SEAiq Pilot vs Coastal Explorer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SEAiq Pilot
This navigation app provides advanced charting and real-time vessel data for professional marine pilots. It supports various chart formats and external NMEA/AIS devices, offering features like predicted vessel display and docking aids. A free trial is available, with an in-app purchase for permanent access.
- S-57, S-63, iENC, BSB/KAP chart support
- External NMEA/AIS over WiFi
- Predicted vessel display
- Docking aids
- Vessel catalog
- NMEA/AIS record and playback
- Mariners tools
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SEAiq Pilot is designed especially for use by river, channel, and harbor pilots. It includes support for charts in the S-57, S-63, iENC and BSB/KAP formats and use of external NMEA/AIS over WiFi. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ IMPORTANT: For non-pilots, we recommend SEAiq and SEAiq USA. This app is free to download. All features are available during a 7-day evaluation period. An in-app purchase is required to permanently upgrade the app, otherwise after the evaluation period only basic chart viewing is supported. Enterprise Subscriptions purchased through the iOS App Store are for iOS only. Access on other platforms is not included. SEAiq Pilot and SEAiq Pilot VPP are the exact same app and differ only in how they are purchased. Features unique to SEAiq Pilot include: * Support for official HO S-57/S-63 marine charts * Adheres to IHO S-52 chart display standards * Predicted vessel display (with ROT) * Docking aids displaying distance/velocity to wharf fenders * Vessel catalog * Supports WiFi based AIS plugs and Portable Pilot Units * NMEA/AIS record and playback * Waypoints, routes, ETA, XTD, speed limits * Route Meeting Point * Visual CPA * AIS "virtual boarding" * Mariners tools: VRM, EBL, Mariners Notes, Clearing Lines Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.
Coastal Explorer
Plan and log your cruises with detailed nautical charts and weather forecasts. Enhance your experience with a subscription for offline access, real-time navigation, and integration with marine electronics.
- View NOAA and USACE nautical charts
- Create routes and waypoints
- Cloud synchronization
- ActiveCaptain points of interest
- US Coast Pilot information
- Marine weather forecasts
- Tide and current predictions
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Coastal Explorer™ is a sophisticated, full-featured, easy-to-use cruise planning and logging tool designed specifically for the pleasure boater. And it becomes a complete navigation system with the purchase of a chart subscription. The free Coastal Explorer app provides these great planning features: * View NOAA and USACE nautical charts for the US in vector format * Create routes, waypoints, boundaries, and other navigation objects * Cloud-synchronization of your navigation objects * ActiveCaptain points of interest * US Coast Pilot information * Marine weather forecasts and observations for the US * Tide and current predictions for the US Purchasing a chart subscription turns Coastal Explorer into a complete navigation system that includes: * Downloadable charts, tide and current predictions, Coast Pilot, and ActiveCaptain places for offline use * Interfacing with compatible networked marine electronics devices, including GPS, compass, depth sounder, anemometer, AIS, autopilot, and more * Customizable instrument panels * Route following with cross-track error, distance and time to go, estimated time of arrival, etc * Track and event recording * Integrated blogging Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. See our Terms of Service at https://www.rosepoint.com/legal/terms_of_service.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: SEAiq Pilot at 93% against Coastal Explorer's 11%. SEAiq Pilot also leads on rating (4.9 vs 2.8) and ratings volume (453 vs 16). Coastal Explorer's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months). 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
Both are free to download. SEAiq Pilot sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $179.99 per year and Coastal Explorer sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
SEAiq Pilot holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SEAiq Pilot has 453 ratings behind it against 16, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 93% of SEAiq Pilot's written reviews are positive against 11% of Coastal Explorer's.
SEAiq Pilot ships an update every 2 months, Coastal Explorer every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SEAiq Pilot | Coastal Explorer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (453 ratings) — better | 2.8 (16 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 93.5% of reviews — better | 11.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 453 — better | 16 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 14.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 54 MB | 54 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Sakhalin | Rose Point Navigation Systems, Inc |
Customer experience
SEAiq Pilot
Coastal Explorer
Bugs and requests
SEAiq Pilot
Reported bugs
6 issues- 🐛 Graphics are poor
- 🐛 Hard to see own ship AIS for boarding
- 🐛 iOS 14 position acquisition issues with AIS pilot plug Wifi
- 🐛 Waypoints can be accidentally deleted
- 🐛 Chartworld map loading issues
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- 🐛 AIS target display issues
Requested features
5 requests- Add Vietnamese to language section
- Allow waypoints to be locked
- Make active tools (EBL, VRM) a different color than orange
- Ability to use voice record through Bluetooth for VDR functionality
- Dark mode option
Coastal Explorer
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
SEAiq Pilot
- Premium Annual1 Month trial$179.991 Year
- Enterprise Annual1 Month trial$359.991 Year
- Upgrade for Premium Features$399.99
Coastal Explorer
- Monthly Subscription$19.991 Month
- Yearly Subscription$49.991 Year
Questions
Is SEAiq Pilot free?
Is Coastal Explorer free?
Which has better reviews, SEAiq Pilot or Coastal Explorer?
Do SEAiq Pilot or Coastal Explorer have ads?
Which is updated more often, SEAiq Pilot or Coastal Explorer?
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