Offline Maps Nepal: Best Apps for Trekkers in 2026

Once you climb above the last village with a phone mast, mobile data in Nepal simply stops — and that is exactly where good navigation matters most. Offline maps solve this: you download the map and your trail while you still have Wi-Fi in Kathmandu or Pokhara, and then your phone reads it straight from storage, fixing your position by GPS satellite with no signal at all. This guide compares the apps that actually work in the Himalaya, explains the OpenStreetMap data they rely on, and shows how to back them up so a dead battery never leaves you guessing at a trail junction. If you are still sorting out connectivity, pair this with our best SIM card for Nepal and eSIM Nepal guides.

Key takeaways

• Offline maps work without signal: download the area over Wi-Fi first, then your phone positions you by GPS satellite — no SIM or data needed on the trail.
• Maps.me and Organic Maps are the go-to free apps for Nepal because they use OpenStreetMap data that volunteers have richly mapped on popular trails.
• OsmAnd adds free contour lines and topographic detail; Gaia GPS and AllTrails offer deeper terrain layers but charge a subscription for full offline use.
• Google Maps offline is fine for cities and roads but has weak trail coverage and only gives driving directions offline — never your sole mountain map.
• Import a GPX track of your route so the trail sits on your map; it is the single most useful feature for remote or unmarked treks.
• Always carry a paper map (Nepa Maps sells English trekking sheets in Kathmandu) and a power bank as backup — phones die in the cold.

How offline maps actually work

It helps to separate two things that travellers often confuse. Map data — the roads, trails and labels you see — has to be downloaded in advance over an internet connection. Positioning — the blue dot showing where you stand — comes from your phone's GPS chip reading satellites directly, and that works anywhere with a view of the sky, including in airplane mode with no SIM.

So the workflow is simple: while you have Wi-Fi or mobile data in town, you tell the app to download every region you will cross. After that, the app reads the map from your phone's storage and overlays your live GPS position on it. Mobile network coverage in Nepal is good in towns and on lower trail sections but patchy to non-existent on high passes, so the only reliable plan is to have everything downloaded before you leave the last connected town.

Google's own documentation notes that offline maps may be unavailable in some regions for licensing or data reasons, and that even where they work, offline mode drops features like walking and transit directions and live traffic. That limitation matters more for app-based road navigation than for the GPS dot, which keeps working regardless.

What you need before you go

• Enough free storage — a few gigabytes is comfortable for several regions plus contour data.
• A power bank, because GPS and a bright screen drain batteries fast, and cold makes it worse.
• Your route downloaded plus, ideally, a GPX track of the trail loaded in.

The best offline map apps for Nepal

Different apps suit different trekkers. The table below summarises the main options based on current trekking-app guidance; treat any app as a tool to cross-check, not gospel.

| App | Map source | Offline cost | Best for | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Maps.me | OpenStreetMap | Free | Easy, popular trails; teahouses and POIs | | Organic Maps | OpenStreetMap | Free | Privacy-focused, lightweight offline use | | OsmAnd | OpenStreetMap | Free (with limits) | Contours and topographic detail | | Gaia GPS | Topo, satellite, OSM | Subscription | Serious, remote terrain and elevation | | AllTrails | Mixed | Subscription (Pro) | Trail discovery and reviews | | Google Maps | Google | Free | Cities and road sections only |

Maps.me and Organic Maps (free, OpenStreetMap)

These two are the default recommendation for most trekkers, and they share roots: both render free OpenStreetMap data and let you download whole regions of Nepal for offline use. On popular routes they show small but vital details that road-focused maps miss — teahouses, water points, viewpoints and side trails — because the local and trekking community has mapped them. Maps.me is widely described as the simplest free offline option for mainstream treks, though some experienced users find its trail accuracy uneven and prefer to cross-check it. Organic Maps is a community-developed, privacy-focused fork of the same data with a clean, lightweight offline experience.

The honest caveat, echoed on traveller forums, is that no OpenStreetMap app is flawless: a few people have hit moments where a downloaded map seemed not to load or a trail was mismapped. That is precisely why carrying two apps and a paper backup is standard advice.

OsmAnd (free topographic detail)

OsmAnd is the pick when you want more than a flat map. It is built on OpenStreetMap but can overlay multiple map types and download contour lines and topographic detail, which is genuinely useful for reading ridgelines and valleys in the backcountry. Users report that its offline maps perform well even in remote terrain. The free tier covers a limited number of map downloads, which is plenty for a single trek, with a paid upgrade for unlimited downloads and extra features.

Gaia GPS and AllTrails (subscription)

For experienced trekkers heading somewhere remote, Gaia GPS is repeatedly singled out as the most capable option. It offers a wide range of layers — topographic, satellite imagery, slope-angle shading and terrain data — and high-resolution elevation that helps you judge ridgelines and elevation change where marked trails are sparse or shifting. Full offline downloads require a subscription. AllTrails is strong for discovering routes and reading other hikers' notes, with offline maps available on its paid Pro tier. Both are worth it mainly if you trek often or go off the standard circuits.

Google Maps (cities and roads)

Google Maps earns a place for the parts of your trip that are not the trek. You can download an offline area of Kathmandu or Pokhara before you lose signal, and it handles roads, restaurants and city navigation well. But its trail coverage in the mountains is thin, and offline it only offers driving directions — no walking routes. Use it for cities, the drive to the trailhead, and our getting around Kathmandu needs, and switch to a dedicated trail app once you start walking.

Setting up before you trek

A few minutes of preparation in town prevents most navigation problems on the trail.

Download the right regions

Open your chosen app while connected and download every area your trek crosses, not just the start. Treks like the Annapurna Circuit span a large area, so one small download will not cover you. Do this over hotel or café Wi-Fi to avoid burning through mobile data, and check the download actually completed before you head out.

Import your route as a GPX track

This is the step that separates a casual map user from a confident navigator. Many trekking sites and agencies provide a GPX file of the trail; apps like OsmAnd, Gaia GPS and Organic Maps let you import it so the planned route appears as a line on your offline map. You can then see at a glance whether you are on track or have wandered onto a side trail — invaluable on lesser-known or unmarked routes. For route ideas to load in, see our roundups of easy treks in Nepal and teahouse trekking.

Preserve your battery

Offline maps are only as reliable as your battery. GPS and a bright screen are power-hungry, and Himalayan cold drains batteries faster. Carry a power bank, keep your phone in an inner pocket to stay warm overnight, switch to airplane mode (GPS still works) to save power, and only wake the screen when you need to check position.

Paper maps and other backups

No matter how good your app is, treat the phone as the primary tool and paper as the fail-safe for any multi-day high-altitude trek. Phones break, freeze, get wet or simply run flat — a printed map does none of those things.

Nepa Maps is the only registered map-publishing company in Nepal and produces detailed trekking sheets, many at 1:50,000 scale and built on government topographic data, with trails, huts and useful information labelled in English. You can buy them in bookshops around Thamel in Kathmandu. For most travellers the ideal kit is a free offline app for live positioning, a second app to cross-check, a GPX track of the route, and a paper map tucked in the pack.

If you are trekking on a restricted or remote route, remember that a map is no substitute for the permits and, in many areas, the licensed guide now required. See our guides to Nepal trekking permits and whether you need a guide to trek in Nepal before you rely on a phone alone.

A simple, reliable setup

Pulling it together, here is a setup that works for the vast majority of trekkers without spending a rupee on apps:

1. Install two free OpenStreetMap apps — say Maps.me or Organic Maps for simplicity, plus OsmAnd for contours.
2. While on Wi-Fi in Kathmandu or Pokhara, download every region your trek crosses.
3. Import a GPX track of your route if you can find one.
4. Buy a Nepa Maps paper sheet for your trek as a backup.
5. Pack a power bank and keep the phone warm.

Spend on a Gaia GPS or AllTrails subscription only if you trek regularly or are heading off the standard circuits, where the extra terrain detail genuinely earns its keep. Everyone else can navigate Nepal's classic trails confidently with free tools — as long as the downloads are done before the signal disappears.

Sources

• OsmAnd — Offline mobile maps and navigation
• Google Maps Help — Download areas and navigate offline
• Gaia GPS: Offline Trail Maps (Google Play listing)
• Explore All About Nepal — Best Maps and GPS Navigation Apps for Nepal
• Hikingholidays.net — Mountain Navigation Guide: Offline Maps and Hiking Apps
• Omnimap — Nepal Trekking Maps by Nepa (National Series)
• Tripadvisor Nepal Forum — Maps.me and other offline maps