain information and maps
- 💰 Discounts and pass benefits
Room to improve
- 🐛 Tracking issues and inaccuracies
- 🔌 Connectivity problems and app crashes
- 🤯 Confusing login and reservation processes
- 🔍 Lack of offline functionality
Bugs and requests
Hiking Project
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes when trying to record hikes
- Offline maps frequently fail to load
- Elevation data sometimes inaccurate
- Syncing issues between app and website
Requested features
5 requests- Add ability to record and track hikes
- Improve search and filtering options
- Expand trail coverage to more regions
- Add weather forecasts and other useful info
- Improve offline map reliability and functionality
Ikon Pass
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login screen not loading
- Tracking data being lost or reset
- Inability to view or manage reservations
- Incompatibility with newer iOS versions
Requested features
5 requests- Integrate pass barcode for discounts
- Automatic tracking without manual start/stop
- Offline maps and resort information
- Customizable metric units
- Leaderboards and speed tracking
In-app purchases
Hiking Project
No in-app purchases
Ikon Pass
No in-app purchases








