Summit and Spur · Free tool

Is the America the Beautiful pass worth it?

Rules of thumb are useless here. The answer depends on which parks you visit, how you enter them, and whether you are a US resident. Put your real trip in and get the number.

The pass covers entrance fees at every national park and federal recreation site for 12 months from the month you buy it. A single park's entrance pass usually lasts 7 days. Kids 15 and under enter free at every park. If you qualify for a Senior, Military, Access, or 4th Grade pass, your price is lower than anything this page computes, so check the NPS passes page first.

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Parks priced 13 Resident pass $80 Nonresident pass $250 Sign-up None

Your next 12 months of parks

Are you a US resident? Yes. The annual pass costs me $80. No, I am visiting from another country. The annual pass costs me $250.

How will you enter the parks? By car. One fee covers the vehicle and everyone in it. On foot or by bike. The fee is per person.

Tap the parks you plan to visit

Going somewhere not on the list?

Add any other fee-charging park or federal site with the entrance fee from its own NPS page.

The verdict updates as you change answers. The button is there for anyone who likes a button.

The verdict

From our shelf

The National Park Planner Bundle

$19.99 for all five planners · $7.99 each

Day by day plans for Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Zion, Grand Canyon, and Rocky Mountain: where to sleep, what to book ahead, and the order that keeps you out of the worst lines. The pass gets you through the gate. These get you through the trip.

See the planners on Gumroad

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How the math works

Each park visit costs what the park charges at the gate: one vehicle fee per visit if you drive in, or the per person fee times the number of people 16 and up if you walk or ride in. Add a second trip to the same park outside the first visit's 7 days and it costs the gate fee again, so count separate trips, not days. The pass is one flat price for 12 months of entrances. Whichever total is lower wins, and the line by line tally above shows every step.

Entrance fees and pass prices checked against National Park Service park pages on October 16, 2026. Fees change, and a park's own page is the final word. This tool counts entrance fees only. Camping, timed entry reservations, tours, and lodging cost extra and are not covered by the pass. Rocky Mountain fees shown are the 7-day pass rates; that park also sells a cheaper 1-day pass. Glacier fees shown are summer rates; winter rates are lower. At parks that charge per person, the annual pass covers up to four people entering with the pass holder.