Comparison

Boat Beacon vs SEAiq

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

Head to head
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.

About

SEAiq

This marine navigation app offers comprehensive charting capabilities, allowing users to load various standard chart formats and download NOAA charts. It includes essential navigation tools like waypoints, routes, and an anchor alarm, along with weather overlays and NMEA/AIS integration.

Highlights
  • Load custom S-57, S-63, iENC, BSB, KAP charts
  • Automatic NOAA chart downloads
  • Waypoints, routes, and tracks
  • Anchor alarm
  • Automatic weather downloads
  • NMEA and AIS integration
Read full description

SEAiq is a full-featured marine navigation app. It lets you load your own charts in standard formats, including S-57, S-63, iENC, BSB, and KAP. It also automatically downloads charts from NOAA for the United States. Features include: * Waypoints * Routes * Tracks * Night color modes * Anchor alarm * Automatic download and display of weather (wind & isobar) * Chart measuring tools (EBL/VRM) * Wi-Fi-based NMEA and AIS No purchase is required to view charts. Premium navigation features are enabled during a 7-day evaluation period. After that, an annual subscription is required. Existing one-time purchases retain the features they unlocked. Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Boat Beacon4 screens
SEAiq2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SEAiq at Free against Boat Beacon's $14.99. SEAiq also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Boat Beacon's advantage is chart position (#107 vs unranked) and ratings volume (866 vs 193). On rating, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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

SEAiq is free to download; Boat Beacon costs $14.99 up front. Boat Beacon sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and SEAiq sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Boat Beacon against 4.7 for SEAiq. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 866 and 193 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 61% and 61% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Boat Beacon ships an update every 2 months, SEAiq every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Boat Beacon versus SEAiq: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBoat BeaconSEAiq
Price$14.99Free — better
Rating4.6 (866 ratings)4.7 (193 ratings) — better
Positive reviews61.1% of reviews61.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings866 — better193
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#107 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size152 MB53 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPocket Mariner Ltd.Sakhalin

Customer experience

Boat Beacon

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

SEAiq

All ratings193 ratings
Positive91.7%
Neutral3.6%
Negative4.7%
Written reviews75 reviews
Positive61.3%
Neutral6.7%
Negative32.0%

User reviews

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

SEAiq

From 193 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Highly reliable navigation app
  • 💡 Tons of features
  • ✨ Clean and sensical interface
  • 🚀 Versatile for plotting routes/waypoints
  • 📊 Estimating AIS target crossing range

Room to improve

  • 😩 Tedious to plot a course
  • 🔧 Complicated chart setup initially
  • 🤔 Not user friendly
  • 📚 Instructions not very helpful
  • ⏳ Time wasted on simple things

Bugs and requests

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

SEAiq

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • No access to premium features after payment
  • Chart downloads fail if app is not on screen
  • App freezes when trying to delete
  • App crashes

Requested features

13 requests
  • Simplify course plotting
  • Add support for .MBTiles
  • Add VMG feature
  • Add support for .MBTiles
  • Add support for .MBTiles
Show 8 more
  • Allow selection of discreet chart areas
  • Add GPS data from TCP/IP source
  • Allow disabling internal GPS
  • Provide good integration/complement to OpenCpn
  • Provide TCP/IP support for NMEA data
  • Broadcast waypoint and NMEA data to external systems
  • Lower price for waypoints creation
  • Allow using purchased charts across devices

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
1 purchases

SEAiq

One-time1
  • Upgrade for Premium Features$49.99

Questions

Is Boat Beacon free?
Boat Beacon costs $14.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is SEAiq free?
SEAiq is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Boat Beacon or SEAiq?
SEAiq is rated higher. Boat Beacon averages 4.6 out of 5 from 866 ratings, while SEAiq averages 4.7 from 193 ratings.
Do Boat Beacon or SEAiq have ads?
Neither Boat Beacon nor SEAiq shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Boat Beacon or SEAiq?
Boat Beacon ships an update every 2 months, and SEAiq every 3 weeks. Most recently, Boat Beacon was updated on September 22, 2026 and SEAiq on September 24, 2026.

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