Polarsteps Plus shows extra trip information that isn't part of the free experience — including distance breakdowns and elevation data. Here's where those numbers come from and how they're worked out.
The step stats module
When step statistics are enabled on a step (it's on by default for Plus users), you'll see a Step Stats module when you open a step. This shows distance and elevation information. By diving into your step stats, you can see the specific statistics for your entire Trip, Step, Day or Week.
Simply tap on any of the statistics to dive in further.
Enabling your Step Stats
You can enable your step stats for an entire trip, or for individual steps:
For the entire trip:
- Open your Trip Settings
- Enable the toggle 'Step stats' at the bottom of the menu
For individual steps:
- Open the step > Tap Edit Step
- Enable the toggle 'Show step stats' at the bottom of the edit step screen
To disable the step stats, simply tap on the toggle again to turn off the feature.
How distance is calculated
Distance is based on the route you actually travelled — derived from your tracked Travel Tracker route — and broken down by the transport modes you used.
- No transport mode set: we show the total distance only.
- One transport mode: we show the distance alongside the transport icon (for example, 🚂 for train).
- Multiple transport modes: we break the total down by mode, so you can see how much of the step you walked, drove, flew, and so on.
If you didn't set transport modes on a step, you can add them later and the breakdown will update to match.
How elevation is calculated
Elevation data comes from your tracked route. For each point along your route, we look up the ground elevation and then calculate:
- Highest point — the highest elevation reached during the step, day range, or trip
- Elevation gain — the total amount of uphill travel (the sum of all the upward changes). This is usually larger than "highest minus lowest", because real terrain has many small ups and downs along the way.
- Elevation line — the visual profile across a day, several days, or your whole trip
Why does the elevation line look smoothed?
We simplify the original elevation data so the line stays readable and isn't too jagged. Raw GPS elevation includes a lot of small fluctuations that are mostly noise; smoothing makes the real shape easier to see. The headline numbers (highest point, elevation gain) are calculated from the underlying data, not the smoothed line.
What units are used?
Elevation displays in meters or feet, and distance in kilometers or miles, depending on your app's unit settings. You can change these in the app settings.
When elevation might not appear
A few situations where you won't see elevation data:
Not enough Travel Tracker data. The elevation profile needs detailed GPS data along your route. If a step doesn't have enough tracked points — for example, if you added a step manually without using Travel Tracker — we can't draw an elevation line for it. You will see a prompt asking you to enable Travel Tracker so future steps have what they need.
You're viewing someone else's trip as a follower. The elevation profile section is always hidden when you're following another user's trip, regardless of whether you have Plus yourself. This is a technical thing, not a Plus restriction. You'll still see elevation on your own trips and on trips where you're a Travel Buddy.
Nobody on the trip has a Plus subscription. Elevation data is processed for Plus members and their Travel Buddies. If no one on the trip has a Plus subscription, elevation isn't calculated for that trip.
When does elevation get processed?
Elevation data is generated automatically when you as a Plus member or your Travel Buddy opens the trip. You don't need to do anything to trigger it. The first time you open an older or longer trip, processing might take a moment.
What about steps that span multiple days?
The elevation detail page shows your elevation profile across a date range (for example, Day 3–7). When you tap a different step on the map, the elevation line and the map view both update to focus on that step's date range. This makes it easier to zoom in on the trekking days of a longer trip.