Dive Plan vs Diving Buddy
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Dive Plan
This app serves as a digital decompression table and logbook for divers. It helps calculate non-stop dive times and log dives, compatible with major diving organizations' tables. It supports both air and enriched air (nitrox) tanks.
- Digital decompression tables
- Dive logbook
- Compatibility with major diving organizations
- Supports air and nitrox tanks
- Practice for dive certification exams
- General dive planning guide
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Dive Plan is a dive planning and logbook app for recreational scuba divers. Plan single and repetitive no-decompression dives, work out Nitrox mixes, keep a complete logbook, and check the weather and water temperature at your dive site — all from your iPhone or iPad. PLAN YOUR DIVES • Plan first dives and repetitive dive chains using standard recreational no-decompression tables — pressure groups, no-decompression limits, and surface intervals • Repetitive dives carry each dive's pressure group into the next, with the surface interval pre-filled from real elapsed time • Clear safety-stop guidance (required or recommended) for every dive • The planner won't produce a dive that exceeds no-decompression limits — it tells you instead • Metric or imperial, switchable anytime NITROX / ENRICHED AIR • Set your oxygen fraction (FO2) and partial pressure limit (PPO2) • See maximum operating depth (MOD) and equivalent air depth (EAD) for each dive DIVE LOGBOOK • Record depth, bottom time, date and time, location, tank pressures, air/surface/bottom temperature, gas mix, and notes • Automatic, continuous dive numbering • Review your history on the dashboard: total dives, total bottom time, deepest and longest dives, plus today's dives and your last ten AT-A-GLANCE DASHBOARD • No-Fly countdown based on the DAN Flying After Diving guidelines — 12 hours after a single dive, 18 hours after multiple dives or consecutive days • Readiness: whether your next dive plans as a fresh first dive or a repetitive one, with a live surface-interval timer since your last logged dive • Current weather and sea-surface temperature for your location WEATHER & WATER CONDITIONS • Local forecast — current conditions, highs and lows, wind, and precipitation, powered by Apple Weather • Map view with search and dropped pins to check conditions anywhere • Sea-surface temperature from NOAA satellite data CERTIFICATIONS & CHECKLISTS • Keep your certification cards, with front and back photos, on your device • Build pre-dive and gear checklists and run them before every dive PRIVATE BY DESIGN • Your dives, logs, and photos stay on your device and in your own iCloud • No third-party analytics, no advertising, no tracking DESIGNED FOR IPHONE & IPAD • Universal app, all orientations • Light, dark, and system appearance, with optional background themes DIVE PLAN BASIC & PRO Dive Plan is free to use: one dive plan per day, a 20-entry logbook, one certification card, one checklist, and full weather access — free, forever. Upgrade to Pro for: • Unlimited dive planning • Repetitive dive planning with surface intervals • Nitrox / Enriched Air planning • Unlimited logbook entries, certification cards, and checklists • Premium background themes Pro is available as a monthly or annual subscription, or a one-time Lifetime purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the period; manage or cancel anytime in your Apple Account settings. Payment is charged to your Apple Account on confirmation. IMPORTANT Dive Plan is a planning aid, not a substitute for proper training, a certified instructor, or a dive computer. Always dive within the limits of your training and certification, verify every plan against your own dive tables and dive computer, and never rely on a single tool. Calculated results are estimates. You are responsible for your own safety in the water. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Diving Buddy
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Diving Buddy is a dive log, trip planner, and calculator suite for recreational and technical divers. Plan every dive. Dive the plan. Log the story. DIVE TRIPS & SITES • Build a trip, drop in dive sites by name or coords, capture the briefing, plan each dive, log it later. • Photo-backed site library — your home quarry through your bucket list. • Emergency contacts and trip notes travel with you offline. PLAN A DIVE THE WAY YOU'D BRIEF IT • Target depth, gas mix, planned bottom time, buddy, role. • Live MOD and NDL calculations as you tune the plan. • Suggestions drawn from your historical logs at the same site. LOG WITH THE FIELDS THAT MATTER • Max depth, bottom time, water temp, visibility, deco stops. • Computed SAC from your cylinder pressures — feeds back into future plans. • Gas mix (air, nitrox, or trimix), weight, buoyancy, equipment notes. • Free-form comments for the moments worth remembering. THE CALCULATOR SUITE Built around the math you actually use at the boat: • Max Operating Depth (MOD) — every mix, every PPO2 ceiling. • No-Decompression Limit (NDL) — Bühlmann ZH-L16C, including repetitive dives. • Surface Air Consumption (SAC) — derive it from any logged dive. • Run Time / Air Balance — does your gas last the planned profile? • Nitrox blending — continuous-blend planner. • Ascent gas required, oxygen toxicity, weight + cylinder weight change. • Coordinate converter. ALWAYS FREE • Reference material: Beaufort scale, deco tables, hand signals — bundled, offline, never gated. • Data export: every trip, dive, site, and photo as a JSON archive plus a PDF logbook. Export at any time. • Read-only access to everything you've already logged — forever, with or without a subscription. OPTIONAL SUBSCRIPTION Diving Buddy offers an optional auto-renewing annual subscription at $24.99/year with a 7-day free trial, or a one-time lifetime purchase at $59.99. Subscription auto-renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Manage your subscription in your App Store account settings. Your dive logs and data remain accessible on your device whether you subscribe or not. Terms of Use (EULA): https://divingbuddyapp.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://divingbuddyapp.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Diving Buddy at daily against Dive Plan's monthly. Dive Plan's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Dive Plan sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Diving Buddy sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Dive Plan ships an update monthly, Diving Buddy daily. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Dive Plan | Diving Buddy |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.8 (8 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 36.7% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 8 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 2 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | AXIS Productions | Harry Richardson |
In-app purchases
Dive Plan
- Dive Plan Pro - Monthly$2.991 Month
- Dive Plan Pro - Annual$17.991 Year
- Nitrox EANX Mode$2.99
- Dive Plan Pro Lifetime$69.99
Diving Buddy
- Diving Buddy$24.991 Year
- Diving Buddy$59.99









