Polarsteps may suit you if…
You want your route drawn automatically as you go, friends following along live, or a printed book of the trip.
Trvlrr vs Polarsteps
Trvlrr vs Polarsteps: two ways to keep a trip.
Polarsteps follows you: it tracks your route by GPS and turns it into steps, stories and a printed book. Trvlrr follows your bookings: flights, stays and plans become the trip, and your photos and stats fill in around them — with no location tracking.
Facts checked 1 October 2026.
In short
Polarsteps and Trvlrr, side by side.
Polarsteps is loved for its automatic route tracking: it records where you go during a trip, lets followers watch along, and turns it into Travel Books and reels. The core app is free; Polarsteps Plus (from July 2026) adds 3D maps, Play mode and more travel buddies. Booking emails can be forwarded for accommodation, into a step you've already planned; flights are added by hand, and only for upcoming trips.
Trvlrr takes a different approach: it builds the trip from what you booked — flights, trains, hotels, tours — so the itinerary, times and gaps are right before you leave, and your history is complete without your phone tracking you. Past trips, including old flights, count towards your stats, and photos are searchable by what's in them.
Feature by feature
What each one does.
| Trvlrr | Polarsteps | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | iPhone (iOS 17+) and the web | iPhone, Android and the web |
| Price | Free; Plus A$3.99 a month or A$24.99 a year (Australian App Store) | Free; Plus US$34.99/year (A$44.99 on the Australian App Store) |
| How a trip is recorded | From your bookings and plans; no location tracking | Automatic GPS route tracking during the trip |
| Booking emails | Flights, trains, stays, car hire, tours and restaurants | Accommodation only, into a matching planned step |
| Past flights | Yes — forward or describe them | Can't add flights in the past |
| Itinerary | Day by day, in local time, with nights without a bed flagged | Planned steps and an AI trip planner |
| Travel stats | Countries, cities, flights, airports, km, days away | Countries, trips, km and more |
| Photos | Filed by trip; searchable by description with Plus | Attached to steps; Travel Books |
| Sharing | Partner seat (Plus), trip collaborators, read-only links | Public, followers-only or private trips; travel buddies |
| Claude and ChatGPT | Listed in Claude's connector directory; works with ChatGPT | No official connector found |
Polarsteps facts are from Polarsteps's own website, help centre and App Store listing, checked 1 October 2026. Prices vary by country and change; check the App Store in your region. Spotted something out of date? Write to support@trvlrr.app.
Which to choose
Honestly, it depends on the trip.
Trvlrr may suit you if…
You'd rather not be tracked, want the flights, hotels and times organised before you leave, and want every past trip — not just the ones you tracked — in your stats.
Questions
Asked and answered
Does Trvlrr track my location?
No. Trvlrr doesn't ask for location access. Trips are built from your bookings, plans and the places in your photos.
Can Trvlrr make a travel book like Polarsteps?
No — Trvlrr doesn't print books. It has Relive, which plays the trip back on a map with your photos and can be recorded as a video, and a passport card of your stats to share.
Is Trvlrr free?
Yes, Trvlrr is free to start. Trvlrr Plus is A$3.99 a month or A$24.99 a year. See pricing.
Keep reading
More of Trvlrr
Forward bookings
Send a confirmation email to your private address and it lands on the right day, in local time.
Read more →Travel map & stats
Countries, cities, flights, kilometres and days away — a passport that stamps itself.
Read more →Photo search
Find any travel photo by describing it: “icebergs”, “the tram”, “that ceiling in Sintra”.
Read more →Start with the next trip.
Or the first one.
Free to start on iPhone and the web. Trvlrr Plus adds unlimited photos, photo search, people, the planner and a seat for the person you travel with.