Paper maps may have made a bit of a comeback lately, but let’s face it: for most of us, they’re no match for the convenience of Google Maps or Apple Maps. However, this convenience disappears as soon as you go offline. Enter onXmaps, a fast-growing Montana company carving out a niche in the digital map world by combining old-school reliability with the kind of live data you’ll never find printed on paper.
The result is a series of subscription-based apps designed for outdoor enthusiasts—think hunters, backcountry skiers, hikers, backpackers, snowmobilers, off-roaders, and anglers. Each onX app lets you download maps for offline use, track your routes, customize maps, and get information about public and private land boundaries. In other words, it’s the best of both worlds: a paper map combined with reliable detail and up-to-date information that only a digital tool can provide.
All of this information is intended to encourage people to explore the outdoors while making safe and well-informed decisions. What really sets OnX apart from other mapping software is the way the tools are built by adventurers for adventures, says Laura Orvidas, CEO of the company Fast Company.
“Having a map for everything is a very different experience than having maps and tools designed for your specific purposes,” he says. “We’re really targeting people who are more adventurous into the backcountry.”
Indeed, Americans have become an increasingly adventurous bunch. A record 175.8 million Americans participated in outdoor recreation activities in 2023, a 4.1% increase from 2022, according to figures from the Outdoor Industries Association. Among this group were 7.7 million first-time outdoor recreation participants.
Serving both new and seasoned adventurers with a focused strategy has paid off: since Orvidas took over in 2018, after nearly 20 years on Amazon, the number of active users has grown tenfold and revenue has grown 1,300%. according to figures provided by the private company. Of course, this cycle includes the COVID-19 pandemic, which is driving business fast for onX and others in the leisure and fitness space.
Pandemic expansion and beyond
When the lockdowns began in March 2020, the company’s flagship app was onX Hunt, which experienced a 300% year-over-year increase in active users in the first few months of the pandemic. More interestingly, Orvidas points out, the time of year is not hunting season. Employees quickly saw an opportunity to expand the range of applications, as people were using onX Hunt for activities that weren’t strictly hunting.
“This led us to say that if we improve this experience, we think there is a real commercial opportunity in these other locations,” Orvidas said. In 2021, the company plans to offer backpacking, hiking, alpine skiing, climbing and more. made its debut in onX Backcountry with tools optimized for
Today, the company has three main programs – onX Hunt, onX Backcountry and onX Offroad – with annual membership fees ranging from $29.99 to $99.99. Orvidas says he’s also expanding onX Fish, which is currently only available in Minnesota, because the company saw an opportunity to offer a targeted program for lake fishing and fly fishing.
Although growth has slowed since the days of the pandemic, the number of active users for onX Hunt has increased by 30% since 2021. The number of OnX employees has also increased accordingly. Over the past two years, the number of employees has increased by about 30% to a total of 400 people. Such growth would be the envy of many in Silicon Valley; According to Layoffs.fyi, tech companies have laid off more than 400,000 workers.
With other “base camps” in Montana and the West, onX is able to recruit outdoor enthusiasts who understand customer needs, Orvidas says. In addition to the “great entrepreneurial spirit” that exists in Montana, it’s beneficial to be close to the activities these programs support. “We can do more in a day than other places,” he said.
Aggregation of data
However, there’s a lot of work going on behind the scenes, namely sifting through thousands of different public record sources that don’t always agree. Orvidas has an in-house verification process to ensure customers have the most accurate and up-to-date information.
It will also review all potential sources of information. For example, onX recently integrated large amounts of light detection and ranging (lidar) data from the US Geological Survey to provide detailed map views. The apps also incorporate information about wildfires, avalanche risks, and satellite imagery showing the fallout from leaves or the aftermath of a natural disaster.
What does all this mean for the software user? Let’s say you go on a day trip, only to find that you’re not quite ready to go home once you reach your destination. With onX Backcountry, you can map out a route by identifying where to continue hiking, other points of interest worth exploring, how long it will take to get there, and what the terrain looks like.
“I think our app really shines and that’s where it’s difficult to use other products to get the same information and be able to do this kind of on-the-spot planning,” Orvidas says.
However, getting the data to make all of this possible can be difficult, as Orvidas points out, which is why onX has been an advocate for various initiatives, such as the MAPLand Act, to fund the digitization of map data. “There’s a wide variation in technology adoption and funding years, within states, between states, and that’s what makes it so difficult to piece together some of it,” he said.
Improving access
There are other complex issues, including improving public access to public lands. The rise of the smartphone-equipped hunter, in particular, has drawn the ire of some traditionalists who complain about the impact of modern technology on the sport and public lands.
Orvidas counters is something to be proud of and to support to improve the recreational opportunities of people who have not grown up with tradition. “We want to continue to make our apps simple and easy to use to reduce any barriers so that people who don’t know how to do these activities can pick up our app and get outdoors and adventure without too much cognitive load. .”
To educate new adventurers, onX offers a variety of master classes and also encourages app users to participate in land stewardship efforts, such as cleanups. The company also works to educate the public about its efforts to improve public access to public lands.
A partnership with the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership identified 16.4 million acres of public land in 20 different US states as “landlocked” or virtually off limits to the public. “There is no legal way for Americans to get to these places to hike, hunt, camp, forage, fish,” Orvidas adds.
Currently a “junior arm” of onX, Orvidas expects to expand its outreach and stewardship efforts alongside onX, as the company feels a responsibility to keep public lands accessible and educate the public about how to care for them.
“We believe that people have a different relationship with the land when they’re recreating outside than they do when they’re not,” adds Orvidas.