the idea
every other map app has one setting: fastest. backroads has a second opinion.
it reads the traffic
Live highway conditions, checked against the quiet roads. If the interstate's a parking lot, you get the back way. If it's clear, it tells you to just take it. In plain english: "just 4 min more, and it skips the whole crawl."
side quests + keepers
Pull over for ice cream, an overlook, a winery, and it reroutes you through it. Love a drive? It becomes a keeper you re-run with one tap. Hate one? It never sends you down it again.
drives worth sharing
Every trip becomes a little painting of where you went. Asheville gets the Blue Ridge. Big Sur gets the coast. A card you'll actually want to post.
the share cards
wherever you're headed, a different painting.
Twenty hand-painted American landscapes, matched to your destination. Your drive home, framed like a road trip.
questions
the short version
What is Backroads?
Backroads is a navigation app that watches live highway traffic and hands you the scenic back way when the highway is crawling. When the highway is clear, it tells you to take it.
How is Backroads different from Google Maps or Waze?
Google Maps and Waze only optimize for the single fastest route. Backroads is the only nav app that deliberately routes you the scenic way when the highway is bad, then lets you pull over for side quests, save your favorite drives, and share them as painted cards.
Is Backroads free?
Yes. Backroads is free with no account required, and your drives stay on your phone.
What devices does Backroads run on?
Backroads runs on iPhone (iOS). It is coming to the App Store soon.
Does Backroads work outside my city?
Yes. Backroads uses live traffic and real roads across the United States, so it works wherever you drive.
coming soon
for the adventurous.
(you have free will)
coming to iPhone