Huge price increase for GAIA Maps!
- Thread starter eatSleepWoof
- Start date
pluton
Adventurer
In their recent (late July, 2024) automated email, Gaia GPS claims they have "millions of subscribers", which I take to mean maybe around a million. If the $20 subscription increase goes to all 1 million subscribers, they just increased their take by $20,000,000 per year. If they actually have, say, 2 million subscribers, then their new payday is $40,000,000. Nice gig if you can get it!
eatSleepWoof
Do it for the 'gram
Since I cancelled Gaia, I've found "Organic Maps" and "Mapy.cz" to be nice alternatives. They don't offer everything that Gaia does, but they do 99% of what I want, and they do it for free.Just got this notice.... currently paying 39.99/yr
I do enjoy Gaia, but will have to sleep on this....
pcstockton
Member
Not everyone pays for it. It is free if you do not want to pay.
pluton
Adventurer
The non-pay version is only online, right? The whole point (for me) is to be able to carry [multiple] maps in the device w/o needing internet connection.
Smileyshaun
Observer
That’s what 16 cents a day?? …. I’d say it’s a bargain to have access to a multitude of maps that are updated often and to be able to see snow levels and active fires I just bought 2 paper maps for a upcoming trip and they where 30$ .
DirtWhiskey
Western Dirt Rat
It's the only game in town right now on a few levels. It has its issues for sure. Wonky flow with activating user data layers. The move away from multiple satellite layers to the new crappy single layer is a problem. Sat layer is pure hot garbage with zero detail. I get that Google Earth/maps is out but why not pay ESRI, Microsoft of one of the hundreds of sat later providers like every other GIS company? I mean you're tripling the cost, don't cheap out. I'm struggling too but I'll probably just pay them their ransom.
DirtWhiskey
Western Dirt Rat
Will you expound on this? I currently have the Gaia Pro which includes these things in reverse and I like it and consider it a real value add. If you go in reverse and do it through the mag subscription side what version of Gaia do you get? Pro?
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
Fair point. I only nitpick to the extent that Gaia, and for that matter all similar services (such as Caltopo, which I use) are subscriptions that you lose when you stop or in a crash or loss of data service.
When you bought that paper map it's one-and-done and you have it forever. It may eventually go out of date but I would suggest that I have decades old maps that are still viable and in many cases still completely accurate.
If you add up 25 years of Gaia subscriptions you could end up with a very big box of paper maps that are forever useful. So I'm paying for subscriptions but in parallel still adding and archiving paper and digital maps anyway. So I think the two are complementary expenses.
Markal
Active member
You can look it up here https://www.outsideonline.com/outsideplus/
I'm not familiar with Gaia Pro. Do you mean Gaia Premium? I have that through my Outside Plus subscription. It's $60 a year, but they always have a special for new subscribers - it was more like $25 for my first year. Given that Gaia premium is like $50 or $60 alone, it's a no-brainer for me. I like being able to read Outside and Velo in particular.
DirtWhiskey
Western Dirt Rat
Right the correct word is premium. Interesting. $30 savings doing it your way.
pluton
Adventurer
I expect all free online services/apps to go bad eventually. But Gaia is pay, so it's a little different. Time will tell if Gaia has jumped the shark, price-wise.
BTW, some of the techs who worked on Gaia are starting a new topo map-on-your-device app to be called 'Goat Maps'. They say it's "hiking oriented" but roads show on topographic maps, right?
BTW, some of the techs who worked on Gaia are starting a new topo map-on-your-device app to be called 'Goat Maps'. They say it's "hiking oriented" but roads show on topographic maps, right?
grizzlypath
Active member
I primarily use Gaia for vehicular travel although I do use it for hiking occasionally too. So I've always been interested in OnX since they promote vehicular travel a lot more and seem to be invested in OHV avocation and the community. I haven't switched because Gaia offers a lot more interesting map options and better icons/area features. I also don't like all the weird OnX route colors.
The price gap is slimming though so I've been monitoring closely.
Of course, OnX enshittification is a possibility one day too. The only true way to maintain your data is to occasionally export all your junk and save it.
The price gap is slimming though so I've been monitoring closely.
Of course, OnX enshittification is a possibility one day too. The only true way to maintain your data is to occasionally export all your junk and save it.