Comparison

nomap vs OceanPulse

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

Head to head
About

nomap

Navigate your surroundings using only directional arrows and haptic feedback. This app guides you to your destination without requiring you to constantly look at your screen, allowing you to experience your journey more fully. It also features a unique compass mode activated by shaking your phone.

Highlights
  • Arrow-based navigation
  • Vibration guidance
  • Hands-free walking
  • Automatic rerouting
  • Shake-activated compass
  • Customizable routes
Read full description

Look up and walk forward. nomap is a navigation app that gets you to your destination using only arrows and vibrations. Our unique vibration system lets you reach your destination without constantly looking at your phone. Start walking with the guidance of vibrations. Are you spending your travels just looking at your phone? The journey to your destination can be a memorable part of your trip. While you're looking down at your map, you might miss a charming bakery right in front of you. With nomap, you don't need to keep staring at a boring map to get where you're going. As long as you're on the right path, your phone will keep the rhythm. Hold your phone straight and keep moving. When the rhythm stops, it's a sign to turn. Just spin around a bit, and you'll quickly find the right direction. If you take a wrong turn, don't worry. The app will automatically find a new route for you. - Secret Feature Once the navigation starts, try shaking your phone! It will turn into a compass that continuously points to your destination. This feature is handy when you want to know the direction to your destination or choose your own route. Enjoy your adventure while choosing the path you like. (You can revert back by shaking again.) nomap is a brand new app, released just in December 2023. We're excited to make it even more amazing! - When the Compass Points in the Wrong Direction... Sometimes the phone's compass may point in the wrong direction. If that happens, rotate your phone in a figure-eight a few times. It should recalibrate.

About

OceanPulse

This marine navigation app transforms your device into a chartplotter. Access NOAA nautical charts, plan routes, track voyages, and view tides, currents, and weather, even offline.

Highlights
  • NOAA nautical charts
  • Offline chart downloads
  • Route planning and navigation
  • Tide and current predictions
  • Marine weather forecasts
  • Voyage track recording
  • Marina and anchorage details
Features
Read full description

OceanPulse turns your iPhone and iPad into a full marine chartplotter. Navigate with real NOAA nautical charts, plan routes, record your voyages, and check tides, currents, and marine weather — even miles offshore with no cell signal. Whether you sail, fish, cruise, or paddle, OceanPulse puts everything you need on the water in one beautifully simple app. REAL NAUTICAL CHARTS • Detailed NOAA vector charts with buoys, beacons, lights, wrecks, landmarks, and depth soundings • Tap anything on the chart for a plain-English description of every nautical object under your finger • Depth shading plus a safety-depth layer that hatches water shallower than your chosen depth in red • Bridge clearance labels, light sectors, and depths in feet, meters, or fathoms • Light, dark, and auto themes with road or satellite land overlays OFFLINE CHARTS • Download any region — frame it on the chart and see the exact size before you commit • Downloads continue in the background and resume automatically if interrupted • Update badges tell you when newer charts are available • Only-offline mode shows exactly where you have coverage — no surprises offshore ROUTE PLANNING & NAVIGATION • Tap to drop waypoints, drag to fine-tune — legs redraw live and everything autosaves • Total distance, per-leg distance and bearing, ETA, and estimated fuel burn from your boat's cruise speed • Navigate a route with live distance, bearing, and ETA to the next waypoint — reverse direction anytime TIDES & CURRENTS • Worldwide tide and current predictions computed on your device — no internet required • Interactive tide graphs with highs, lows, slack water, and sun and moon times • Station icons on the chart show rising or falling conditions at a glance, up to 100 years ahead MARINE WEATHER • Wind speed, direction, and gusts, swell height, period, and direction, temperature, clouds, and precipitation • Detailed 3-hourly forecast grid plus a week-ahead outlook for any point you tap on the chart TRACK RECORDING • Record your voyage with live speed, distance, and time — pause and resume anytime • Live Activity keeps your stats on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island • Review speed graphs and stats for every saved track, then share as a photo or GPX file MARINAS & ANCHORAGES • Marina and anchorage details powered by Waterway Guides: fuel, dockside depth, VHF channel, holding, and wind protection • The Nearby view surfaces marinas, anchorages, and tide stations within 10 nautical miles of your boat WAYPOINTS, GPX & SYNC • Drop custom markers with names, notes, colors, and icons — or enter exact coordinates in DD, DDM, or DMS • Import and export GPX waypoints, routes, and tracks to and from any other app or chartplotter • iCloud sync keeps your waypoints, routes, tracks, and boat profile up to date on all your devices BUILT FOR THE HELM • GPS follow and course-up modes with a projected course line, plus live speed and heading readouts • Caliper tool measures distance and bearing between any two points on the chart • One search for places, marinas, anchorages, tide stations, and your own waypoints, routes, and tracks • Snap a photo of your boat and OceanPulse estimates its specs to set up your vessel profile in seconds Perfect for sailing, fishing, powerboating, coastal cruising, kayaking, and offshore passages — from your home harbor to waters you've never explored. Read the EULA at https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

nomap4 screens
OceanPulse4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: nomap at every 2 days against OceanPulse's every 6 weeks. nomap also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.0). On price, rating, ratings volume 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for nomap against 5.0 for OceanPulse. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

nomap ships an update every 2 days, OceanPulse every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
nomap versus OceanPulse: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameternomapOceanPulse
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size39 MB78 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperYu OhamaOceanPulse LLC

Customer experience

nomap

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

OceanPulse

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

nomap

No in-app purchases

None

OceanPulse

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is nomap free?
nomap is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is OceanPulse free?
OceanPulse is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, nomap or OceanPulse?
nomap and OceanPulse are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 2 and 1 ratings respectively.
Do nomap or OceanPulse have ads?
Neither nomap nor OceanPulse shows ads.
Which is updated more often, nomap or OceanPulse?
nomap ships an update every 2 days, and OceanPulse every 6 weeks. Most recently, nomap was updated on October 21, 2026 and OceanPulse on October 10, 2026.

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