# Wind & Tides vs BayCurrents

The clearest difference is price: BayCurrents at Free against Wind & Tides's $4.99. BayCurrents also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.8). Wind & Tides's advantage is ratings volume (408 vs 5) and chart position (#43 vs unranked). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

BayCurrents is free to download; Wind & Tides costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

BayCurrents holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Wind & Tides has 408 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Wind & Tides ships an update every 8 months, BayCurrents every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Wind & Tides | BayCurrents |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $4.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.8 (408 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/wind-and-tides-marine-forecasts/id447112326/reviews) | **[5.0 (5 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/baycurrents/id1591997070/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **408** | 5 |
| Positive reviews | 62.5% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 months** | Every 10 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | **#43** | — |
| Size | 58 MB | 3 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **17** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Two Bit Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/447112329) | [Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute](https://appshunter.io/developer/997448509) |

## What reviewers say

### Wind & Tides

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/wind-and-tides-marine-forecasts/id447112326)

**Currently charting:** #43 Top Paid · Weather (US App Store)

Get detailed weather forecasts specifically for sailing in San Francisco Bay. Access NOAA weather, tide and current information for the Golden Gate Bridge, and real-time wind measurements from key locations.

**Highlights:** NOAA weather forecast, Tides and currents, Golden Gate Bridge wind, Angel Island wind measurements

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and easy to use
- 👍 Go-to app for SF Bay marine weather and tides
- 👍 Essential for sailing and wing boarding
- 👍 Concise and useful sailing information
- 👍 Reliable for daily use (historically)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Inaccurate wind forecasts after format change
- 🐛 Tide/current predictions differ significantly from other sources
- 🐛 Angel Island weather station not reporting
- 🐛 App not working for extended periods
- 🐛 Basic functionality for the price

**Reported bugs**

- Completely inaccurate wind forecasts
- App not working for over 10 days
- Wind speed impossible to get
- Outage with host server (Total Server Solutions, LLC)

**Requested features**

- Revert to previous format for wind forecasts
- Include afternoon wind projections
- Fix Angel Island weather station
- Include tide and current data 2-3 hours earlier
- Expand coverage beyond San Francisco


### BayCurrents

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/baycurrents/id1591997070)

Visualize high-resolution surface currents in the San Francisco Bay. This app supports various maritime activities with data up to 48 hours in the future. It operates autonomously offline, using NOAA model data enhanced by radar and tidal observations.

**Highlights:** High-resolution surface current maps, 48-hour future forecasting, Offline autonomous operation, NOAA numerical model data, Supports recreational and professional maritime activities

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Wind & Tides free?

Wind & Tides costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is BayCurrents free?

BayCurrents is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Wind & Tides or BayCurrents?

BayCurrents is rated higher. Wind & Tides averages 4.8 out of 5 from 408 ratings, while BayCurrents averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.

### Do Wind & Tides or BayCurrents have ads?

Neither Wind & Tides nor BayCurrents shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Wind & Tides or BayCurrents?

Wind & Tides ships an update every 8 months, and BayCurrents every 10 months. Most recently, Wind & Tides was updated on November 1, 2026 and BayCurrents on November 3, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*