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Cartahaven vs FarOut

FarOut (formerly Guthook Guides) sells guides to long trails, like the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail, with a community of hikers reporting water and conditions. Cartahaven does something else: it opens GeoPDF maps, yours or a publisher’s, free and offline on any device, with your GPS position on them. Many hikers will want both.

FarOut facts are from FarOut’s own pages, checked November 1, 2026; numbers in brackets link to the source. Prices change: check FarOut’s site for the latest. Something wrong? Email support@cartahaven.com and we’ll fix it.

Cartahaven vs FarOut
Feature	Cartahaven	FarOut
What you get	CartahavenAn offline map app for GeoPDF maps: your own, publishers’ maps from the store, and free USGS topo and Forest Service maps.	FarOutGuides for “250+ hiking, biking & paddling” trails^[1]: a map of one trail with waypoints for water, campsites and junctions, and “real-time comments from other hikers”^[2].
Open your own GeoPDF maps	CartahavenFree, as many as your device holds; they work offline straight away.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation. You can build your own routes in the app^[13].
Import tracks and placemarks	CartahavenFree: GPX, KML, KMZ, GeoJSON, CSV, shapefiles.	FarOutImporting GPX or KML: not found in farout’s documentation. Custom routes are drawn in the app^[13].
Price	CartahavenThe map app, GPS and offline use are free. Optional Cartahaven Plus: $9.99 a year or $2.49 a month, per account: one subscription works on every device you sign in on.	FarOutGuides are “lifetime purchases”^[2]: the Appalachian Trail $74.99 or 9 sections at $9.99^[5]; the Pacific Crest Trail $59.99 or 5 sections at $14.99^[6]. FarOut Unlimited, every guide: $15/month, $72 per 6 months or $96/year^[3].
Offline use	CartahavenFree: the maps you open or get from the store, plus a background map, elevation and US public land around each.	FarOut“Only once, to download your trail guide before you go. After that, everything works fully offline”^[2]. Offline background maps have a capped resolution^[2].
Satellite imagery offline	CartahavenPlus: USGS aerial imagery (US) around each map. Viewing it online is free.	FarOutHigh-resolution road and satellite maps “are only available when you have an internet connection”^[2].
Water, camping and trail reports from other users	CartahavenNo user comments. Publishers post notices (closures, reroutes, hazards) on their maps that reach owners’ phones offline, and owners can review maps.	FarOutWaypoint comments, with filters for “water sources, connectivity, camping spots, trail conditions”^[9]; “Water waypoints offer the most up-to-date water information”^[7].
Elevation and distance ahead	CartahavenFree: elevation profiles of tracks and routes, climb and descent, off-route alerts, and route planning along trails. Free: estimated times for routes, tracks and measured lines at your pace, for hiking (from the slope), running, biking or ATV.	FarOut“See the distance to your next campsite, water source or waypoint”; waypoints plotted on the elevation profile^[7]. No elevation profile in the web app yet^[2].
Public land, hunting units, slope	CartahavenFree, offline: who manages the land (USGS PAD-US), game management units for 36 states, legal shooting light, slope shading.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Wildfires and fire restrictions	CartahavenFree (US): current wildfire perimeters and incidents (NIFC), a warning when an active fire is on your map and near you, and links to the national forest and state pages where fire restrictions are posted. Links only: never a restriction status.	FarOutArea Info: “alerts and information including fire closures, re-routes, camping restrictions”^[8]. A wildfire layer or near-fire alerts: not found.
Avalanche danger, river gauges, snow depth	CartahavenFree (US): today’s danger rating for each avalanche forecast zone (avalanche.org), with a link to the full forecast; a rating is never shown after it expires. Plus: USGS river gauges (flow, gage height, rising or falling) and SNOTEL snow depth and water equivalent, online, with the last copy kept for offline.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Spoken alerts	CartahavenFree: off-route, turnaround, boundary and area alerts and bearing turns read out loud (Settings, Display, “Voice cues”).	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Weather	CartahavenFree: National Weather Service forecast and alerts (US), sun and moon times. Plus: live weather radar (US), rain and snow amounts for each day, and an hour-by-hour forecast for the next 48 hours.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Letting people know where you are	CartahavenFree while you have signal: start a group and share a code; members see each other live. Free: Trip check-in emails a contact your trip plan (with a safe return plan: your planned route as a GPX file and your turnaround time), and your last position if you chose to share it, when you haven’t checked in by your deadline. On Teams the admins can be told too. It is not an emergency or rescue service.	FarOutSocial check-ins: your location and a message to followers, who “can view your Check-ins even if they don’t buy the guide”^[12]. They send only with Wi-Fi or cell service and “can not be used to contact Emergency Services”^[2].
Map store for publishers	CartahavenYes: publishers sell their maps and keep 80% of each sale (the fee is at least $0.50 a sale), paid by Stripe.	FarOutGuides come from “trusted individuals and partner organizations”^[2]; FarOut “partners with dozens of trail organizations, book authors, and publishers”^[11]. A self-serve publisher program: not found.
Team plans	CartahavenCartahaven Teams: Team $199/year (10 seats) or $19/month; Organization $999/year (50 seats); Agency from $2,499/year. Extra seats $20/year. Teams.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Coordinate grid, compass bearing, night mode	CartahavenFree: UTM, MGRS or latitude/longitude grid lines over any map with location data, labeled, closer as you zoom in. Free: walk a bearing, magnetic or true, with the declination worked out offline (World Magnetic Model). A line from where you stand shows how far you have drifted off it. Free: a red-light mode that turns the whole screen, map included, dim red to keep your night vision.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Print with your tracks on it	CartahavenFree: one page (Letter, A4 or the map’s size) with your tracks and placemarks, still a GeoPDF. Plus: several pages or paper up to 36 × 48 in, at a set scale, with a grid and a declination diagram.	FarOutNot found in FarOut’s documentation.
Devices	CartahavenAny phone, tablet or computer from the browser; it installs to the home screen and works offline. The Android app is built and coming to Google Play, and an iPhone app is on the way: neither is in the app stores yet.	FarOutiPhone and iPad (iOS 18 or later)^[10], Android^[11], and a web app with “the same maps and guides, just on a bigger screen”^[2]. Signed in on two mobile devices at a time^[2].

Where FarOut is ahead

Curated data for long trails, from trail organizations and authors, with side trails, alternates and town information^[2]^[11]. Cartahaven has no trail guides of its own.
A large community: comments on water, camping and conditions, sorted by topic, and waypoint reports reviewed by FarOut’s team^[9]^[2].
Distance to the next water source or campsite along the trail, at a glance^[7].
Alerts for fire closures and permits on the trail^[8].
Native apps in the App Store and Google Play today, with many ratings^[10]^[11]. Cartahaven’s Android and iPhone apps are on the way.

Using both

Use FarOut for the trail itself, and Cartahaven for the maps around it: the USGS topo quads and Forest Service maps for side trips and bail-out routes, a club’s or park’s GeoPDF for a section, or a map you were handed at a trailhead, free and offline.

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Sources

All checked November 1, 2026.

FarOut is a trademark of Atlas Guides DE, Inc. Cartahaven is not affiliated with FarOut.