Last Updated on November 29, 2023 by Rose Morah
Are you looking for the best apps to help you find Overlanding trails or plan your off-road trips?
This article gives you the pros and cons of onX Maps, Trail Off-Road, and Gaia GPS to help you choose the best one that suits your needs.
Related: How to Find Overlanding Trails (Best Tools & Resources).
onX Maps
Advantages of onX Maps
- It highlights the trails on the map to make it easier for you to find them.
- It is an easy-to-use app and easy to understand.
- It has both Public and Private Land listed. This is great because you don’t want to find yourself accidentally camping on private land. However, this feature is only available in the paid version.
- It allows you to copy and share the Waypoints with others or for other reasons.
- Works great when you use it with other tools such as Google Maps
- You can add photo waypoints.
- You get ideas of other great trails when you click on “discover”.
Here you get detailed information about each trail, which includes; technical ratings, highlights, how to get there, best times to visit, and so on.
- It has offline maps.
You may also like:
Pros and Cons of Hardshell Rooftop Tent (Buyers Guide).
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Disadvantages of onX Maps
- It can be laggy especially when you are using it on your phone with many other apps in the background.
- It is quite expensive (Elite membership) compared to other similar apps.
- The app focuses more on off-roading. It is actually not an Overlanding app because you cannot plan such type of long trips with it.
You may also like:
How to Start Overlanding on A Budget (Overlanding Tips for Beginners).
9 Most Important Overlanding Tips and Tricks (A Beginners Guide).
A Complete Overlanding Checklist.
Trails Offroad
Trails Offroad basically helps you find trails when you’re planning your trips.
Advantages of Trails Offroad
- It has user trail reviews that you will find important when planning a trip.
You get to know other people’s experiences on different trail conditions. For example, the closed or open trails, whether the snow on some trails has melted, and so on.
- Gives you directions to the trailhead and to the end of the trail.
- You can download GPX files to use them on other apps such as Gaia GPS.
- It is overall great for doing research.
- You can print trails.
- It has more accurate information compared to its competitors.
- The app is super simple to use.
- You can download trails of an entire State in minutes.
- It is cheap compared to some of its competitors.
- You can earn through the app. You only need to apply to get paid for traveling on the route trails.
Disadvantages of Trails Offroad
- It has fewer trails for users who are outside the US.
- You can not rely on it solely. This is because it is only great for planning/finding trails and not navigating.
See also: Roadtrippers vs Wanderlog Travel App (Which One Is Better?)
Gaia GPS
This is the best tool for anyone who wants to go Overlanding because it allows you to plan your entire journey.
Related: How To Use Gaia GPS (A Complete Guide).
Advantages of Gaia GPS
- It allows you to see cell phone coverage of the areas that you will be visiting.
- It is the most in-depth professional app for planning an expedition.
- It has a National Geographic built-in that you can access at a cheaper cost.
- It has a ton of map overlays to choose from.
- It is an app that does so many things. Anyone, including hunters, hikers, and even photographers will find it very useful.
- The Gaia GPS navigation app is very fast.
It does not lag even when you are using many apps in the background, or when you are switching between apps.
Disadvantages of Gaia GPS
- It can be complicated/confusing for new users.
- The overlays are so many that at times it can be very overwhelming.
In conclusion, you can use these three apps together if you can afford to because each of them has some advantages that could help you in some situations.
