Comparison

Surf Captain vs Current

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Surf Captain

Get detailed 16-day surf forecasts with swell, wind, and tide information. Plan your surf sessions with personalized alerts and a wave model tuned for local breaks. Integrates with AI assistants for easy condition checks.

Highlights
  • 16-day surf forecast
  • Surf height, swell, wind, tide timeline
  • Swell breakdown
  • Favorite surf spots
  • Custom surf alerts
  • Hundreds of global locations
  • AI assistant integration
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Surf Forecasts Made Awesome! Surf Captain gives you 16-day surf forecasts in an app that's fast and simple to read. WHAT YOU GET • 16-day surf forecast, so you can plan your surf week • Surf height, swell, wind and tide together in one timeline • Swell breakdown showing the individual swells behind the surf, with height, period and direction • Favorites for the spots you check every day • Surf alerts that notify you when a spot is forecast to hit the conditions you set • Hundreds of locations across the United States, Canada, Central America and the Caribbean, with more regions on the way FORECASTS BUILT FOR THE BREAK Surf Captain doesn't just show open-ocean numbers. Our own wave model is tuned for each location, so the surf forecast reflects what reaches the beach: swell direction, wind, tide and nearby buoy data. FREE AND PRO The free app gives you the 5 day forecast for any spot. Surf Captain Pro unlocks the full 16 days, surf alerts and more for only $1.67 per month. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the period, and you can manage them in your account settings. Also works with your AI assistant: connect Surf Captain to Claude to ask about surf conditions in plain language. Questions or feedback? Use Contact inside the app. We read everything. Terms: https://surfcaptain.com/terms Privacy: https://surfcaptain.com/privacy Terms Of Use: https://surfcaptain.com/terms Privacy policy: https://surfcaptain.com/privacy

About

Current

Get detailed, physics-based surf forecasts for over 1,000 surf breaks. View 16-day outlooks including swell, wind, tide, and surf heights. Features animated maps and unique spot statistics like water temperature and breaker type.

Highlights
  • 16-day surf forecast
  • Animated wind, current, and swell maps
  • Detailed spot statistics
  • Water temperature with wetsuit recommendations
  • Custom spot forecasting
  • Hourly forecast for first 10 days
Read full description

Current gives you physics-based surf forecasts for more than 1,000 breaks across California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, and the East and Gulf Coasts. Current is part of a movement to create more accurate and detailed surf forecasts. What you get: • 16-day surf forecast for every spot - swell, wind, tide, surf heights, and ratings • An animated map - wind, currents, and swell in motion, surf height painted along the coastline • Spot stats you won't find anywhere else - set height, breaker type, peakiness, plus water temperature with a wetsuit pick • Secret spots - draw your own spot anywhere on the coast and get a full forecast for it The 10-day forecast is free for every spot. Upgrade to Current Premium for the full 16-day forecast, future-day spot stats, and future-day map overlays. Forecasts are estimates. Always check real conditions and surf within your limits. CURRENT PREMIUM (optional subscription) The hourly surf forecast is free for days 1–10. Premium unlocks days 11–16, plus future-day map overlays (surf height, wind, currents, water temperature) and future-day spot stats. Premium Monthly: [monthly price]/month. Premium Annual: [annual price]/year. Both auto-renew. Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. The subscription renews unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel in your App Store settings. Privacy Policy: https://currentsurf.com/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://currentsurf.com/terms

Screenshots

Surf Captain4 screens
Current4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Current at none against Surf Captain's shown. Surf Captain's advantage is ratings volume (1.3K vs 17) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Surf Captain sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per year and Current sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Surf Captain holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Surf Captain has 1.3K ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 80% of Surf Captain's written reviews are positive against 71% of Current's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Surf Captain ships an update weekly, Current every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Surf Captain versus Current: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSurf CaptainCurrent
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (1.3K ratings) — better4.5 (17 ratings)
Positive reviews80.5% of reviews — better71.4% of reviews
Number of ratings1.3K — better17
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#171 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size63 MB35 MB
Age rating4++4
DeveloperWeather CaptainColin Weaver

Customer experience

Surf Captain

All ratings1,285 ratings
Positive97.6%
Neutral1.4%
Negative1.0%
Written reviews41 reviews
Positive80.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative19.5%

Current

All ratings16 ratings
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive71.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative28.6%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Surf Captain

Subscriptions3
  • Surf Captain Pro14 Days trial$9.991 Year
  • Surf Captain Pro Annual14 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Surf Captain Pro Plus Annual14 Days trial$39.991 Year
2 purchases

Current

Subscriptions2
  • Current Premium$4.991 Month
  • Current Premium Annual$29.991 Year

Questions

Is Surf Captain free?
Surf Captain is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Current free?
Current is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Surf Captain or Current?
Surf Captain is rated higher. Surf Captain averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while Current averages 4.5 from 17 ratings.
Do Surf Captain or Current have ads?
Surf Captain shows ads; Current does not.
Which is updated more often, Surf Captain or Current?
Surf Captain ships an update weekly, and Current every 3 weeks. Most recently, Surf Captain was updated on November 11, 2026 and Current on November 10, 2026.

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