Comparison

SailSim vs Sail Sim

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

Head to head
About

SailSim

Learn and experience sailing with a realistic physics-based simulator. Explore the seas, challenge yourself with exams and adventures, and play with others in multiplayer sessions. Features detailed sailing mechanics and marine terminology.

Highlights
  • Realistic physics simulation
  • Multi-player sessions
  • Exams and challenges
  • Learn sailing terminology
  • Multiple sailing vessels
  • Keyboard and controller support
Features
Read full description

As a Live-Aboard I wanted to create something anyone could use for learning, as well as for those rainy days when going out to sea is difficult but you still want to sail. The sailing simulator was created to provide sailing knowledge in a fun and intuitive way. The main goal is to have fun and learn something along the way. Hopefully that goal is being achieved with every update i make to the simulator. * Play with others in a Multi-Player session * Collect Stats and share them with others * Test your self through Exams * Try out different sailing vessels * Learn different parts of a sailboat * Learn sailing through simple yet instructive courses * Check out marine terminology and sailing equipment * Explore Adventures and Solve Challenges * Use Keyboard or Game Controller Currently available vessels are * Laser - Olympic * Catalina 22 - Classic (Fin Keel) * Sabre Spirit 37 - (Fin Keel) Current Sailing Features * Keel Control * Keel vs Vessel velocity & mass effect * Boom Direction * Boom Jibe & Tack forces * Boom Vang Control * Main Sail Folding & Unfolding * Jib Folding & Unfolding * Jib Sheet tension & Winch Control * Spinnaker Control * Sail Reefing * Rudder vs Velocity control * Rudder & Turning circle based on vessel mass * Rudder reverse control * Engine Fuel Capacity and Refueling Systems * Outboard engine control * Outboard engine Prop Walk effect * Sail Drive Prop Walk effect * Dynamic Wind * Level Interaction * Drift effect vs Sail direction * Vessel Heel & Potential Capsize effects * Jib and Main Sail "Rudder Pull" when used separately * Wind dynamics based on vessel velocity and direction * Much more... SailSim applies actual physics to simulate the behavior of a sailing vessel. This means you can actually capsize or sink a vessel if you are not careful. In some cases the sailing simulator can even reproduce unpredictable results based on your actions, selected parameters and conditions. The visuals are meant not to be too serious where it doesn't matter as much (Environment in specific) but playful and fun. I spend a great deal of time on the physics of the simulator where a vessel can receive up to 30 or more forces dynamically at the same time, so the vessels are not just bumbling around but are actually getting the forces you would get in real life (mostly since nothing is perfect). Although by no means this should be considered as an exact replication of the actual sailing process, it does provide things you shall encounter when you step on any boat. If learning is not your thing, it is very addictive to just play with a sailboat and physics applied to it when the wind is howling outside and you have nothing better to do. Some controls and reactions of the sailing vessels in this simulator have been set intentionally in an awkward way and not as a typical Sailing Game would do it. This is done to try and replicate what you shall encounter when controlling a sailboat by yourself. I am having a blast developing this as an ongoing project. Spend lots of sleepless nights just because the specific environment or function is just too fun to stop making. Hopefully others will appreciate the work that is made by just one man on a small boat at sea :) * Make sure you update to the latest available version as i fix bugs and release fixes and new functions as i go. Please note that i designed the simulator with good graphics and physics in mind. Since i do not have the resources to check the simulator on older devices, if your device is older than 2 - 3 years, the simulator might not work properly. Unsupported older devices may manifest faults as broken texturing or in general the look of the simulator will not be as in the description screenshots. * If you find faults (bugs) not related to graphics but based on general behavior, please don't hesitate to mention it by sending me an E-mail and i should have it fixed in no time. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Sail Sim

Features
Read full description

You wake on the beach of a small island with a 36-foot sloop at anchor offshore. The island is real. It is somewhere on Earth. Nothing aboard tells you where. SAIL is a single-handed ocean passage played in real time. One second in the game is one second in the world. Set a course, choose your canvas, put the phone down, and return when the weather, the boat, or the sky needs you. NAVIGATE BY THE REAL SKY There is no chart plotter and no satellite fix. Measure the sun, moon, Polaris, and navigational stars with a sextant. Guard the chronometer. Check the compass. Carry your position forward by dead reckoning, knowing that unseen current and instrument error are quietly pulling it away from the truth. SAIL A PHYSICAL BOAT Trim six sail plans to a changing wind. The boat heels from the force on the canvas, makes leeway, drifts with ocean currents, and suffers when you carry too much sail. The live polar diagram shows where she can go and how fast. A sailing coach explains what an experienced hand would notice—and why it matters. CROSS A LIVING OCEAN Weather grows from a simulated pressure field instead of a list of scripted conditions. Trade winds, westerlies, doldrums, squalls, swell, haze, and falling pressure all belong to the same world. The coast you raise over the horizon is drawn from the same real-Earth data the hull can strike. SURVIVE THE PASSAGE Water is finite. Food runs down. Rest, health, fresh provisions, fishing gear, medicine, sailcloth, repair stores, hull condition, and the bilge all matter. Rain can save you. A gale can dismast you. An island can feed you—if you find it. LEARN AS YOU GO No sailing knowledge is assumed. The in-game handbook uses animated diagrams to explain sail forces, points of sail, reefing, weather, latitude, longitude, dead reckoning, wayfinding, and survival. The coach teaches in the moment, then gets out of the way. MAKE THE VOYAGE YOURS Begin as a castaway on one of thousands of real islands, or take on a historic passage: a trade-wind Atlantic crossing, Bligh's open-boat journey, the James Caird in the Southern Ocean, or Slocum's long Pacific leg. Your log records the course, weather, miles, sights, decisions, and consequences hour by hour, then turns the voyage into a chart worth keeping. The ocean will keep moving when you close the app. Sail when a decision matters.

Screenshots

SailSim4 screens
Sail Sim4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Sail Sim at none against SailSim's 12. Sail Sim also leads on ads (none vs shown). SailSim's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. SailSim sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Sail Sim asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
SailSim versus Sail Sim: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSailSimSail Sim
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.4 (22 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews35.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings22 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 10 days
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size417 MB18 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDimitris Rouslan ZavorotnitsienkoYang Liu

In-app purchases

12 purchases

SailSim

Subscriptions1
  • SailSim Subscription$0.991 Month
One-time11
  • No Ads Today$0.29
  • SailSim 200xp$0.29
  • Extended Test Purchase$0.29
Show 8 more
  • Hints$0.29
  • Show Wind$0.29
  • Show Map$0.29
  • Boost Sails$0.29
  • Boost Engine Purchase$0.29
  • Flags$0.29
  • God Mode$1.99
  • SailSim Unlock$3.99
None

Sail Sim

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SailSim free?
SailSim is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Sail Sim free?
Sail Sim is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do SailSim or Sail Sim have ads?
SailSim shows ads; Sail Sim does not.
Which is updated more often, SailSim or Sail Sim?
SailSim ships an update every 10 days, and Sail Sim every 10 days. Most recently, SailSim was updated on October 7, 2026 and Sail Sim on October 15, 2026.

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