Reverse a GPX route in your browser
This tool flips a GPX route so you can follow it in the opposite direction — the classic case being an out-and-back walk or ride where you want a clean return file. It is built for anyone who recorded a one-way track and needs the reverse without re-walking it. Nothing is uploaded: the file is processed entirely in your browser.
How it works
The GPX is parsed with the browser’s DOMParser and all trkpt track points are
collected in order, then the order is reversed so the last point becomes the
first. Waypoints are reversed too. Each point keeps its lat, lon and ele, so
elevation naturally flips from climb to descent. Because reversing leaves the original
time stamps out of order, an optional re-time mode rewrites the timestamps so
they increase from a start time you choose, preserving the spacing between consecutive
points so the moving profile still makes sense.
The output is a well-formed GPX file you can download and load directly into Garmin Connect, Komoot, Strava, Wahoo, or any other app that accepts the format.
When to use a reversed GPX
The most common scenario is an out-and-back route: you recorded the outbound half with your GPS unit and now want a ready-made return leg to load on your device, so navigation continues seamlessly from the turnaround point rather than asking you to re-trace the breadcrumb from memory.
Other useful cases include:
- Point-to-point transfers — you drove or shuttled to a trailhead and need to navigate back to your car from the far end.
- Loop sharing — sharing a route with a group member who is starting from the opposite end.
- Elevation planning — flipping a predominantly uphill track to check what a descent-first approach looks like before committing.
Timestamps explained
A GPX track records a time attribute on each point. After reversing the point
order, those timestamps run backwards, which can confuse apps that expect
monotonically increasing times or use them to calculate speed and moving time. The
re-time option solves this by rewriting each timestamp with the same inter-point
spacing but in the forward direction from a start time you specify. Enable re-timing
if your navigation app shows unexpected speeds or refuses to import the reversed file;
skip it if you only need the coordinates and your app does not require valid times.
Multi-segment tracks
If your GPX contains multiple trkseg segments, all segments are flattened into a
single reversed sequence, because the split points would no longer be meaningful after
the direction change. The waypoint list (if any) is reversed independently to mirror
the new route direction.