Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

MTB Project vs Strava

MTB Project 4.6★ · Free to download 40
Winner Strava
Strava 4.8★ · Free + IAP 70

Strava is the better choice for general activity tracking and social features, while MTB Project is a niche app that is currently struggling with severe stability issues.

Full reviews: MTB Project · Strava

MTB Project, once a beloved app for mountain biking, is now plagued by frequent crashes and an outdated interface, making it unreliable for navigation. Strava, while having its own issues with aggressive subscription prompts and occasional bugs, offers robust activity tracking and a strong community for various sports.

Head to head

Features edge: StravaR2R4R9R11
MTB Project MTB Project is praised for its trail finding capabilities, detailed maps, difficulty ratings, and elevation profiles, with some users appreciating its focus on pure trails and community help R2. However, it lacks navigation-type modes, eMTB specific information, and easy GPX export for Garmin devices R11R9R4.
Strava Strava excels at tracking various workouts, including running, cycling, and walking, with features like maps, progress tracking, and group events R83. Users appreciate its ability to keep them motivated and accountable . Some desire additional features like music playlists, live tracking for friends, and better swim tracking options .
Ease of Use tieR1R10R14R18
MTB Project Users have found MTB Project easy to use for discovering and planning rides . However, the UI is described as 'hideous' and 'dated,' with text running into graphic blocks R1R10R14. Some find it difficult to read reviews or click on specific trail segments without getting recommended routes R18. Account requirements for basic functions like marking favorites are also a point of frustration .
Strava Strava is generally considered easy to use for tracking activities R83. However, some users find the navigation frustrating and unintuitive, requiring extra steps to find basic information . Recent updates have also led to UI issues, including broken screens, poor text contrast, and inconsistent dark mode .
Reliability edge: StravaR1R3R6R7
MTB Project MTB Project suffers from severe reliability issues, with numerous reports of frequent crashes, especially when zooming, loading longer routes, or in areas with low or intermittent cell service R1R3R6R7. Some users report the app becoming unusable after updates or the OnX acquisition R7. There are also issues with recording rides and location errors .
Strava Strava also experiences reliability issues, including crashes on startup, freezing, and activities not recording correctly or stopping midway . Some users report problems with the Apple Watch app not connecting or shared workouts not appearing in Apple Fitness . Inaccurate distance and elevation tracking are also cited .
Price/Value edge: MTB ProjectR2R7R38R45
MTB Project MTB Project is free to download and users appreciate that it doesn't require a premium subscription for basic features or contain ads R2R38. However, some recent reviews mention it appearing to have a paywall or requiring an account with another company (OnX) R7R45.
Strava Strava offers a free tier, which many users appreciate for tracking walks and workouts R83. However, there are widespread complaints about aggressive and constant upsells for the paid subscription, with some features being paywalled . The annual subscription price of $80 is considered outrageous by some R102.
Support tieR1R3R6R7
MTB Project Reviews for MTB Project do not explicitly mention customer support experiences, but the prevalence of unaddressed crashing issues suggests a lack of responsiveness to user problems R1R3R6R7.
Strava Strava receives numerous complaints about its customer support, with users reporting difficulty reaching a real person, unhelpful chat bots, and no responses to emails R67R73R79R91. Issues with canceling subscriptions and being charged incorrectly are also reported, with no clear path to resolution R79.
Pick MTB Project if

you are a mountain biker looking for a free, community-driven trail resource and are willing to tolerate significant app instability and an outdated interface R2R38.

Pick Strava if

you want a comprehensive activity tracker for various sports with social features to stay motivated, and you are comfortable with frequent subscription prompts or willing to pay for premium features R83.

Evidence note: MTB Project's recent reviews are heavily skewed negative due to pervasive crashing issues, contrasting with its higher lifetime rating. Strava's reviews, while generally positive, frequently mention frustrations with aggressive upsells and customer support.

Frequently asked

Why is MTB Project crashing so much?
Many users report that MTB Project has been crashing constantly, especially when zooming on maps, loading routes, or in areas with low cell service, with some attributing these issues to recent updates or its acquisition by OnX R1R3R7R10.
Is Strava worth the premium subscription?
While Strava offers a free version that many find useful for basic tracking, the premium subscription, which costs around $80 per year, is considered too expensive by some users who feel it's not worth the value, especially with many features being paywalled and constant upsell prompts R83R87R101R102.
Does Strava have good customer support?
No, Strava's customer support is widely criticized, with users reporting difficulty reaching a real person, unhelpful AI chat bots, and a lack of responses to inquiries, especially concerning billing and app issues R67R73R79R91.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R2] MTB Project 5/5 · US Amazing App: Made by the same creators of Hiking Project, this is an amazing app. No big companies asking for their $30 premium for the most basic of features. No ads, only just pure trails and community help. Please let me marry these developers.
  2. [R4] MTB Project 1/5 · US Removal of GPX files and other issues: The app doesn’t make it easy to reset your password. Also there are no longer GPX options to download to a Garmin.
  3. [R9] MTB Project 3/5 · US Needs One Feature For Me: MTB Project is a good app for mountain bikers but it misses out on one key feature I need. There is no field for eMTB. A huge number of single track and some double track in my state (Oregon) is off limits to eMTB. Bummer, because we respect the trails and other users. MTB Project offers nothing helpful to eMTB riders.
  4. [R11] MTB Project 4/5 · US Great App: This is a great app and I love it. I do wish that it had a navigation type mode to help me turn the right way. It’s still great though!
  5. [R1] MTB Project 2/5 · US Unstable: Crashes often, UI is hideous and text runs into graphic blocks. Borderline unusable.
  6. [R10] MTB Project 1/5 · US Nothing but crashes: Used the app for years with no issue, but using it with low service now and it continuously crashes. Very disappointing and makes the app completely unusable. Also please update your UI for Liquid Glass, the app looks terrible
  7. [R14] MTB Project 5/5 · US Love it but: Please keep it more current. It’s my go to and I depend on it but lately it’s been crashing and starting to feel dated. Please keep it alive.
  8. [R18] MTB Project 3/5 · US Reviews: Could not figure out how to read reviews. Really disappointing
  9. [R3] MTB Project 3/5 · US Works ok with a few major bugs: I love this app for planning rides, but for usinig it to navigate it has several major issues. The first is it constantly pops up a spammy window for Onyx mapping, somtiimes this window will not close on my phone. It happens constnatly. The other issue is when I'm trying to use the app to navigate on a ride, if I use my phone for a brief time to take a photo, I co
  10. [R6] MTB Project 3/5 · US Keeps crashing: maps keep crashing on iphone when you try to zoom in or out.
  11. [R7] MTB Project 1/5 · US Glitchy and Paywalled: Ever since combing with onx the app just crashes out when loading longer routes. They need to put more development resources into it if I am paying for it with an Onx account.
  12. [R38] MTB Project 5/5 · US The only option: Let me just say that it is not as complete as other apps, but I don’t have to pay a monthly subscription to search for trails. They are not about making money, they are about mountain bikers having fun.
  13. [R45] MTB Project 3/5 · US Used to be reliable: I’ve used this app since it came out and appreciate the downloadable maps with good info. It’s been getting some updates lately that have made it appear to have a paywall or require an account with another company, and it crashes so often that I can’t even use it. Bummer, but I suppose you get what you pay for.
  14. [R83] Strava 5/5 · US Love using this app: It’s simple to use and they have a free version. I love tracking my walks and workouts. It’s helped a lot in my motivation and seeing how often I am active. It was a pain tracking my workouts in my phone calendar and gym app. Now it’s all in one place.
  15. [R87] Strava 3/5 · US Way to expensive: Man this stuff should be free
  16. [R101] Strava 4/5 · US Great tracking: I enjoy Strava but I’ve also been a member long enough where I’ve lost the ability to do things unless I subscribe and that’s a bummer and way too expensive in my opinion.
  17. [R102] Strava 3/5 · US It’s OK and free is OK but the request $80 for a year is outrageous: It’s been OK for the free portion. I’d be happy to purchase a yearly premium membership but $80 is just outrageous A few of my friends in my run group feel the same way You folks want $320 a year from the 4 of us but you’re getting zero dollars. How about drop it to $40 and get $160 out of us?!
  18. [R67] Strava 1/5 · US Used to be good.: Recently this app has gone downhill. You cannot get a real person to speak to if you’re having issues with the app. Recently the app does not load. It is just a black screen and an error message that says please try again. The only way to contact user support is a chat bot that doesn’t understand you and can’t help you and when it realizes there is no answer to give you it gives
  19. [R73] Strava 1/5 · US Atrocious customer support!: Their AI bot “Miles” has no ability to solve anything and closes chats with you. There is no way to talk to customer support. Even when the bot says someone will be in touch you just get an email saying they can’t help you. I am a paying subscriber and you are ducking answering any questions or actually helping me with the fact that you are letting another user in a di
  20. [R79] Strava 1/5 · US No Support!!: I keep trying to upgrade to an annual subscription, and every time I do (AND PAY THE ANNUAL FEE!!) it tells me I need to upgrade still. I have emailed, chatted with support and still haven’t gotten a human response in 6 days. Please do better.
  21. [R91] Strava 1/5 · US App not working after update: Downloaded latest update and the app stopped working. I’ve contacted the support center and had no responses in 2 weeks. I’ve deleted the app, redownloaded it, and every time I open the app, it either shows a white screen with a text bar at top saying “something wrong. Try again.” When I try again, it is a completely black screen. Again, I’ve reached out to the suppor

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store