The ski season is here, and your early-season checklist may include things like purchasing your ski pass, booking accommodations for upcoming ski trips, tuning your skis, getting new ski gear, and the list goes on. But far down the list, if on the list at all, is that of downloading the best ski apps. While there are a lot of ski apps to choose from, we’ve narrowed down the list to what we think are some of the best skiing apps for skiers and snowboarders.
Introduction To The Best Skiing Apps
Like ski gear, there are tons of ski apps to choose from that cater to everyone from the skiing hobbyist to the local who skies 75 days a year to the professional skier. However, most of the best skiing apps fall into one of a few categories. Some apps, like the OnTheSnow app, are all-in-one apps for skiers and snowboarders, offering a wealth of features, information and tools that cater to just about every type of skier and snowboarder. Others are more niche, used primarily for specific things, like recording your skiing or featuring maps of terrain. We’ve organized our list of the best ski apps into a few categories. Continue reading for our complete list of best apps for skiers and snowboarders.
Best Ski Apps
Best Overall
OnTheSnow. As the world’s most downloaded ski app, we had to lead off with OnTheSnow. OnTheSnow is the worldwide leader for snow reports and ski conditions, with snow reporters around the world that provide 24/7 snow reports of ski resorts. In the OnTheSnow app, users can compare snow reports of their favorite ski resorts, view and upload firsthand snow reports and photos, view ski resort webcams and weather forecasts, set powder alerts, book lodging, and more. What’s more, our OnTheSnow app is completely free. New this year is an enhanced, more accurate weather forecast model, allowing users to view weather forecasts for both the base and summit of a ski area.
Cost: Free. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: OnTheSnow ski app users can access snow reports for more than 2,000 ski areas around the world, plus upload their own firsthand snow report and photos while they’re on the slopes.
Best Apps To Track Skiing
Ski Tracks. Ski Tracks, a ski tracker app, is one of the most popular ski apps, used to track and share every ski run you take. Users of Ski Tracks can see all of their ski stats in one place, and upload photos, and share their stats with friends. Other features of Ski Tracks include ski run and lift analysis, 3D map support, and advanced mapping tools.
Cost: $1.99 on the Apple App Store, $1.49 on Google Play
Best Feature: The ability to track and save your entire day on the slopes.
Slopes. Slopes is a comprehensive ski tracking app for skiers and snowboarders. It offers detailed stats, interactive maps for thousands of ski resorts, ski resort info, and more. The ski tracking app even has a social networking feature so you can connect with your friends on the slopes. It can also connect with your Apple watch.
Cost: Free for basic tracking use. Premium is $24.99 annually. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: Smart recording that automatically detects lifts and runs.
Best App for Navigation
Waze. Just getting to the ski resort can be an adventure in and of itself, especially in the middle of winter. Heavy snow, ice, and rain can make for a white-knuckle drive. That’s where Waze comes in, which differs from many other navigation apps in how it’s community-driven, with realtime updates coming from fellow drivers. Get safety updates, traffic and hazard alerts, and more from fellow travelers driving the same route as you.
Cost: Free. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: Realtime crowd-sourced updates and information shared from fellow drivers.
Note that many states, like Oregon, have their own websites where you can see highway webcams and road conditions.
Snonav. “Waze for the slopes,” Snownav proclaims, “the first true navigation app for skiers and boarders.” Snownav takes the concept behind Waze for roads and brings it to the slopes, with live navigation, route planning, and a group skiing feature that allows you to set up a meet-up location with friends or family.
Cost: Free for basic features. 1-day and annual passes available for purchase. Download: Apple Store.
Best Feature: In-ear turn-by-turn directions for the slopes.
Best App For Mountain Safety
Avalanche Forecasts. Avalanche Forecasts is just as it sounds, an app that provides avalanche forecasts for those backcountry adventurers and skiers getting off the groomed runs. Users can see current conditions, plus upcoming conditions. This is a must-download app for those who spend time in the backcountry.
Cost: Free. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: Caches data you’ve looked at in the app for when you are offline in the backcountry.
Best App For Backcountry Skiing
onX Backcountry. Outdoor enthusiasts use onX Backcountry for a number of outdoor pursuits, including backcountry skiing, making it one of the best ski apps for those who spend time in the backcountry. The developers of onX Backcountry bills it as the “ultimate GPS navigation app for your outdoor pursuits.” It features detailed offline GPS hiking and ski maps for that epic day in the wilderness.
Cost: Free for basic features, and $29.99 annually for premium version. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: Access detailed saved maps from anywhere in the world, even when offline.
Best Apps For Ski Maps
Fatmap. Similarly as onX Backcountry, Fatmap, which was acquired earlier this year by Strava, is like a map multi-tool. Explore backcountry maps in 3D, which are available while offline, to plan and/or record your adventures. A social networking component allows you to follow friends, and expert backcountry guides and athletes.
Cost: Free 30-day trial, and then a membership available for purchase through Strava. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: Detailed route planning with terrain overlays.
Peakfinder. This app is for anyone who’s been on a ski lift and seen a peak in the distance and wondered what peak it was. In other words, Peakfinder is for all of us. The PeakFinder ski app has a number of different views and features that allows you to see the peaks you’re currently looking at, or currently taking a photo of. Touching the mountain name brings up additional information about the peak.
Cost: $4.99. Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: The snapshot feature, in which you can edit and export the photo you’re taking with the mountain names.
Best App For Ski Coaching
Carv. Carv says it best in describing their app as your “digital ski coach.” It’s like your own coach and trainer, featuring live professional coaching, personalized training plans, and analysis. Carv is part wearable, attaching to your ski boot, part real-time coach, and part app. Members hit record as they start their ski day, and then Carv measures their pressure and motion 20 times a second, giving personalized audio tips as they ski. Welcome to the future of skiing.
Cost: Starting at $99 per year (+$199 for wearable device). Download: Apple Store, Google Play.
Best Feature: Offering real-time audio coaching while skiing.
Best Apps For Ski Passes
Finally, it’s worth discussing ski apps by the major ski pass brands. Epic Pass and Ikon Pass both have their own free apps, geared for passholders. For Epic Pass it’s the EpicMix app, which includes features like lift line forecasts, interactive trail maps, resort info, ski tracking, and instant resort updates. The Ikon Pass app features include ski tracking, interactive maps, a social networking component to connect with friends, ski resort conditions, web cams, and more.
For more information on both the Epic and Ikon Pass, refer to our Epic and Ikon Pass buying guides, and compare the two here.
Conclusion
While it’d be impossible to list every ski app, we consider these apps as a few of the best apps for skiers and snowboarders. May we suggest beginning with the OnTheSnow app, and then make your way down this list of sking apps, all of which are likely to come in handy over the following ski season.
April 04, 2024
