Alternatives
Great apps,
and what to use instead.
Every app in this category is genuinely good at something and genuinely wrong for someone. These pages start from the competitor’s strengths, explain why people outgrow them, and rank the alternatives — including when the honest answer is “stay where you are.”
Alternatives
Pick yours.
Polarsteps alternatives
Polarsteps is the best automatic trip journal in this category — that is stated first because the alternatives below only make sense once you know what you would be giving up. People switch for four reasons: background tracking, no verification, undifferentiated stops, and social-by-default sharing. Here is what to use instead, honestly ranked.
→02NomadMania alternatives
NomadMania is the deepest travel-counting tool on earth, with a community that takes the numbers seriously — stated first, because everything below gives up some of that. People switch when they want visits verified rather than declared, images rather than tallies, or a record without a public layer. Here is what to use instead, honestly ranked.
→03Fog of World alternatives
Fog of World is the best-made lifetime coverage map in this category — a one-time purchase, on-device data, and a beautiful artifact of a life in motion. It is also $30, battery-hungry, and meaningful to no one but its owner. Here is what to use instead when the fog is not the job, honestly ranked.
→04Swarm by Foursquare alternatives
Swarm is the best two-second habit in travel: check in anywhere, earn coins and mayorships, keep a light social record. It is also a game on a free, data-funded platform, and its history is a log of claims. Here is what to use when you want the record to mean something, honestly ranked.
→05Google Maps Timeline alternatives
Google Maps Timeline is free, automatic, and already installed — for recall, nothing in this category beats it, and this page says so up front. People look for alternatives when the log is not enough: no meaning, no permanence, and a Google account at the center. Here is what to use instead, honestly ranked.
→The loop, always the same
Presence first. Creation later.
- 01
Be at the Landmark.
Unlocked supports 238 Landmarks across 34 destinations, seven in each.
- 02
Choose Unlock.
One current location sample verifies you are inside the supported area. No background tracking.
- 03
Create on your time.
The stamp is free and permanent. Curated Experiences and generated Memories wait for you.
Related guides
Head-to-head comparisons.
The direct comparisons behind these pages: Unlocked against each competitor, with honest lists on both sides.
Browse Head-to-head comparisonsFree Passport, real places
The visit is the unlock.
Unlocked is free to collect: verify a landmark visit, keep the stamp, and share the Passport. Generated Memories are optional, private, and never required.