PNW Current Atlas vs Tides Explorer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PNW Current Atlas
Access detailed current prediction charts for the Pacific Northwest, covering regions like the Juan de Fuca Strait and San Juan Islands. View any date or time within the current year with free yearly updates, and use the app offline.
- View past/future date/time predictions
- Daylight savings time correction
- Jump to 'Now' prediction
- Swipe/tap to move through time
- Zoomable prediction details
- Offline functionality
- Free yearly updates
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The PNW Current Atlas brings a fast and easy way to view Pacific Northwest current prediction charts for the Juan de Fuca Strait / Strait of Georgia regions on your mobile device. This includes complete coverage of the US San Juan Islands, the Canadian Gulf Islands, and the Eastern Juan de Fuca Strait and more. This digital current atlas includes predictions for the current year with free yearly updates so that you never have to buy a reference or look-up table ever again. Features: ◆ View any date/time within a tide cycle, past or future (within the current year) ◆ Fully corrected for Daylight savings time ◆ Easily jump to the prediction closest to Now with a single tap ◆ Easily move forwards or backwards through prediction time by tapping or swiping ◆ Zoom into predictions to see more detail ◆ Works offline - no Internet connection needed! ◆ Includes all predictions for the current calendar year with free yearly updates ◆ and more...
Tides Explorer
This app provides accurate tide, current, and weather predictions using official NOAA data for thousands of stations. Plan your water activities with clear charts, sun/moon information, and customizable widgets.
- Accurate tide and current predictions
- Fast station search
- Favorites for quick access
- Interactive charts
- Weather data at stations
- Sun, moon, and twilight info
- Home and Lock Screen widgets
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Tides Explorer — Accurate Tides, Currents, and Marine Weather Tides Explorer is a precision tide and current app for sailors, boaters, paddlers, and swimmers, built on official NOAA data covering over 6,000 stations across the United States and international waters. It helps you understand not just what the water will do, but when and why, using clear charts and reliable predictions you can plan around. Core Features Get accurate tide and current predictions straight from NOAA, with fast search by name or location and interactive charts for exploring and comparing stations. At supported stations, see real observed water levels laid over the prediction (Pro) — so you know what the water's actually doing, not just what it's supposed to do. Save your favorite spots for quick access (Pro), track real-time weather at supported stations — wind, air and water temperature, and barometric pressure (Pro) — and check sun, moon, and twilight times to help plan your time on the water. Plan Around What Matters to You Drag a custom reference line onto any favorite station's chart — on a current station, mark a safe velocity to catch slack water before transiting a pass — and see exactly when you're above or below it. Set alerts for high and low tides, current extremes, your reference line, or slack water itself (Pro), plus new Moon Over Water alerts for when moonrise or moonset lines up with the water near sunset or sunrise. Designed for Apple Platforms Tides Explorer includes Home and Lock Screen widgets and a full Apple Watch app with multiple complications, all optimized for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. Built for the Water Ideal for sailing, boating, kayaking, swimming, fishing, and coastal exploration, Tides Explorer delivers dependable marine data without clutter, so you can plan confidently and focus on the water.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Tides Explorer at 100% against PNW Current Atlas's 44%. Tides Explorer also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.5) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 11 months). PNW Current Atlas's advantage is chart position (#190 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.6). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. PNW Current Atlas sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Tides Explorer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Tides Explorer holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 33 and 26 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 44% of PNW Current Atlas's written reviews are positive against 100% of Tides Explorer's.
PNW Current Atlas ships an update every 11 months, Tides Explorer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PNW Current Atlas | Tides Explorer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.5 (33 ratings) | 5.0 (26 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 43.8% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 33 — better | 26 |
| Update frequency | Every 11 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #190 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 56 MB | 23 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | TinyOctopus, LLC | Lonnie Millett |
Customer experience
PNW Current Atlas
Tides Explorer
In-app purchases
PNW Current Atlas
- 3-Day Free TrialFree
- Current Atlas unlimited access$19.99
Tides Explorer
- Lifetime purchase$3.00
Questions
Is PNW Current Atlas free?
Is Tides Explorer free?
Which has better reviews, PNW Current Atlas or Tides Explorer?
Do PNW Current Atlas or Tides Explorer have ads?
Which is updated more often, PNW Current Atlas or Tides Explorer?
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