Yamareco

What Yamareco does

Yamareco (株式会社ヤマレコ) operates Japan's largest dedicated mountaineering platform, combining a community content site (launched October 2005) with mobile apps, an insurance product, and emergency-rescue integrations. The platform has accumulated over 4.2 million user-generated GPS activity records and reaches approximately 1.3 million monthly unique users, supporting hikers from day-trippers to alpine climbers. Core products include the Yamareco app (freemium with Yamareco Premium subscription), Team Safe Climbing (Team Anzen Tozan) insurance membership at ¥4,000/year with ¥5M rescue coverage, the ImaCoco location-sharing companion, and a Japan Alps Hiking Map app sold to international users.

The company's technical moat is built on a GPS-first architecture with offline map support, real-time location sharing, and an emergency SOS feature integrated with KDDI's au Starlink Direct satellite service, enabling distress signals from cellular dead zones. Its SAGASU (Search) system provides prefectural police with access to GPS, battery status, travel history, and hiking-plan data for missing persons, deployed across at least 12 prefectural police forces and fire departments. The data layer, visualized through the "Everyone's Footprints" feature, aggregates GPS logs into an actual-trail dataset that diverges from official cartography.

Yamareco is a privately held, bootstrapped company incorporated in July 2013 with ¥5M initial capital, headquartered in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, since December 2014 (relocated from Tokyo Shinjuku). The company operates with a 7-person team and no external investors. Revenue is generated through freemium subscriptions, paid insurance memberships, international map-download fees, and advertising. Distribution is digital-first via iOS/Android app stores and the web platform, with content marketing through a CEO-led YouTube channel and Instagram presence emphasizing mountain safety.

Name

Yamareco

Legal name

株式会社ヤマレコ

Website

https://yamareco.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Yamareco operates Japan's largest dedicated mountaineering platform, offering a GPS-based hiking app with community activity records, offline navigation, satellite-enabled emergency SOS, and police-integrated rescue tools to outdoor enthusiasts and rescue authorities across Japan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Mountaineering Navigation Software

NAICS

Other Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services (56159), All Other Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services (561599)

akta.pro primary industry

Safety, Permitting & Logistics Support Services (Trip Leaders, Route Planning, Rescue Support) (THAAALAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Hiking, Trekking & Mountain Guiding (THAJABAA)

Keywords

• Mountaineering community platform
• Hiking GPS tracking
• Mountain safety navigation
• Offline trail maps
• Rescue coordination system

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Freemium App Model: Basic app is free. Premium features and advanced functionality require paid subscription (Yamareco Premium Plan). This drives conversion from free to paying users based on feature value.
2. Subscription - チーム安全登山 (Team Safe Climbing): Paid membership system for mountain accident insurance integrated with Yamareco. Annual membership fee provides rescue expense insurance coverage with expanded benefits for users who submit hiking plans through the platform.
3. Subscription - Yamareco Premium Plan: Premium subscription for app users offering advanced features. Portion of fees donated to mountain safety initiatives.
4. Japan Alps Hiking Map Map Downloads: Paid map downloads for international users: 2 weeks ¥600, 1 month ¥960, 3 months ¥2,400, 6 months ¥3,600, 1 year ¥4,800.
5. Advertising: Advertising revenue from the platform, with media materials available for potential advertisers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Yamareco operates Japan's largest mountaineering-specific community platform, providing a hiking app with GPS route recording, offline topographic maps, real-time location sharing, and route planning. The company complements its consumer app with Team Anzen Tozan mountain accident insurance (¥4,000/year with ¥5M rescue coverage), the SAGASU missing person inquiry system for police/rescue agencies, and emergency SOS functionality integrated with KDDI's au Starlink Direct satellite communication. The platform serves 1.3 million monthly users and has accumulated 4.2 million+ GPS activity records as the foundation of its crowdsourced trail data advantage.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Yamareco Hiking App and Community Platform Japan's largest mountaineering-specific community platform and hiking app that enables users to record mountain activities with photos and GPS logs, plan trips, browse route information with offline maps, share locations in real time, and access crowdsourced trail condition data from 4.2 million+ registered activity records. Targets individual mountaineering enthusiasts from beginners to professionals.
• Team Anzen Tozan (Team Safe Climbing) Mountain Accident Insurance Paid annual membership program (¥4,000/year) that provides ¥5,000,000 in rescue expense insurance coverage, with expanded coverage when users submit hiking plans via the Yamareco platform. Operated jointly with the Yamakifu Mutual Aid Association and Yamaten. Members also receive 3 months free Yamareco Premium.
• ImaCoco (Location Sharing System) Real-time location sharing companion service allowing hikers to share their live GPS position with family and friends via QR-code authentication. Available on Android, iOS, and web. Supports both cellular and KDDI au Starlink Direct satellite paths in dead zones.
• SAGASU Mountain Rescue Inquiry System Police and fire department-accessible system that enables rapid location of missing hikers using Yamareco app data including GPS location, battery status, travel history, and trip plans. Adopted by 12 prefectural police forces and fire departments across Japan including Nagano, Shizuoka, Kanagawa, Saitama, Yamagata, Tochigi, Fukui, Yamanashi, Fukushima police, Niigata Minamiuonuma Fire HQ, and Niigata Itoigawa Fire HQ.
• Japan Alps Hiking Map (International Edition) Offline GPS hiking map for international users visiting the Japanese Alps. Tiered paid map downloads: 2 weeks ¥600, 1 month ¥960, 3 months ¥2,400, 6 months ¥3,600, 1 year ¥4,800, with unlimited downloads during the subscription period.
• Fuji App (Mt. Fuji Dedicated App) Offline GPS navigation app for Mt. Fuji with mountain hut information and bus schedules, designed for climbers of Japan's most iconic mountain.
• YamaPla (Route Planning Tool)

Quantifiable outcome

• Rescue initiation time reduced from days/weeks to 30 minutes through satellite SOS integration
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability2 records

Feature8 records

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• YAMAP: Japan's other leading mountaineering app with similar GPS tracking, route planning, and community features. YAMAP is the most direct domestic competitor for Japanese hikers, competing for the same user base and institutional partnerships.
• AllTrails: Global hiking and trail platform with community-driven GPS logs, route reviews, and offline maps. Closest international parallel to Yamareco's community model and GPS activity recording for outdoor enthusiasts.
• Komoot: European hiking and cycling route planning platform with community-contributed trail data and offline navigation. Mirrors Yamareco's combination of route planning, community content, and outdoor focus.
• Gaia GPS: US-based outdoor navigation app with offline maps, GPS tracking, and trail discovery. Comparable to Yamareco in its emphasis on offline GPS, topographical maps, and safety-focused hiking features.
• Outdooractive: European outdoor platform combining hiking, biking, and trail data with community contributions. Overlaps with Yamareco in adventure community, GPS logging, and route planning.
• Wikiloc: Global trail database and community-driven platform for sharing GPS routes for outdoor activities. Closely comparable to Yamareco's community-led GPS log aggregation model.

Broad incumbents

• Strava: Global sports activity tracking platform with community features and subscription tiers. While broader than mountaineering, Strava competes for the same recreational GPS-tracking user and competes with Yamareco on premium activity recording.
• Garmin Connect: Ecosystem tied to Garmin's outdoor GPS devices and smartwatches, offering activity tracking, route planning, and community features. Represents device-led competition to app-only platforms like Yamareco.
• Suunto: Outdoor sports watch and app ecosystem with GPS tracking, route navigation, and community features. Device-led competitor that addresses overlapping mountaineering and outdoor user needs, including offline GPS and route planning.

Emerging players

• CocoHeli (ココヘリ): Japanese rescue beacon service providing helicopter rescue subscription for outdoor users. Comparable as a Japanese safety-focused companion service for hikers, with overlapping customer base and similar mission of reducing mountain rescue response time.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/yamareco
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@matoyan2024
• Facebookfacebook.com/yamareco
• Instagraminstagram.com/yamareco

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Yamareco