FieldGrid How do I track a hike with GPS on my iPhone?
The record button in FieldGrid Pro, on the Map tab, turns your phone's own GPS into a hiking track: a point saved at least every 5 m, live distance, speed and altitude while you walk, and a GPX file at the end you can export anywhere. The free version shows your live speed, altitude and heading already; recording and exporting the track itself is what sits behind Pro.
What you actually get out of recording
Your phone already carries the same GPS chip a dedicated tracker would use. Record a track and you finish the hike with a real distance instead of a guess squinted off a map, an altitude profile, and a file you can show someone or drop into another mapping tool later. Nothing a standalone unit does that this doesn't, apart from battery life.
Start and stop recording
- On the Map tab, get a GPS fix, then tap the record button in the bottom bar (next to WP+ and GOTO).
- Pro starts recording straight away: a point is saved whenever you move at least 5 m, and the bottom bar adds the distance in km alongside speed and altitude. Free users who tap it see the paywall instead.
- Tap it again to pause, or once more for Stop recording > Stop and save to finish the track.
- Open the Tracks tab to see it in the list, with its distance, duration and point count.
What's on screen while you're walking
The data strip along the bottom of the Map tab updates live for free and Pro accounts alike: speed in km/h, altitude in m ASL, your true heading, and, once a track is recording, distance in km so far.
A worked example, for scale
Say a trailhead-to-summit loop measures 6.80 km once you account for every bend, and the whole thing takes 2 hours 45 minutes.
| Distance | Duration | Points recorded |
|---|---|---|
| 6.80 km | 02:45:00 | about 1,360 (one every 5 m) |
The Tracks list itself doesn't print an average speed, but the same two numbers get you there: 6.80 km over 2.75 hours is 2.47 km/h average, well under whatever the live speed reads on a flat stretch, since stops and the climb drag the average down.
Pulling the hike off your phone
In the Tracks tab, swipe a finished track and tap Export GPX. It opens in any GPX-compatible mapping tool, so the route survives even after you delete it from FieldGrid itself.
Free, Pro, and the things neither one does
- Free: live speed, altitude, heading and distance while you walk, no time limit on watching them. No recording, no Tracks tab, no export.
- Pro, monthly, yearly or a one-time lifetime buy: recording with the screen off, the Live Activity, the Tracks tab, and GPX export of each track, plus everything else Pro adds.
- Pause a track and your only option afterward is stop-and-save, never resume from where you left off.
- The map picture is Apple Maps, needs a connection, and has no offline download; the track itself keeps recording fine with no signal, because that part only ever needed GPS.
- It doesn't detect the trail for you, estimate calories or compare you against other hikers. It records where you walked. That's it.
Questions and answers
Can I track a hike with no cell service?
Does the free version record tracks?
Can I use my phone's GPS for hiking instead of a dedicated GPS tracker?
What happens if I pause a track?
Does recording drain my battery?
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