Varsom vs Ballast Finder
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Varsom
Read full descriptionHide full description
About Varsom Improve planning for winter trips into the hills and mountains or on frozen lakes. Prevent damage from floods with better knowledge. Report where you have seen avalanches. Together we can save lives and reduce damages due to avalanches, floods, landslides and dangerous ice conditions. This app gathers in one place the most important features from the Varsom Platform needed in the outdoors, for field inspections and for readiness, crisis management and rescue situations. Observations from regobs.no, warnings from varsom.no, and support maps from xgeo.no and iskart.no are included. The app is also available in English, such that visitors from abroad may read and submit observations, as well as receive warnings. As a bonus, the app now works well outside Norway. Varsom and the warning services for avalanches, landslides, ice conditions and floods are services provided by the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE) in co-operation with the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.
Ballast Finder
Read full descriptionHide full description
Ballast Finder estimates how much ballast to add or remove when a rigid, incompressible piece of dive gear moves between different water conditions. Enter the salinity, temperature and depth where the complete configured object was neutrally buoyant. Add its dry weight, then define the conditions for the new dive. Ballast Finder compares the calculated water densities and reports an estimated ballast change in grams to restore neutral buoyancy. Designed for objects whose external volume does not change appreciably with depth, including: - Underwater scooters - Sealed rigid camera housings - Rigid cargo containers Features: - Compare previous neutral and target water conditions - Enter conditions manually or start from illustrative water presets - Calculate in-situ seawater density from salinity, temperature and pressure - Explore density-versus-temperature and density-versus-salinity charts - Use light or dark appearance, Dynamic Type and VoiceOver - Work entirely offline with no accounts, analytics or advertising The density calculator uses the UNESCO 1983 EOS-80 equation of state and includes the pressure-dependent secant bulk modulus. Depth is converted using the approximation 1 metre โ 1 dbar. Results display to three decimal places. EOS-80 has been superseded by TEOS-10 for modern oceanographic work. Important limitations Ballast Finder is intended only for complete rigid, incompressible objects. It is not suitable for neoprene, BCDs, suits, lift bags, flooded equipment or flexible trapped-gas spaces. Results are estimates. Verify the object in controlled water and follow normal diving procedures, training and manufacturer guidance. Do not rely solely on this app for safety-critical, navigation or dive-planning decisions. Ballast Finder does not collect, transmit or store personal information.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Ballast Finder at every 2 weeks against Varsom's every 6 weeks. Varsom's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Varsom ships an update every 6 weeks, Ballast Finder every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Varsom | Ballast Finder |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 2 weeks โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod โ better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 โ better | 16.4 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 46 MB | 33 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Norges Vassdrags- og Energidirektorat | Olav Ekornes Haskjold |
In-app purchases
Varsom
No in-app purchases
Ballast Finder
No in-app purchases









