CalTopo

CalTopo LLC

About this app

The best backcountry mapping tool on the web is now available on Android.

Cloud Sync

The CalTopo app integrates with your existing caltopo.com account, and edits sync between the two in seconds. Plan your trip using CalTopo's best-in-class mapping tools and then seamlessly transition to your phone. Once in the field, sync your GPS track back to caltopo.com in real time, or drop markers and instantly share them with friends.

Amazing Maps

Access CalTopo layers not available elsewhere, including the MapBuilder series, land management, sun exposure, fire activity and custom terrain shading. Pre-packaged map files (subscription required) make for speedy offline downloads and simplified data management. An elevation data layer supports measuring profiles and point elevations, even when offline.

Real-Time Data

NOAA weather forecast visualizations and MODIS satellite imagery aid in-field decision making. Coming soon: SNOTEL, weather stations, streamflows and forecast grid data points.

Ratings and reviews

I used to really like Caltopo. My only problem with it was the inability to "move" tracks between maps. You have to download then reupload. But sometime in the past 6 months, the app has become increasingly buggy. It's ridiculously slow, downloading is almost impossible because the app seems to freeze 95% of the time, and all sorts of other issues. I'm probably going to switch over to Gaia or something else after my subscription is up.

Very good, but hard to create a route on the app. I love the clear topo maps, the tracking and ability to download all the map area info with subscription. Creating a route and getting stats on it is easy on a computer on the website with a mouse, but in the app I can't find a way to select a trail segment to add. So all I get in my route are straight line segments as I tap, not trail segments.

This app has recently rappelled off the end of a rope. I don't know what happened. I have been such a huge advocate for Caltopo. I have convinced at least a dozen people to abandon Gaia and switch. I add features to OpenStreet so that Caltopo can pull them into their layers. With the latest updates, this app is now insanely buggy, particularly when downloading tiles. When I go to download, I get a black screen. Has the app crashed? Has it froze? Hard to tell. After over a minute it finally lets me select map tiles to download. I selected 32MB of files and, 16 hours later, on a gigabit connection...it still says "Download 2 files (32MB)" in notifications. The very functionality I pay a yearly fee for: downloading tiles for use without cell signal, is broken.

What's new

Small bug fix for certain track jumps.