CGIS TIPS vs Afloat Plan Home
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CGIS TIPS
This app offers a secure and anonymous channel for citizens to report crimes to the Coast Guard Investigative Service. It supports the mission of investigating felony crimes and protecting U.S. Coast Guard personnel and assets worldwide through objective investigations.
- Anonymous crime reporting
- Supports CGIS investigations
- Protects Coast Guard personnel
- Worldwide asset protection
- Objective investigations
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CGIS Tips provides citizens with a safe and anonymous way to report a crime. The Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) is the criminal investigative arm of the U.S. Coast Guard responsible for investigating felony crime. The mission of CGIS is to support and protect U.S. Coast Guard personnel, operations, integrity, and assets worldwide. CGIS defeats criminal threats through objective and independent investigations.
Afloat Plan Home
This app allows water sports enthusiasts to submit a plan for their activity, including details about their watercraft and emergency contacts. It tracks your location and sends alerts if you don't return on time, with offline capabilities and a first aid guide.
- Submit float plans via text
- Watercraft description
- Emergency contact notifications
- 10-minute location tracking
- Offline GPS data archiving
- SOS eVDSD signal control
- On-water first aid guide
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Afloat Plan Home for anyone who boats, kayaks, canoes, jet skis, or paddles Purpose: To submit a plan while recreating on the water. Let others know you arrived home safely. Have someone search for you if you don’t come back. Submit via text message all the details of your planned water sports activity. Choose 5 contacts to receive a description of your boat, kayak, jet ski, paddleboard, or canoe. Setting up the app is easy, and you only do it once. • Enter your name, address, phone number, and contact information. • Complete the description of your watercraft—hull numbers, registration, size, and colors. • List your emergency contacts so they are contacted if you are late and do not end your trip. File a float plan in just a few easy steps. Type in your starting location, what your destination is, and what the arrival or return time are. When you push submit, it sends a description of your watercraft, with your starting location and a Google map link, to your contacts. During the course of your activity, your location will be captured every 10 minutes and stored in the cloud. The app continues to acquire your GPS location via satellite and track your trip even when you are out of LTE range. When you are out of range, trip location data is archived locally on your smartphone or tablet. As soon as you reenter LTE range, your offline trip locations are synchronized with the cloud. In the event you don’t end your trip at the scheduled time, the app will send a notification for you to end your trip. After 15 minutes, it will remind you again to end your trip. If after 30 minutes you have not ended the trip, the app will send your trip map to your contacts with route information and your last known location. If you have a Sirius Signal model C-1002 SOS eVDSD, you can test and turn on your signal remotely. The app also shows the light’s battery status. The app also includes an offline interactive looped audio first aid treatment guide for common on-water emergencies.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: CGIS TIPS at 5.0 against Afloat Plan Home's 3.3. CGIS TIPS also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 60%) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). Afloat Plan Home's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 77 months) and ratings volume (15 vs 4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
CGIS TIPS holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 15 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of CGIS TIPS's written reviews are positive against 60% of Afloat Plan Home's.
CGIS TIPS ships an update every 77 months, Afloat Plan Home every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | CGIS TIPS | Afloat Plan Home |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better | 3.3 (15 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 60.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 4 | 15 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 77 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 45 MB | 20 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | United States Coast Guard Investigative Service | Sirius Signal, LLC |
Customer experience
CGIS TIPS
Afloat Plan Home
In-app purchases
CGIS TIPS
No in-app purchases
Afloat Plan Home
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is CGIS TIPS free?
Is Afloat Plan Home free?
Which has better reviews, CGIS TIPS or Afloat Plan Home?
Do CGIS TIPS or Afloat Plan Home have ads?
Which is updated more often, CGIS TIPS or Afloat Plan Home?
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