If you think of games when you hear the phrase “motorcycle apps,” think again. We’re here to round up 14 of the top motorcycle apps that can help you ride smarter and safer. Each provides a different benefit to motorcyclists, and none requires you to be a tech genius.
Disclaimer: Some apps may not be available on both the Google Play Store and the iPhone App Store.
1. Rever
- Cost: Free with in-app purchases
Rever is one of the most popular apps in the world of motorcycles right now, thanks to its all-in-one design. This app offers users a single platform that allows them to plan custom trip itineraries with interactive maps, track their speed and distance for every ride and upload their routes and compare notes with other riders.
You’ll also find a fully functional GPS navigation feature that includes offline navigation capabilities for exploring the really out-there country. The app itself features smooth interface design that makes it a pleasurable experience to use. All in all, Rever is one of the most complete motorcycle apps, and it offers tons of features that any rider should find useful.
2. EatSleepRIDE
- Cost: Free with in-app purchases
EatSleepRIDE (ESR) is Rever’s most notable competition. It combines several useful motorcycle app features into a single package, including a GPS, social network and crash detector. ESR pulls it all together nicely into a package that’s relatively easy to use and flexible — and like Rever, it’s free with additional premium features.
Possibly the app’s most notable feature is CRASHLIGHT, its exclusive crash detection technology. For an additional fee, the app’s crash detection function will send a notification asking if you’re OK after it detects a crash, and then alert your predetermined emergency contacts. Any rider can benefit from CRASHLIGHT, but people who frequently ride in remote areas should give it special consideration.
3. Tom Tom Go Mobile
- Cost: Free for 50 miles per month.
Tom Tom Go Mobile is one of the leading navigation apps on the market. Tom Tom is most notable for paving the way for SatNav technology. Now they have taken the features of their devices and condensed them into an app for your phone.
Tom Tom Go Mobile also features 3D maps that make navigation easier by giving you references in the form of landmarks and buildings which allow you to compare what you see in reality to what is on the screen. Navigation options include the ability to choose the fastest, shortest, and most eco-friendly routes, which are great if you are trying to cut back on your carbon footprint or just save some gas. Finally, since maps are downloaded onto your phone, you have offline navigation functionality, which is great if you tend to ride in off the grid areas.
4. Calimoto
- Cost: Free for basic package with in-app purchases
Any navigation app can show you the fastest way to get there, but can it show you the cool way? That’s what Calimoto is for. This trip planner app is designed to provide the most options for motorcyclists, and its navigation algorithm includes choices for scenic and winding roads. It’s the perfect app for someone who wants to enjoy their routes to the fullest and explore the road less traveled.
Because the road less traveled also takes you where there’s not much 4G or Wi-Fi, Calimoto also offers offline navigation tools that will keep you on the right track even with low or no service. Plus, it offers full turn-by-turn navigation that you can pair with your hands-free motorcycle Bluetooth headset. The app even offers premium “tour catalogs” compiled by experts that include thousands of recommended scenic rides.
5. Dark Sky
- Cost: $3.99
As motorcyclists, we have to pay a little more attention to the weather than other people. A rainstorm can totally change our plans, which is why it’s so useful to have Dark Sky. It’s a weather app with hyperlocal and literally up-to-the-minute weather forecasts, and it’s pretty much unequaled in how much detail it allows you to get on the weather.
One extremely useful feature in Dark Sky is the ability to set up voice notifications in your Motorcycle Bluetooth headset about weather changes and extreme weather alerts. The app pings you with a notification when it detects adverse weather headed your way, which can help you get off the road before it hits — or at least prepare yourself for some choppy riding.
6. Camp & RV
- Cost: $9.99
For riders who enjoy the more scenic side of the hobby, including motorcycle camping, the Camp & RV app is where it’s at. This inexpensive app packs a wealth of information on all kinds of campgrounds, from national parks to Walmart parking lots (yes, really). Fortunately, it’s also easy to navigate, thanks to its robust filters, which help you quickly sort through the thousands of options to find what you’re looking for.
Like any good app for outdoorsy types, Camp & RV also works offline, so you don’t have to worry about a lack of service. The one-time purchase price also comes with lifetime free updates and (hallelujah!) no ads. Just don’t forget to pack the right motorcycle camping gear if you’re headed out for a little bit of time in nature.
7. Harley-Davidson and H-D Connect
- Cost: Free
If you love all things Harley, why not get the official apps? The Harley-Davidson app is really pretty sweet, and it’s equipped with some good features that can be helpful on your next trip. These include things like a trip planner, GPS, riding challenges and more. The app also offers automatic notifications about nearby Harley events, so you’ll always be in the know and in hog heaven.
The sister app, H-D Connect, is even cooler because it allows you to actually connect your phone to your bike in some cases. Certain models of Harley are built for compatibility with the app’s remote features, which allow you to check in on your bike via your mobile device. Plus, for Harleys with built-in GPS, the app can automatically transfer the trips you create in your trip planner to your bike’s navigation system.
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8. GasBuddy
- Cost: Free
Motorcycles might not have to worry about running out of gas as often as passenger vehicles do, but that won’t be much consolation when you’re one notch from E in the Utah desert. That’s why GasBuddy is a great app to have on your phone. It’s pretty much exactly what it sounds like: an app that tracks nearby gas stations and allows you to compare prices among the 150,000+ gas stations it covers.
Outside of the obvious value of being able to find the cheapest gas around you, GasBuddy also offers some nifty tricks to save your gas dollars. One is the GasBuddy card, a free discount card that saves you several cents per gallon at many gas stations. It also includes a suite of free analytics tools like a fuel logbook and trip cost estimator that can improve how you plan your motorcycle fuel consumption.
9. Pirelli Diablo Super Biker
- Cost: Free
Riders who live for track day, this is your app. Pirelli Diablo Super Biker allows you to track things like speed, ride distance, lap times and even the lean angle you get when cornering. It’s the kind of granular data that track geeks love, and if you know how to analyze it, it can be a powerful tool for shaping your technique.
The social aspects of this app can also be fun for riders. Once you’ve made a profile, you can not only upload your times and runs, but also check your friends’ stats if they’ve shared them. You can even enter a digital leaderboard in Challenge mode and compare your times on a track to other riders’ times from around the world.
10. Motorcycle Permit Test US
- Cost: Free
Getting ready to take your test for your motorcycle endorsement, license or permit? Grab the Motorcycle Permit Test app and study up! It’s designed to closely mimic the questions you’ll have to answer on an actual motorcycle permit test. The app even diagrams real life situations you might face on a motorcycle and breaks down the best way to deal with them.
Of course, no app can substitute for taking a Motorcycle Safety Foundation course and learning from a pro. But it’s an excellent tool for studying at home, and it can help you increase the odds of passing your test on the first try. And even if you passed your test long ago, try your hand at some of the questions. You just might learn something you didn’t know.
11. Cycle Trader
- Cost: Free
This app is exactly what we all need: An even easier way to mindlessly begin browsing CycleTrader at any moment of boredom. Jokes aside, this is actually a perfect app choice for anyone who’s interested in buying or selling a motorcycle soon, or anyone who just enjoys looking at cool bikes. It’s a basic app, but a solid one.
The CycleTrader app has pretty much all of the features you expect from the popular online motorcycle marketplace. You can search by make, model, year, price and other features. The clean and simple design makes browsing a pleasure and ensures that you’ll be able to waste plenty of time looking at bikes you’ll never buy — or spend plenty of money on bikes you will.
12. eBay Motors
- Cost: Free
It may not be motorcycle-specific, but eBay Motors is an extremely robust platform in its own right. You’ll find many different types of motorcycles at a wide range of price points, and the eBay motors app makes it easy and fun to browse them all. And if you’re trying to sell your bike, the eBay Motors platform and app offer an incredibly simple and flexible way to do it.
The advantages of using a high-tech platform like eBay include access to some seriously impressive AI tools. eBay Motors will curate a custom homepage just for you and your interests, and the app automatically organizes photos of any bike for sale in a way that makes it easy to evaluate its condition. Selling is also astonishingly easy. You can start your listing with just a license plate, and the app’s vehicle database will automatically populate make, model, year and more.
13. Motolog
- Cost: Free with in-app purchases
Motolog is built for tracking your vehicle’s mileage, maintenance and expenses. It’s perhaps not the most exciting feature set ever devised for a motorcycle app, but it’s certainly useful. You’ll be glad to have this information on hand when it’s time to trade in, sell the bike, file an insurance claim or when you simply can’t remember when your last oil change was.
The app’s interface makes the whole process incredibly easy. You can set it to automatically start and end with your trip, and it will send you automatic notifications when it’s time to perform preventative maintenance on your bike. Just be prepared to watch all of your excuses for not doing your maintenance and/or your documentation fly out the window!
14. BikerSOS
- Cost: Free with in-app purchases
Looking for a no-frills app to help keep you safe on solo rides? BikerSOS fits the bill. It’s a crash detection and GPS tracker that’s simple, user-friendly and has all of the right features. The core functionality, its crash detection, detects impacts via your phone’s sensors and automatically alerts emergency services and your emergency contacts if you don’t cancel the alarm. So far, so good.
BikerSOS also comes with some other fun and useful features, although not so many as to be overwhelming. If you have friends and family who worry during your rides, you can send them your location automatically, live and in real time. It also stores your most important emergency medical data, and it even allows you to store pictures of your rides and add them to your route tracking.
Motorcycle Bluetooth Headsets for Every Riding Style
There are tons of other ways that technology can upgrade your motorcycle experience. Click over to our guide to the best motorcycle gadgets for some recommendations on our favorites. Finally, when you’re ready to experience the very best in motorcycle communication, get acquainted with Cardo Systems’ industry-leading selection of Bluetooth motorcycle speakers and headset intercoms.
