Comparison

Venturi vs Wavemaps

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

Head to head
About

Venturi

This app helps water sports enthusiasts find ideal conditions, track their rides with GPS, and connect with a community for races and social sharing. It offers forecasts, session replays, and a progression system with unlockable rewards.

Highlights
  • Water sports forecasts (wind, swell, tides)
  • GPS session tracking
  • Race replays and leaderboards
  • Community features and chat
  • Progressive rewards system
  • Spot alerts and live cameras
Features
Read full description

Find your next session. Track every ride. Race your crew. Co-founded by Kai Lenny, Venturi is a free app that brings forecasts, GPS session tracking and your water sports community together. From surfing and foiling to winging, kiting, windsurfing and SUP, make more of every day on the water. FIND YOUR CONDITIONS See wind, swell and tides at your favorite spots. Explore forecast maps, check available live cameras, and set spot alerts for the conditions you want to ride. Local insights help you get to know a new launch or stay connected to your home spot. TRACK EVERY RIDE Record sessions with your phone or Apple Watch, with Garmin support for compatible devices. Review your route, distance, speed and time on the water. Explore sport-specific stats, log your gear and notes, and share your session with friends. Connect Strava to keep your activities together. RACE YOUR CREW Discover courses, join scheduled races and chase leaderboard times. Relive the action with race videos that bring riders together on the course. See who has been riding and find your next challenge. RIDE. PROGRESS. GET REWARDED. Complete goals, earn XP and level up. Unlock hats, trails, frames and badges in finishes from Common to Legendary. Celebrate personal progress, course records and podiums with a look that is yours. STAY CONNECTED ON THE WATER See friends who are riding, follow their live sessions and keep in touch through chat. Share photos, videos and session stories. Find groups and events that bring your local community together. Built by riders, for riders. Download Venturi and make your next session count. Forecasts, session tracking and unlimited spot favorites are free. Feature availability varies by sport, device and location. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Wavemaps

This app provides detailed wave, surf, and wind forecasts for water enthusiasts and marine professionals. It offers global and nearshore wave modeling, real-time ocean data, and interactive 3D maps to visualize conditions. Users can save favorite locations and access premium features for advanced analysis.

Highlights
  • Global and nearshore wave forecasts
  • Custom ultra high-resolution wave models
  • Thousands of worldwide locations
  • Real-time ocean conditions from buoys
  • Interactive 3D-capable maps
  • Wave-seabed interaction visualization
  • Professional tools and extended forecasts
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Wavemaps — A Professional Wave Forecasting Platform Wavemaps is a professional wave, wind, and marine forecasting platform built for people who spend serious time on or near the water. Surfers, fishers, sailors, captains, lifeguards, marine engineers, and coastal professionals run on the same system: the world's leading wave and marine weather models, refined into hyperlocal forecasts up to 16 days out. MULTI-MODEL COMPARISON Detailed wave forecasts compared side by side across leading global models, including ECMWF and GFS. Read the agreement between models at a glance and make calls with confidence. WAVEMAPS TIME MACHINE Visualize wave and wind forecast maps from 1979 to the present. Replay historical swells, storms, and seasons — and save them as memories to revisit. WAVEMAPS ENERGY COMPASS Our signature swell-direction visualization. See where wave energy is coming from, how it's distributed across components, and how it aligns with the coast you care about. ADVANCED SWELL COMPONENT ANALYSIS Decompose every wave forecast into its swell and wind-wave components — height, period, and direction for each. Know exactly which swell is doing the work. WAVEMAPS HD Ultra-high-resolution nearshore wave forecasts powered by our custom Wavemaps HD engine. For the first time in a forecasting platform, see how waves interact with the seabed — bathymetry, refraction, and shoaling rendered the way you'd see them on a research instrument. Available only in certain regions. WIND FORECASTS High-resolution wind forecasts including gusts, sustained speeds, and direction. Identify offshore, side-shore, and onshore conditions for any spot. THOUSANDS OF LOCATIONS Browse surf spots, fishing zones, and wave buoys worldwide. Save your favorites for personalized forecasts. Add your own spots and pull wave forecasts anywhere in the world. INTERACTIVE 3D MAPS Explore ultra-high-resolution maps of ocean and weather conditions across nearshore and offshore areas. Smooth, GPU-driven 3D visualization helps you understand current conditions and how they're changing over time. PROFESSIONAL FEATURES Premium subscriptions unlock advanced capabilities, extended forecast ranges, and deeper data analysis for users who need traceable, decision-grade ocean intelligence. Terms of Service: https://www.wavemaps.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://www.wavemaps.com/privacy

Screenshots

Venturi4 screens
Wavemaps4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Venturi at every 9 days against Wavemaps's every 3 months. Wavemaps's advantage is chart position (#138 vs unranked) and ratings volume (237 vs 61). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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. Venturi sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month and Wavemaps sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. 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 — 5.0 for Venturi against 4.9 for Wavemaps. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 61 and 237 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 93% of Venturi's written reviews are positive against 88% of Wavemaps's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Venturi ships an update every 9 days, Wavemaps every 3 months. Both last shipped on October 30, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Venturi versus Wavemaps: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVenturiWavemaps
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (61 ratings) — better4.9 (237 ratings)
Positive reviews92.9% of reviews — better87.5% of reviews
Number of ratings61237 — better
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#138 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size226 MB119 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperClayton SelbyMiguel Canals

Customer experience

Venturi

All ratings61 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews14 reviews
Positive92.9%
Neutral7.1%
Negative0.0%

Wavemaps

All ratings186 ratings
Positive96.8%
Neutral0.5%
Negative2.7%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Venturi

Subscriptions2
  • Premium (1 Month)14 Days trial$11.991 Month
  • Premium (1 Year)14 Days trial$99.991 Year
2 purchases

Wavemaps

Subscriptions2
  • Wavemaps Pro7 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • Wavemaps Pro7 Days trial$59.991 Year

Questions

Is Venturi free?
Venturi is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Wavemaps free?
Wavemaps is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Venturi or Wavemaps?
Venturi is rated higher. Venturi averages 5.0 out of 5 from 61 ratings, while Wavemaps averages 4.9 from 237 ratings.
Do Venturi or Wavemaps have ads?
Neither Venturi nor Wavemaps shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Venturi or Wavemaps?
Venturi ships an update every 9 days, and Wavemaps every 3 months. Most recently, Venturi was updated on October 30, 2026 and Wavemaps on October 30, 2026.

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