Review · Outdoors & sports
Hole19 review
A golf GPS rangefinder and scorecard app covering 42,000+ courses in 201 countries, with Premium shot tracking and an AI caddie on the Intelligence tier.
By the HearSmart research desk · Updated November 9, 2026
- Performance (40%)
- 8.6
- Ease of use (25%)
- 8.7
- Value (35%)
- 8.6
Hole19 is built around clean GPS and broad reach. The app covers more than 42,000 courses in 201 countries, the widest country spread we found, and the free tier shows front, center and back of green plus hazards and targets, with a digital scorecard for score, putts, fairways and greens in regulation on phone or Apple Watch. Course preview, LivePlay leaderboards and Stableford and side games are free as well. Premium Pro, $69.99 a year or $12.99 a month on the US App Store, adds plays-like distances for elevation, shot tracking, club recommendations, augmented reality yardages on iOS, a handicap calculator, club and overall stats, a shot dispersion tool and in-round distance arcs. The Intelligence tier at $99.99 a year adds the Otto AI caddie with round reports, strokes gained and handicap benchmarks, and Premium users get the CORE Golf practice app on iOS. The split means stats and handicap tracking cost money here, while SwingU and TheGrint include them free.
Who it is for
Golfers who travel abroad and want broad international coverage and a clear Apple Watch app.
Price
Free plan; Premium Pro $69.99 a year on the US App Store (about $5.83 per month) or $12.99 a month; Intelligence $99.99 a year; 14-day free trial.
Premium Pro Yearly $69.99
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 9, 2026.
Key features
- Front, center and back distances plus hazards and targets on 42,000+ courses in 201 countries
- Digital scorecard with putts, fairways and GIR on phone or Apple Watch
- Premium adds plays-like distances for elevation, shot tracking and club recommendations
- Augmented reality distances on iOS and a shot dispersion tool
- Intelligence tier adds Otto AI caddie round reports and strokes gained
Strengths and weaknesses
- Strength: The widest country coverage in our comparison at 201 countries
- Strength: Free tier includes front, center and back distances
- Strength: 14-day Premium trial, longer than most rivals
- Weakness: Strokes gained sits on the $99.99 Intelligence tier
- Weakness: Handicap calculator and stats are Premium features
- Weakness: Prices on the vendor's site show in euros outside the US
Key facts
- Courses: 42,000+ in 201 countries
- Free plan: Yes
- Paid plans: Premium Pro $69.99/yr, Intelligence $99.99/yr
- Free trial: 14 days
- Wearables: Apple Watch
Where it ranks
Hole19 is No. 5 in our Best Golf GPS Apps verdict.
Alternatives we scored
Visit hole19golf.com · Questions or corrections: editorial@hearsmart.org