Compare · Waze alternative

Carve vs Waze

For scenic drives, car clubs and group drives · Checked October 2026

Carve (carve.run) is a scenic-drive planner and turn-by-turn navigation app for cars and motorcycles, on iPhone with CarPlay and Android with Android Auto — the Waze alternative for scenic drives: multi-stop routes on great roads, driven exactly as planned.

The short answer. Waze is brilliant at one thing: beating traffic. It re-routes on traffic to save a minute, allows one stop per route, and needs a signal. On a scenic drive that's everything you don't want. Carve plans the whole drive on great roads, with up to 10 named stops, and drives it exactly as planned; your group gets the same route from one link and, with Group, everyone's on the same map — even where there's no signal.

Feature by feature

Feature	Carve	Waze
Plan your own route, stop by stop	Yes. Up to 100 points between start and finish, 10 of them named stops; pick Scenic, Balanced or Shortest roads. In the app, or on a computer at carve.run/plan. Free.	No. One stop per route.
Finds twisty, scenic driving roads	Yes. Yes — routes lean toward the good roads, and great driving roads are marked on the map.	Partly. Avoid tolls, ferries and freeways; no scenic option.
Library of great driving roads	Yes. 1,200+ hand-picked drives in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UAE and Baja California, each rated Leisurely to Intense, on one map at carve.run/drives. Free.	Not listed. Not listed
Keeps your planned route — never reroutes onto a faster road	Yes. Always. Carve never swaps your route for a faster one.	No. Re-routes on traffic and incidents.
Wrong turn: guidance back to your route	Yes. Turn-by-turn directions forward to where you'll rejoin the route ahead — never back to a stop you passed. Free; with Apex it works with no signal too.	Partly. Recalculates from where you are.
Spoken turn-by-turn navigation	Yes. Yes, with live traffic, on exactly the route you planned. Free with a signal.	Yes. Yes, with live traffic and alerts.
Share a route by link	Yes. One link or QR code opens the same route in Carve on iPhone or Android, or in any browser; your edits reach everyone on the same link, and the web planner prints turn-by-turn directions. Free.	Partly. Share drive sends a link to follow you live, not a route.
See your whole group live on the map	Yes. Group: everyone on the route, on the map and the car's screen, by name, with how far ahead or behind they are. Joining is free; seeing the group on your map takes Apex.	Partly. One-way: friends can follow your drive.
Event scheduling and sign-ups	No. No — Carve plans and leads the drive; set the meet-up wherever your club already does.	Not listed. Not listed
Offline map and turn-by-turn	Yes. The map and every turn, downloaded per route. Apex.	Partly. Only a route already loaded in the app; no downloadable maps listed.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto	Yes. Both, with your route, turns and stops on the car's screen. Apex.	Yes. CarPlay and Android Auto.
Weather and road conditions	Yes. Weather along the way and hazard reports from drivers on the road, free. Road conditions (wet, ice, fog, wind) and popular times with Apex.	Partly. Drivers' bad-weather reports.
3D route preview	Yes. Fly the whole route in 3D before you go. Apex (your first one's free).	Not listed. Not listed
Plan a drive by describing it	Yes. Describe a drive in your own words and Carve plans it: 5 a day free, unlimited with Apex.	Not listed. Not listed
Record a drive	Yes. Record a drive and turn it into a route. Apex.	Not listed. Not listed
Import routes	Yes. GPX files, Ride with GPS links and Google Maps route links, matched to the same roads — in the app or the web planner. Free.	Not listed. Not listed
Platforms	Yes. iPhone (iOS 26+) with CarPlay; Android 10+ with Android Auto (early access); route planning on the web.	Yes. iPhone, Android.
Price	Yes. Free. Apex: $29.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $4.99 a month.	Yes. Free, with ads.

Apex is Carve's paid plan: $29.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $4.99 a month. Everything without “Apex” is free. “Not listed” means Waze's own listings and help pages don't mention it.

Where Carve pulls ahead

A whole drive, not one stop. Plan the coast road, the canyon and the lunch stop in one route. Waze allows a single stop.
No rerouting, ever. Carve drives exactly the route you planned. Waze is built to swap roads to save time.
The good roads, found. 1,200+ hand-picked drives rated Leisurely to Intense, and a planner that leans toward scenic roads.
The group on one map. One link gives everyone the same route; with Group, every driver shows on the map and the car's screen by name. Waze's Share drive only lets people follow you.
Works with no signal. With Apex, Carve downloads the map and every turn of the route. Waze needs a connection.

When Waze is the better pick

For the daily commute and beating traffic, with crowd-sourced alerts for police, hazards and speed cameras, Waze is great and free. Carve is for the drives where you came for the road, not to save five minutes.

Get Carve on iPhone Join the Android beta

Questions

Is Carve better than Waze for scenic drives?

Yes. Waze is built to beat traffic and re-routes to save time. Carve finds great driving roads and keeps you on exactly the route you planned.

Can Waze plan a route with several stops?

Waze allows one stop per route. A Carve route can have up to 10 named stops and 100 points in all, and you can import a Google Maps route with its stops.

Which is better for driving with friends?

Carve. Share one link and everyone drives the same route; with Group, everyone on it shows on the map and the car's screen by name. Waze's Share drive lets people follow one driver.

Does Carve work without signal?

Yes, with Carve Apex: the map and every turn of the route download, so the drive works the whole way. Waze needs a connection.

Does Carve work with CarPlay and Android Auto?

Yes, both, with Carve Apex.

Is Carve free?

Planning, sharing and driving with a signal are free. Carve Apex is $29.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $4.99 a month.

Sources

What this page says about Waze comes from its own store listings and pages, checked in October 2026. Apps change; if something here is out of date, write to [email protected] and it'll be fixed.

More comparisons: Carve vs Google Maps · Carve vs Apple Maps · Carve vs REVER · Carve vs Joinr · Carve vs ROADS by Porsche · Carve vs Roadtrippers · Carve vs Kurviger · Carve vs RevRoutes

Guides: How to plan a scenic drive · How to plan and lead a group drive

Waze is a trademark of its owner. Carve is independent and isn't affiliated with or endorsed by Google.