# Actual Currents — Tidal Current Visualization

> Animated tidal current visualization and planning tool for marine navigation. (iPhone/iPad app by Luka Catipovic.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/actual-currents/id6761431005 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Luka Catipovic](https://appshunter.io/developer/1889586305)
- Category: Weather
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.70/5 from 20 App Store ratings · 5 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 15.0 · 22 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2026-04-15
- Data updated: 2026-09-10
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/actual-currents/id6761431005/reviews.md

## What is Actual Currents?

Actual Currents brings tidal currents to life with real-time animated particle visualization on a nautical-grade interactive map.

See the actual flow of water in your area — not just tide times, but the speed and direction of tidal currents rendered as thousands of flowing particles over a detailed heatmap. Plan your trip with confidence by scrubbing through time to see how currents change throughout the day.

FEATURES

• Animated tidal current visualization with speed-colored particles and GPU-accelerated heatmap
• Time scrubber — view current predictions for any time, past or future
• Globe view with global ocean currents when zoomed out
• Real-time wind overlay with global weather data
• ENC nautical chart data with navigation aids, depth soundings, and depth contours
• Satellite, bathymetry, and nautical basemap options
• Route planning with current-aware analysis
• Trip logging with GPS drift tracking
• Location search to jump to any harbor or waterway

COVERAGE

• US Atlantic coast — Maine to Florida
• US Pacific coast — Washington to California
• Gulf of Mexico
• Global ocean surface currents

BUILT FOR BOATERS

Whether you're sailing, fishing, kayaking, or navigating commercially, understanding tidal currents is critical for safety and efficiency. Actual Currents gives you an intuitive, visual understanding of water movement that tide tables alone can't provide.

SUBSCRIPTION TIERS

• Basic (free) — Real-time currents within ±3 hours of now
• Pro ($4.99/mo) — Full historical and forecast access
• Unlimited ($39.99/yr) —  Full historical and forecast access with 7-day free trial

Terms of Use: https://www.actualcurrents.com/terms.html
Privacy Policy: https://www.actualcurrents.com/privacy.html

## Key features

- Animated tidal current visualization
- Real-time wind overlay
- Interactive nautical map
- Time scrubber for predictions
- Route planning with current analysis
- Global ocean currents view

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**Subscriptions**

| Subscription | Price | Period |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Unlimited monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Yearly | $39.99 | per year |


## Chart rankings

- #129 in Top Grossing · Weather (US App Store)

## Recent user reviews (5 of 5)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/actual-currents/id6761431005/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Helpful tool

*2026-07-28*

Really great for navigating and fishing.

### 1/5 — Good app, predatory subscription policy

*2026-07-25*

Nice app, seems accurate, but free trial was not available for monthly subscription, only annual. So if you miss a weekly cancellation cutoff - you’re charged not for 1 month but $46 for the whole year. Feels like it was a deliberate trap rather than a genuine “free trial”.

### 2/5 — Glitchy

*2026-07-15*

This app is not quite ready to be useable. Upper Chesapeake Bay is blank. If you zoom in the currents disappear. And the ability to look ahead at currents can’t be done on the main screen.

### 5/5 — Great for SUPpers

*2026-06-23*

Very useful best app I’ve found and I tried them all lol

### 5/5 — Awesome!

*2026-05-30*

This is a great feature-laden app!  Recommended to my fishing friends.  5 downloads from this morning already!

## Frequently asked questions about Actual Currents

### What is Actual Currents?

Actual Currents is a weather app that provides animated visualizations of tidal currents on an interactive nautical map. It helps users understand water flow, speed, and direction for better marine navigation.

### What subscription tiers are available for Actual Currents?

Actual Currents offers a free Basic tier for real-time currents within ±3 hours. The Pro tier costs $4.99/month for full historical and forecast access, and the Unlimited tier is $39.99/year with a 7-day free trial for the same full access.

### How accurate are the tidal current predictions in Actual Currents?

The app uses nautical-grade data and provides predictions that can be scrubbed through time, allowing users to plan with confidence. The specific accuracy metrics are not detailed, but it's built for critical safety and efficiency in marine activities.

### Does Actual Currents have ads?

No, Actual Currents does not contain advertisements. The app is free to use with optional in-app purchases for advanced features.

### What devices is Actual Currents compatible with?

Actual Currents is available for iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices. It was last updated on June 4, 2026, with version 2.04.

### What is the age rating for Actual Currents?

Actual Currents has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for a wide range of users interested in marine weather and navigation.

### How does Actual Currents compare to traditional tide tables?

Unlike tide tables that only provide times, Actual Currents offers a visual, animated representation of current speed and direction. This provides a more intuitive understanding of water movement crucial for boating.

### Can I plan routes using Actual Currents?

Yes, Actual Currents includes route planning features with current-aware analysis. It also offers trip logging with GPS drift tracking for enhanced navigation.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 2.06 — 2026-08-28

• Saved locations, reimagined. The start screen now opens to live conditions for every place you've saved: current speed and direction, the time of the next slack, and the tide's state on a mini chart, over a quiet coastline map
• Swipe up and down to move between locations, and drag to reorder them in Saved Places
• Gauge points: pick the exact spot a saved location reads its current from, which matters where opposing flows sit side by side
• Your saved routes, places, trips and logs now sync automatically across every device you sign in on, and show up without refreshing
• Delete saved routes straight from the list
• Optimal Departure: scan departure times and see transit time vs. departure on one chart
• Redesigned time bar, so you can scroll freely through hours or days
• Smarter routes: long-press waypoints to edit, distances in your units (nm/mi/km), cleaner charts and clearer route lines
• 12/24-hour clock, a color scale that adapts to the water in view, and many fixes

### 2.04 — 2026-06-04

NEW: CANADIAN CURRENTS
• Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) current predictions now appear
  alongside NOAA stations — pan to BC, the Bay of Fundy, the St.
  Lawrence, or any Canadian coast to see them
• Tap any arrow to compare CHS or NOAA predictions against Actual
  Currents in the same chart

SUBSCRIPTIONS
• Introducing the Annual plan — $39.99/year, a 33% savings over monthly
• Try Unlimited free for 7 days on the annual plan
• Monthly subscription is now $4.99 (price reduced)

ROUTES TOOL
• Tap to add waypoints, drag to refine — the line follows in real time
• Import .gpx files from your chartplotter or other apps
• One-tap reverse the entire route
• Save your favorite routes and reload them anytime
• Per-waypoint details: tap any point to see exact coordinates and leg distances
• New mobile waypoint column makes editing on the phone effortless

UNITS
• New Speed toggle in Settings: switch between knots, mph, or km/h

### 2.03 — 2026-05-14

Smoother Pro and Unlimited subscription experience with faster activation

### 2.02 — 2026-05-12

• Real-time observations from NOAA PORTS stations — view live current and water level data from instrumented ports.
• Tidal currents now visible at wider zoom levels — get a regional overview at a glance before zooming in for detail.

### 2.01 — 2026-04-28

• GPU-accelerated current animations — smoother, prettier particle
  trails with cleaner ghost fades

• New land and coastline rendering — sharper detail at all zoom
  levels, unified across light, dark, and night themes

• Refined heatmap colormap — subtle currents (1–3 knots) are now
  easier to read, with a darker gradient for stronger flows

• Particle density adapts to your screen — currents look right on
  iPhone, iPad, and everything in between

• Sign in with email — get a one-time 6-digit code in your inbox,
  no password to remember (alongside Apple and Google sign-in)

• NOAA navigation aid labels — official Chart No. 1 shorthand
  beneath each aid (lights, buoys, beacons), with deduplicated
  sector lights and full-name fallbacks

• Live-scrubbing NOAA government currents — arrows update smoothly
  as you scrub through time, instead of jumping at each tick

• SST overlay refinements — the opacity slider now affects both
  the high-detail and global overview layers in lockstep

## Related topics

[ocean currents](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/ocean-currents) · [actual currents](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/actual-currents)

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-10.*
