Comparison

AyeTides vs Boat Beacon

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

Head to head
About

AyeTides

Access tide and current data for over 13,400 global locations without an internet connection. Plan your coastal activities with detailed daily events, interactive graphs, and station search options.

Highlights
  • Offline tide and current data
  • 13,400+ global locations
  • Interactive tide graphs
  • Station search by map, name, or location
  • Daily events in tabular form
  • Regular updates with new stations
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Never be without the tides again! You too can carry the tides in your pocket (or now, on your wrist!) as you walk along the shore, fly into a harbor, or sail off into the sunset. AyeTides displays tides and/or currents for over 13,400 locations worldwide and unlike many other tide apps, it does not require a network connection. With AyeTides you will never see those annoying ads or be asked to pay for additional features! Sailors, harbor pilots, beachcombers, nature photographers, and more use AyeTides to plan their outings on or around the world's oceans. Here are some of the things people are saying about AyeTides... "AyeTides is a quality professional product” "Your support has been the best I have experienced!" “As a harbor pilot in New York I’ve been using your excellent tide and current app” "I really appreciate the effort that you put into making AyeTides as accurate as it can be. It is a great program that has been very useful to us. I think we have 60 pilots using iPhones and iNavX and your app links in so well." "I am a ships Pilot in BC and use Aye Tides a lot and it has become invaluable.” You can see the day’s events in tabular form, or you can rotate the phone for an interactive graph that shows you the tide’s value at any point during the day. You can find a station on a map, by name, or based on your current location. AyeTides is updated regularly and stations are added whenever we find new data. We encourage our customers to contact us if you hare having any issues with the program so that we can help you. This app is designed to run on your iPhone or iPod Touch. While it will run on your iPad, it does not offer the additional features available with AyeTides XL, which was designed specifically for the iPad. If you have multiple devices, you may want to consider our bundle. You get both apps at a discount! This is the only place to install AyeTides. Other websites may look like they have AyeTides, but they do not. We only support iOS, any other version of AyeTides is not ours.

About

Boat Beacon

This marine navigation app provides real-time AIS data for collision avoidance and position sharing. It offers over-the-horizon warnings, background operation, and a user-friendly interface for boaters.

Highlights
  • Collision warnings with CPA calculations
  • Real-time AIS ship tracking
  • Background operation for continuous alerts
  • Position sharing with other users
  • Augmented Reality view (IAP)
  • Man Overboard and Anchor Watch alarms (IAP)
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Boat Beacon is an internet AIS receiver and transmitter for your iPhone and iPad. It is the only AIS ship tracking app to provide Collision Warnings, share your boat’s position & use real-time AIS data. Connected to the largest network of AIS shore receivers world-wide covering most major ports, harbours and popular coastal areas. “An outstanding app, with great potential. Both interesting to use and very user friendly. This could be a life saver and especially of interest to small boat users. Everyone who goes on the water should have this on and use it!” ***** Sun Dream, App Store Review Boat Beacon is designed for boaters & provides continuous Bearing, Range & Closest Point of Approach (CPA) calculations and alarms in addition to standard AIS information even when in the background. Boat Beacon does not require any external AIS transponder or receiver equipment. Key Features ------------ Over-the-horizon collision avoidance (30 miles radius) using continuous CPA calculations - highlights boats that are on a potential collision course and alerts you with an alarm. Continually transmits and receives position information via the internet and calculates and alarms CPA even when the app is in the background. Shares your position with Internet AIS Systems & apps & other Boat Beacon users in real time. Real time ship map view with North up & Heading up modes so you can look in the direction of the ships on the map to locate them. Nav display showing own boat's speed, course, heading and position. SART Alarm Man Overboard tracking, Anchor watch & Theft alarms (IAP). Apple Watch App included Siri voice commands Export tracks Boat-to-Boat & Group Messaging. Local AIS & GPS via Wifi. Boat Beacon InApp Add-ons:- LiveView - Augmented Reality view with ships, compass & horizon overlaid. Works with FLIROne IR cameras as well to see ships & people in the dark & fog (IAP) "AIS Sharing" to other apps like Navionics & iNavX (IAP subscription) US, UK and IE Marine raster charts (IAP). MOB and Anchor Watch (IAP). Let Friends and Family see where you are and where you're headed to with our free Boat Watch app or on web-based AIS systems like MarineTraffic which have free web viewers available. Arm all the crews in a race with Boat Beacon and have real time updates on the race positions on the water and back in the club house. Keep a watch and in touch with other boats in your flotilla when sailing in a group. Boat Beacon requires internet access to work. Most popular coastal areas have cellular data access extending 12 or more miles out to sea. Subscriptions The "AIS Sharing " subscription is monthly ($5.99) or yearly ($16.49), and will automatically renew at the end of the subscription period unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase, and will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Subscriptions may be managed by the iTunes account holder and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to Account Settings after purchase. 
No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period. Terms of Use: http://seanav.net/termsofuse.php Privacy Policy: http://seanav.net/privacy.php Support: help@pocketmariner.com Your position can be shared and seen on all our apps without using an MMSI number. To be seen on Global AIS systems like MarineTraffic you need an MMSI number. In the US you can obtain one by visiting http://www.boatus.com/mmsi or email us for a free internet MMSI number. Please note that continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life. NOT FOR NAVIGATION Boat Beacon should only be used for basic navigation reference and should not be solely relied upon to determine precise locations, proximity, distance, or direction. You will not be visible to other ships on VHF only AIS systems.

Screenshots

AyeTides4 screens
Boat Beacon4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AyeTides at none against Boat Beacon's 6. AyeTides also leads on price ($7.99 vs $14.99) and review sentiment (87% vs 61%). Boat Beacon's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.6). On ads, chart position 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

AyeTides costs $7.99 and Boat Beacon $14.99 up front. Boat Beacon sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. AyeTides asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

AyeTides holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AyeTides has 4.9K ratings behind it against 866, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 87% of AyeTides's written reviews are positive against 61% of Boat Beacon's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

AyeTides ships an update every 3 weeks, Boat Beacon every 2 months. Both last shipped on September 22, 2026.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
AyeTides versus Boat Beacon: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAyeTidesBoat Beacon
Price$7.99 — better$14.99
Rating4.8 (4.9K ratings) — better4.6 (866 ratings)
Positive reviews87.0% of reviews — better61.1% of reviews
Number of ratings4.9K — better866
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#106 — better#107
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.615.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size27 MB152 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHahn Software LLCPocket Mariner Ltd.

Customer experience

AyeTides

All ratings4,857 ratings
Positive97.2%
Neutral1.7%
Negative1.0%
Written reviews169 reviews
Positive87.0%
Neutral3.0%
Negative10.1%

Boat Beacon

All ratings866 ratings
Positive92.0%
Neutral2.3%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews185 reviews
Positive61.1%
Neutral9.7%
Negative29.2%

User reviews

AyeTides

From 4.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Accurate and reliable
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 🌊 Comprehensive tide and current data
  • 🔍 Offline functionality
  • 🌙 Includes moon and sunrise/sunset data

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
  • 🔄 Issues with updating favorites or station list
  • 📱 Limited Apple Watch integration
  • 🔍 Difficulty finding some locations

Boat Beacon

From 866 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Works great
  • 🚀 Excellent app
  • 🔒 Fantastic app
  • 💡 Useful navigation aid
  • 👍 Handy app

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes constantly
  • 🐛 Unreliable
  • 🐛 Doesn't work
  • 🐛 Useless
  • 🐛 Clunky UI

Bugs and requests

AyeTides

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on latest iOS versions
  • Incorrect tide data for some locations
  • Landscape mode issues on iPad

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more detailed current/flow data
  • Improve graphical tide charts
  • Integrate with weather/marine forecasts
  • Enhance Apple Watch app functionality

Boat Beacon

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Crashes when panning or changing settings
  • Phantom ships not disappearing
  • Inaccurate position data
  • Compatibility issues with older devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add marine charts
  • Improve search functionality
  • Offline mode
  • Integrate with other navigation apps

In-app purchases

None

AyeTides

No in-app purchases

6 purchases

Boat Beacon

Subscriptions2
  • AIS Share$5.991 Month
  • AIS Share$16.491 Year
One-time4
  • Anchor Watch and Man Overboard$4.99
  • Live View Upgrade$7.99
  • NOAA US Marine Charts$9.99
Show 1 more
  • UK & IE Marine Charts$12.99

Questions

Is AyeTides free?
AyeTides costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Boat Beacon free?
Boat Beacon costs $14.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, AyeTides or Boat Beacon?
AyeTides is rated higher. AyeTides averages 4.8 out of 5 from 4.9K ratings, while Boat Beacon averages 4.6 from 866 ratings.
Do AyeTides or Boat Beacon have ads?
Neither AyeTides nor Boat Beacon shows ads.
Which is updated more often, AyeTides or Boat Beacon?
AyeTides ships an update every 3 weeks, and Boat Beacon every 2 months. Most recently, AyeTides was updated on September 22, 2026 and Boat Beacon on September 22, 2026.
Which is more popular, AyeTides or Boat Beacon?
AyeTides currently peaks at #106 in the App Store charts, and Boat Beacon at #107. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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