Comparison

Hiking Project vs Ikon Pass

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • GPS route information
  • Elevation profiles
  • Interactive trail maps
  • Offline trail downloads
  • High-resolution photos
  • Local expert insights
Features
Read full description

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.

About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

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

Hiking Project4 screens
Ikon Pass4 screens

Verdict

The call

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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

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.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Hiking Project versus Ikon Pass: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHiking ProjectIkon Pass
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (2K ratings)4.7 (28K ratings) — better
Positive reviews53.4% of reviews — better13.6% of reviews
Number of ratings2K28K — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#146 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, Apple Watch
Requires iOS16.0 — better16.5
Further details — not scored
Size85 MB336 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAdventure Projects Inc.Alterra Mountain Company

Customer experience

Hiking Project

All ratings1,975 ratings
Positive85.8%
Neutral4.1%
Negative10.1%
Written reviews118 reviews
Positive53.4%
Neutral6.8%
Negative39.8%

Ikon Pass

All ratings27,575 ratings
Positive91.5%
Neutral2.8%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews301 reviews
Positive13.6%
Neutral11.6%
Negative74.8%

User reviews

Hiking Project

From 2K App Store ratings

What 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 ratings

What 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

None

Hiking Project

No in-app purchases

None

Ikon Pass

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hiking Project free?
Hiking Project is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Ikon Pass free?
Ikon Pass is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Hiking Project or Ikon Pass?
Ikon Pass is rated higher. Hiking Project averages 4.4 out of 5 from 2K ratings, while Ikon Pass averages 4.7 from 28K ratings.
Do Hiking Project or Ikon Pass have ads?
Neither Hiking Project nor Ikon Pass shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Hiking Project or Ikon Pass?
Hiking Project ships an update every 5 weeks, and Ikon Pass every 2 weeks. Most recently, Hiking Project was updated on October 26, 2026 and Ikon Pass on October 29, 2026.

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