Comparison

SailTimer™ vs Hooked

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

Head to head
About

SailTimer™

Visualize wind and wave conditions before you head out on the water with this marine weather app. It uses crowdsourced data for more accurate, real-time forecasts than traditional satellite imagery. Track your GPS, create waypoints, and access offline charts for any boat type.

Highlights
  • Crowdsourced wind and wave map animation
  • Route viewing with aerial photos and land maps
  • Waypoint creation and GPS track saving
  • Offline map and chart usage
  • Follow-Me GPS tracking
  • Optimal tacking distance calculation for sailboats
Features
Read full description

For all types of boats. Beautiful marine weather animations: • Crowdsourced wind maps for the most accuracy and highest resolution. • Marine weather forecasts from Weathernews Inc. (WNI) with maps of precipitation, visibility, air & sea temperature, wind, waves/swell & ocean currents. • AI models of ocean currents and marine weather from Amphitrite. There are lots of weather services and apps, but they all use the same satellite weather forecast. Low resolution, low accuracy, and only updated 4 times per day. Weather satellites are 500 to 22,000 miles up in space. Crowdsourcing is changing marine weather. Why rely on satellite imaging, when you can use actual measurements from other boaters? In coastal areas, we archive these to map wind flow for more accuracy. Crowdsourced weather maps like these have never been possible before. A wind sensor measures local wind around your boat, but now you can also know the wind and sea state up ahead or around the next point. FEATURES FOR ALL TYPES OF BOATS: • View your route with free aerial photos and land maps worldwide. If you have the Navionics Boating app, you can import worldwide Navionics charts here with a yearly subscription. • The weather map animations each have low-cost monthly/yearly subscriptions with a free 7-day trial. • Hourly weather tables for crowdsourced wind and WeatherNews Inc. (WNI) weather maps. Tap on a certain hour to move the weather animation to that time. • Create and rename waypoints by tapping or importing a list. Save, import or email your GPS track. • All maps and charts in the app can be used offline. • The white crosshair icon in the top left is the “Follow-Me” button. If tapped, it turns blue and keeps your location in the center of the screen as you move. Unselect when not moving to look around the map. • Your device will not go to sleep when the app is open, to allow you to continue to monitor your progress on the chart. You can also continue to track your movement with the app running in the background or when the device is asleep (unless you hard-quit). (Note: Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life. This app may use your location even when it isn’t open, which can decrease device battery life.) FOR SAILBOATS: Whether cruising or racing, it is important to be able to determine the best heading on all points of sail. GPS chartplotters do not calculate tacking distances. But if they do not know the distance you will travel, how can they calculate your correct ETA? This is the only product that calculates your optimal tacks using your tacking distance and polar plots. Details at www.SailTimerApp.com. The SailTimer app gives you a quick and easy display of your optimal tacks and TTD® (Tacking Time to Destination). • Use our wireless Wind Instrument or wired Ultrasonic (www.SailTimer.co) to see wind direction, angle & speed. Enter a waypoint and your optimal tacks will update automatically as the wind changes. • Bring in wind data from any other wind sensor on wifi from NMEA 2000 or 0183, using our low-cost Air Link™ (https://wi-rb.com/airlink). • Custom polar plots: When using a wind sensor, the app can learn your sailboat's unique speed profile on all points of sail, for the most accurate tacking results. • Switch the display to the port or starboard tack to avoid obstructions, or let the app automatically display the tack nearest to your current heading. • Audio Navigation: when using the wireless Wind Instrument, optionally hear wind conditions or boat speed when they change by more than a set amount. • Convert from Apparent to True wind direction, angle & speed. See our channel on Tiktok and YouTube for more background.

About

Hooked

This app acts as a digital anchor watch, monitoring your boat's position and alerting you if it drifts. It offers real-time tracking, remote control, and customization options for peace of mind while boating.

Highlights
  • Real-time boat tracking
  • Remote anchor session control
  • Past anchor session history
  • Customizable settings
  • Share boat location
  • Connect to chart plotter
  • Energy efficient design
  • Smart GPS filtering
Features
Read full description

Let's Hook Your Boat Down! Hooked is your trusty digital anchor watch. It keeps a sharp eye on your boat's position, sounding the alarm if it drifts beyond your comfort zone. Enjoy the same peace of mind whether you're on deck or ashore, without draining your device's battery. Key Features: * Real-time Tracking: Watch your boat's movements like a hawk. Colorful trails make it easy to see where you've been. * Remote Command Center: Control your anchor session from anywhere with an internet connection. Pause, adjust, or relocate your session with ease – it's all up to you. * History Buff: Review past anchor sessions to analyze your boating patterns. * Customization Galore: Tailor Hooked to your preferences. Adjust units, track appearance, and even the alarm volume. * Share the Love: Let friends and family keep an eye on your boat too. * Smart Connectivity: Hooked plays nice with other devices. Connect to your chart plotter for more accurate GPS data and to view depth and wind speed. * Energy Efficient: Hooked is designed to be gentle on your device's battery, ensuring it lasts as long as you need it. * GPS Savvy: Hooked intelligently filters out unreliable GPS signals, preventing false alarms. * Low Battery Alert: Never be caught off guard. Hooked warns you when your device is running low. Note: Remote monitoring requires two Hooked-equipped devices with internet access and a Hooked Premium subscription for the boat-based device. For a cheaper option you can also subscribe to Hooked Essential which enables remote notifications (comparable to Anchor Pro’s “Anchor Premium”). Ready to drop anchor with confidence? Hooked is your go-to companion for worry-free boating. Privacy Policy: https://hookedanchor.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://hookedanchor.com/terms-of-use

Screenshots

SailTimer™4 screens
Hooked4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Hooked at 90% against SailTimer™'s 37%. Hooked also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). SailTimer™'s advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. SailTimer™ sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Hooked sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SailTimer™ ships an update every 2 months, Hooked every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
SailTimer™ versus Hooked: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSailTimer™Hooked
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.8 (67 ratings) — better
Positive reviews37.0% of reviews90.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings—67 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size126 MB41 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSailTimer Inc.Kylee Davis

Customer experience

SailTimer™

Written reviews27 reviews
Positive37.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative63.0%

Hooked

All ratings67 ratings
Positive95.5%
Neutral1.5%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews83 reviews
Positive90.4%
Neutral7.2%
Negative2.4%

Bugs and requests

SailTimer™

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Hooked

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Occasionally struggles with losing GPS lock
  • iPad built-in GPS sometimes doesn't update
  • Some interruptions of connection
  • Bug causing incorrect longitude value and app crash
  • Seems to only paint the swing on the map sometimes
Show 1 more
  • Difficulty finding the drop anchor button

Requested features

11 requests
  • Compatibility with Android
  • Apple Watch app
  • Ability to share remote monitoring with other Apple IDs
  • Ability to form non-circular swing areas (e.g., pie slice, freeform)
  • NMEA live wind data integration
Show 6 more
  • Support for Garmin GPSMAP plotters
  • Graphics based on GPS when no internet
  • Cached graphics when offline
  • Apple Watch support to set, pause, stop
  • Alarm if GPS fails to update
  • Support for NMEA connection to Vesper Cortex

In-app purchases

12 purchases

SailTimer™

Subscriptions3
  • WNI Marine Weather Map7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Wind Animation7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Navionics Charts$10.991 Year
One-time9
  • ActiveCaptainFree
  • Polar Plot LearningFree
  • Import NMEA data$0.99
Show 6 more
  • SailTimer Pro Bundle$7.99
  • USA Atlantic Coast$15.99
  • USA Pacific Coast$15.99
  • USA Great Lakes$15.99
  • USA Gulf Coast$15.99
  • Cuba, Bahamas, Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands$15.99
3 purchases

Hooked

Subscriptions3
  • Hooked Premium (Monthly)1 Month trial$2.991 Month
  • Hooked Essential (Yearly)$4.991 Year
  • Hooked Premium (Yearly)1 Month trial$17.991 Year

Questions

Is SailTimer™ free?
SailTimer™ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hooked free?
Hooked is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do SailTimer™ or Hooked have ads?
Neither SailTimer™ nor Hooked shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SailTimer™ or Hooked?
SailTimer™ ships an update every 2 months, and Hooked every 3 weeks. Most recently, SailTimer™ was updated on October 20, 2026 and Hooked on October 25, 2026.

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