Detector Maps: iPhone vs Android
Detector Maps gets 100+ downloads a day worldwide (AppInsider estimate, September 2026, rounded down to a band).
Detector Maps by GOLD DISCOVERY SOLUTIONS PTY LTD is on both the App Store and Google Play. Here are both versions together: downloads, users, revenue, ratings and chart positions, store by store with totals.
Maps & Navigation GrossingDetector Maps at a glance
AI summary written from our chart and store data, 2026-09-27. It can be wrong: check the numbers above.
Detector Maps is a specialized offline navigation and research tool for metal detectorists and gold prospectors, offering geological data, historical map overlays, and LiDAR imagery to identify high-potential hunting grounds. The app has rapidly gained traction since its August 2025 release, securing top-10 grossing positions in the Australian Maps & Navigation category and entering the US charts at #43 grossing.
Similar apps: Gaia GPS, CalTopo, OnX Hunt
App Store
App details
Google Play
App details
Detector Maps downloads & installs
Both stores, worldwide. Bands are open; exact numbers are free with an account.
| Store | Downloads / day | Lifetime installs |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone | 50+ | – |
| Google Play | 100+ | 50k+ Measured |
| Total | 100+ Confidence | 50k+ Confidence |
How this is calculated
Where Detector Maps's downloads come from Modelled
Last 30 days: organic search, browsing the store, features and paid ads.
Active users
All platforms, worldwide. Free with an account.
Retention · share of new users still active
Time spent · per daily user
How this is calculated
In-app revenue
Worldwide, what users spend before Apple and Google take their fee.
| Store | Per day | Per month | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| App Store | |||
| Google Play | |||
| Total | Confidence | 100% |
Business model: In-app purchase-led
How Detector Maps makes money: subscriptions, one-off purchases and ads.
Where it ranks now
Both stores, across every country we track.
Ratings
Both stores. Store data, measured.
| Store | Rating | Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| App Store | 4.8 ★ | 1k |
| Google Play | 4.7 ★ | 965 57 written reviews |
| Both stores | 4.7 ★ weighted by ratings | 2k |
What users say about Detector Maps
From the 60 most recent Google Play reviews in the US.
Users praise the app's comprehensive LiDAR and geological data for prospecting but criticize aggressive paywalls and subscription billing issues. Many report that essential features are locked behind expensive tiers or fail to work as advertised in free modes.
Mixed but leaning positive (68% of recent reviews give 4–5 stars). People like it for its features and content, and good value. The main complaints are about price and subscriptions, and login and account problems. Recent reviews are more negative than earlier ones.
What people like
- Features & content: “Fantastic tool in the pack”
- Price & subscription: “I still don't know how to use it so as a paying user can't get everything out Of it to My advantage”
- Updates: “Great app, regular updates”
- Useful: “A must have for detectorists”
Common complaints
- Price & subscription: “wants you to pay to do anything on it”
- Login & account: “I signed up and tried to log in and the app said my email or password is invalid”
- Features & content: “no good free features, just a satellite map”
- Ads: “misleading advertisement as free app”
About Detector Maps
Whether you are swinging a metal detector for gold, panning a creek or hiking into remote country, it puts serious geological intelligence in your pocket - and it works offline, where the gold actually is. Gold detecting is metal detecting, so the same tools help any detectorist work smarter.
DATA LAYERS (where available)
- Surface geochemistry with built-in filtering to target the right pathfinder elements
- Historic gold mines and workings - detect where gold has already been found
- Current and expired mining leases and claims, updated every weekday, so you know where you stand
- 1-metre LiDAR hillshade that reveals old workings and ground features worth a closer swing - where available (a per-state add-on in Australia)
FOR METAL DETECTORISTS
The same tools that find gold help any detectorist. Use historic mines and old workings to find ground that produced before, read LiDAR to spot old sites and diggings the eye misses, and check leases, claims and boundaries before you ask permission. Then log every find, live-GPS your position and record your trail offline - the field kit every detectorist needs.
BREADCRUMB TRAIL TRACKING (BACKGROUND GPS)
Record your exact trail even when the app is in the background or the screen is off. See where you have walked, stop covering the same ground twice, and save paths for the next trip.
WHY WE REQUEST "ALLOW ALL THE TIME" LOCATION ACCESS
Detector Maps only uses background location when you switch breadcrumb tracking ON. This keeps an unbroken log of your journey while your phone is idle or the screen is off, and saves battery. Disable it anytime in the app or your device settings.
WAYPOINT MARKING AND FIND LOGGING
Drop waypoints on gold finds, targets, quartz outcrops, and old workings. Add names, notes and categories, then sync securely so your finds are never lost.
REAL-TIME GPS NAVIGATION
Track your live position and watch leases, boundaries, geology and terrain update around you as you move - a GPS built for gold prospecting and metal detecting.
COVERAGE
AUSTRALIA: all major gold states - QLD, NSW, VIC, WA, SA, TAS, NT
UNITED STATES: California, Alabama, North Carolina, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Colorado, Montana, Washington, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, New Mexico
NEW ZEALAND: historic goldfields, geology layers and offline maps
CANADA: British Columbia
SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
All plans include every map, the standard data layers, offline downloads, and access to Australia, USA, New Zealand, Canada (British Columbia) and the United Kingdom.
USA Pricing - Explorer Monthly: $9.99 USD; Explorer Yearly: $99.99 USD.
AUS/NZ/CA Pricing - Explorer Monthly: $9.99; Explorer Yearly: $99.99;