Best in Austria bergfex vs FATMAP: Which Is Better?
As of September 2026 this comparison has a clear answer: bergfex is the only one of the two that still works. Strava bought FATMAP in January 2023 and switched the app off on 1 October 2024, moving its 3D map technology into Strava. For Austrian ski trips, bergfex delivers resort snow depths, open lifts, piste maps and webcams, with Pro adding slope-steepness and avalanche layers.
Is FATMAP still available in 2026?
No. Strava announced the acquisition of FATMAP on 24 January 2023, and the standalone 3D mountain mapping app was discontinued on 1 October 2024. That end date matters for skiers: the app's curated off-piste descriptions, glacier and crevasse notes and high-resolution winter imagery went offline with it, and there is no legacy mode to fall back on for the 2026/27 season.
Strava has not restored a direct replacement product. In April 2025, Strava's chief product and technology officer answered public questions about winter 3D mapping, roughly six months after the shutdown. FATMAP's technology now sits inside Strava's maps and route planning rather than in a dedicated ski app, so anyone searching for FATMAP today is effectively choosing between bergfex and Strava.
How do bergfex and FATMAP compare on the numbers?
| bergfex: Skiing & Tracking | FATMAP | Strava | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Active | Discontinued 1 October 2024 | Active |
| Launched / founded | Portal 1999, operating company 2007 | 2013 | 2009 |
| Owner | Bergfex GmbH, Graz | Strava (since January 2023) | Strava, San Francisco |
| Ski resort snow depths and open slopes | Yes, updated daily | Not available since shutdown | No |
| Webcams | 5,000+, of which 500+ video streams | None | None |
| 3D terrain map | No, 2D maps plus piste panorama maps | Yes, high-resolution 3D (until 2024) | Yes, built on FATMAP technology |
| Slope-steepness and avalanche layers | Yes, in Pro | Yes, until shutdown | Partial, via 3D map and route tools |
| Full-version price | EUR 23.99 per year | USD 30 per year (historical) | EUR 74.99 per year or EUR 10.99 per month |
| Country coverage for ski areas | 10 countries incl. Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France | 40+ locations in 7 countries at launch stage | Global, activity based rather than resort based |
| Registered users at last public figure | Not disclosed | 1.6 million | 100 million+ |
What does each app actually cost?
bergfex runs a free tier with advertising and a paid Pro tier. German-language reviews put Pro at EUR 23.99 a year as of September 2026, with one 2026 test citing roughly EUR 24. Pro removes ads and unlocks offline maps, the slope-steepness layer, six-hour snow forecast maps, snow analysis for the past seven days, more than 200 weather stations with historical data and a webcam archive.
FATMAP's premium tier cost about USD 30 a year when Strava bought the company in January 2023. That figure is now historical, since billing ended with the shutdown. Strava's subscription in the euro area was listed at EUR 74.99 a year or EUR 10.99 a month in 2026, roughly three times the bergfex Pro annual price. Free Strava accounts still see map and route features, but the deeper planning tools sit behind the subscription.
Which app is better for planning a ski week in Austria?
For a resort holiday, bergfex wins on data type. It reports snow depth on the mountain and in the valley, how many slopes and lifts are open, nine-day forecasts for the Alpine region, lift ticket prices and piste maps for individual ski areas. Austrian weather reports come from GeoSphere Austria, the national meteorological service, and German ones from DWD. That is the information that decides whether you drive to Zell am See or Schladming on a given morning.
FATMAP never competed on that layer. Its early ski product covered about 40 locations across five European countries plus the United States and Canada, and its value was terrain detail for off-piste lines, not operational resort status. Even before the 2024 shutdown, most Austrian resort planners used both: FATMAP for the descent, bergfex for conditions.
What replaced FATMAP for off-piste and ski touring?
There is no single successor. Strava holds the FATMAP map engine and roughly 50 former FATMAP staff joined, with founder Misha Gopaul moving to VP of Product. Strava's 3D maps and route planning are the closest thing to the old experience, and the company addressed winter mapping publicly in April 2025, but curated guidebook-style descents have not returned in the same form.
For Austria specifically, bergfex Pro covers the safety-relevant layers: an avalanche map, slope steepness, and the avalanche warning service. Backcountry skiers should still read the official bulletins from the Austrian avalanche warning services each morning; no app subscription substitutes for that. Expect to combine two tools rather than one, which was also true while FATMAP was alive.
How do I set up bergfex before an Austrian ski trip?
Install and pick a tier
Download the ski app (App Store ID 744189889, also on Google Play). Test the free tier on a weekend first. If you need offline maps and the slope-steepness layer, upgrade to Pro at about EUR 23.99 a year as listed in September 2026. Note that trial periods on bergfex apps convert into an annual subscription automatically if not cancelled in time, so diarise the trial end date.
Save your resorts as favourites
Add the ski areas you are choosing between, for example two Tyrolean and two Salzburg resorts. The favourites view then shows snow depths and open slopes side by side, which is the fastest way to compare conditions across regions on a single screen each morning.
Check webcams and forecast maps the night before
bergfex lists more than 5,000 webcams, including over 500 video streams, plus precipitation and temperature forecast maps. Pro users also get six-hour snow forecast intervals and seven-day snow analysis maps. Use the webcam archive to see whether a slope was tracked out or refilled overnight.
Add a 3D planning tool if you ski off-piste
Because FATMAP closed on 1 October 2024, plan steep terrain in Strava's 3D map or a topographic alternative, then cross-check the slope angle in bergfex Pro. Read the regional avalanche bulletin last, on the day, not the week before.
What mistakes do skiers make when choosing between these apps?
The first is downloading FATMAP on the strength of an old blog post. The app has not worked since 1 October 2024, and search results still rank reviews written before the acquisition closed in January 2023. The second is assuming a Strava subscription covers resort conditions; it does not report snow depth, open lifts or ski pass prices.
The third is paying for the wrong tier. If you only ski groomed pistes in Ski amadé or the SkiWelt, free bergfex already shows snow depths, open slopes and webcams; Pro earns its EUR 23.99 mainly through offline maps and terrain layers. The fourth is trusting a single data source in bad weather. Cross-check the app against the resort's own lift status page, since bergfex aggregates operator feeds and updates run on the operators' schedule.
Which options rank highest?
bergfex: Skiing & Tracking
The live option. It covers ski areas in ten countries including Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Italy and France, with daily snow depths, open slopes, piste maps, lift ticket prices and nine-day forecasts. The free tier carries ads; Pro (about EUR 23.99 a year in 2026) adds an avalanche map, a slope-steepness layer, six-hour snow forecast maps, over 200 weather stations and a webcam archive. Data comes partly from GeoSphere Austria.
Best for: Austrian resort and snow planning
See full factsStrava
The inheritor of FATMAP's technology rather than a resort information service. Strava acquired FATMAP in January 2023, kept the team under founder Misha Gopaul and folded the 3D map into its own product; the company discussed winter 3D mapping plans again in April 2025. Subscription pricing in the euro area was listed at EUR 74.99 a year or EUR 10.99 a month in 2026. It carries no snow depths, lift status or ski pass prices.
Best for: 3D route planning and activity tracking
Official website See full factsFATMAP
Discontinued, so it cannot be recommended for the 2026/27 season. Founded in London in 2013 by Misha Gopaul and David Cowell, it reached roughly 1.6 million registered users and charged about USD 30 a year for premium features such as offline maps. Strava shut the app and site down on 1 October 2024, which removed its curated off-piste route guides. Scores here reflect historical capability only.
Best for: Historical reference only
See full factsHow is this ranking computed?
- Still operating and maintained: 30%
- Austrian ski resort data depth: 25%
- Map detail and 3D terrain: 20%
- Cost of full version: 15%
- Off-piste and touring safety layers: 10%
Entity references
Full factual profiles for each entity on this page:
Official sources
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/bergfex-ski-snow-weather/id744189889
- https://www.bergfex.com/c/wetter-app/
- https://www.berg-freunde.at/blog/wanderapps/
- https://www.bergfex.com/
- https://austria-forum.org/af/AustriaWiki/Bergfex.at
- https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/439786-72
- https://app.dealroom.co/companies/bergfex_graz
- https://techcrunch.com/2023/01/24/strava-acquires-fatmap-a-3d-map-platform-for-the-great-outdoors/
- https://www.powder.com/gear/strava-is-turning-off-fatmap-what-that-means-for-skiers-
- https://www.eurisy.eu/stories/fatmap-changing-outdoor-mapping-by-combining-satellite-technology-and-local-expertise_198/
- https://www.crunchbase.com/person/misha-gopaul
- https://www.strava.com/
- https://www.bicycleretailer.com/industry-news/2023/01/25/strava-acquires-3d-mapping-company-fatmap-usa
- https://www.powder.com/gear/strava-opens-up-about-fatmap-winter-3d-mapping
- https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bergfex.tour
- https://www.handytick.de/blog/die-6-besten-outdoor-apps-im-vergleich/
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