CalTopo review

CalTopo is a planning tool first. Its listing says mountain guides, avalanche educators and search and rescue teams use it, and the layer list is long: Forest Service maps, scanned topos, public lands, parcel data, NAIP and weekly satellite imagery, and fire history and activity. For off-road riders, Forest Service maps and public lands help confirm which roads are open to motor vehicles, and parcel data shows private land. You can download maps and layers for offline use, track your GPS position with no signal, and share maps with live tracking so a group can follow a long ride. Changes sync between the web and the phone. The trade-offs are a steeper learning curve and no ATV or UTV trail database, so you plan routes yourself. CalTopo rates 4.8 from 7.6K ratings on the US App Store; individual plan prices are pending a USD check. We compared documented features and published prices.

Who it is for

Riders who plan routes on a computer and want detailed land, terrain and fire layers synced to the phone.

Price

Free app; see vendor pricing (USD check pending).

US price check pending. See the vendor pricing page.

Key features

• Forest Service maps, public lands and parcel data layers
• Offline downloads of maps and layers such as slope angle shading
• GPS tracking on the map even when offline
• Weather, fire history and activity, and weekly satellite imagery
• Shared maps with live tracking of team members

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Edits sync across the web and mobile apps
• Strength: Trusted by search and rescue teams and mountain guides
• Strength: Satellite-ready app keeps many features working offline
• Weakness: No dedicated ATV or side-by-side trail database
• Weakness: Built for planners, so it takes longer to learn
• Weakness: Individual plan prices could not be confirmed in USD here

Key facts

• App Store rating: 4.8 from 7.6K ratings
• Google Play downloads: 100K+
• Age rating: 4+
• App size: 173.1 MB
• Teams pricing: From $500 per year for up to 10 users

Where it ranks

CalTopo is No. 6 in our Best ATV and UTV Trail Map Apps verdict.