Comparison

Swell Intel vs SurfMap

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

Head to head
About

Swell Intel

Get detailed surf forecasts, real-time conditions, and smart alerts to find the best waves. Plan your surf trips with up to 16-day forecasts and easily scan spot conditions at a glance. Receive notifications when conditions meet your standards, ensuring you never miss a good session.

Highlights
  • Detailed surf forecasts up to 16 days
  • Real-time wave height, swell, and wind data
  • Smart alerts for optimal surf conditions
  • At-a-glance spot condition ratings
  • Detailed forecast charts (swell, wind, tide)
  • Find and save nearby surf spots
Features
Read full description

Swell Intel gives you everything you need to score the best waves — detailed surf forecasts, real-time conditions, and smart alerts that tell you when to go. Check the Conditions - Wave height, swell direction, wind speed, and surf quality ratings for every surf spot across the US and Puerto Rico. Forecasts extend up to 16 days so you can plan trips with confidence. At-a-Glance Conditions- Spot cards show morning, midday, and evening ratings at a glance — quickly scan which spots are firing and when the window is best without tapping into every forecast. Surf Alerts - Set a minimum condition rating on your favorite spots and get notified by push notification or email when conditions meet your standards. Never miss a good session again. Detailed Forecast Charts - Dive into swell period and direction, wind barbs, wave energy, tide charts, and sunrise/sunset — all the data you need in one place. Find Nearby Spots - Discover surf spots near your with real-time conditions and ratings. Save your favorites for quick access. Free to Use, More with Premium - Free: 5-day forecast, 5 nearby spots, 5 favorites, 1 alert - Premium Plus: 16-day forecast, 15 spots, 15 favorites, 10 alerts Terms of service - https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

SurfMap

This app uses AI to provide personalized surf forecasts based on your skill level and preferred spots. It offers an interactive map for viewing conditions and custom alerts to never miss a great session.

Highlights
  • AI-powered personalized forecasts
  • Interactive map with live conditions
  • 7-day surf planning
  • Customizable alerts
  • Tide and crowd level tracking
  • Skill-level adaptation
Features
Read full description

SurfMap rates the surf for your level at more than 5,000 spots around the world. For each spot, it shows you the best hours to go and tells you why. RATED FOR YOUR LEVEL • Tell SurfMap if you're a beginner, an intermediate or an advanced surfer, and every hour of the week gets a rating for you. • Each rating gives its reason in plain words, like "Ideal size for your level" or "Too much wind". • When the tide makes a spot dangerous, a warning sign shows next to its rating. • Rate your sessions and the AI adds a personal score that predicts how much you'll enjoy each hour. It runs on your iPhone and learns only from your own sessions. MAKE EACH SPOT YOURS • Tell SurfMap which tides work at your spot, which ones are dangerous and how big the waves really get there, and the ratings take it into account. • Save your favorite spots. Around 6:30 pm, SurfMap tells you if one of them looks good tomorrow, and it stays quiet when nothing is worth the trip. • Home Screen widgets show the spot you pick, or the closest spot wherever you are. FIND WHERE TO SURF • See which spots around you, or which of your favorites, look good today, tomorrow, this weekend or later in the week. • Hourly graphs show the waves, wind, tide and weather. Drag across the day to check any hour. • The nearby forecast shows seven days for every spot around you. Open the week in landscape, or compare two spots side by side. • Search spots, towns and guides by the name locals use or the one travelers know. WHERE THE FORECAST COMES FROM • Waves, wind and weather come from global wave and weather models, refreshed twice a day for the next seven days. The ratings are SurfMap's own reading of them. • Tides are predicted for each spot from its own tidal constants, the same method behind printed tide tables. 16 SURF GUIDES • The guides cover Ericeira, Peniche, the Algarve, Hossegor, both sides of the Basque Country, Galicia, Asturias, Cornwall, the west coast of Ireland, Fuerteventura, Taghazout, Bali, the Mentawai Islands, Siargao and Sri Lanka. • Each guide says which spot suits your level, the tide that makes it work and the hazards to watch out for. ASK SIRI • "Hey Siri, does it surf today in Huntington Beach with SurfMap?" Siri answers with your rating and the best window, and a tap opens the spot. • With Apple Intelligence, ask SurfMap anything, like "Is tomorrow better than today at Huntington Beach?" Siri questions need iOS 26. APPLE WATCH • Track your session from your wrist, with no phone in the water. The watch counts your waves, and notices missed waves and wipeouts too. • Follow your heart rate, calories and paddle distance live, and keep the GPS track. If your watch runs out of battery, the session isn't lost. • The watch shows conditions and tide for your spots, and its complications can follow the closest spot. YOUR SURF LOG • Every session goes into your log with its conditions and the board you rode, and each month gets its own recap page. • Share a spot's forecast, a session or a whole month as an image. • Your profile keeps your records and a stamp for each new spot and each new country. • Surf workouts go to Apple Health and count toward your rings. SurfMap has no ads. Please note: All features in SurfMap require a subscription. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Swell Intel4 screens
SurfMap4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Swell Intel at freemium against SurfMap's subscription. Swell Intel also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and review sentiment (100% vs 75%). SurfMap's advantage is ratings volume (40 vs 11). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Swell Intel sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and SurfMap sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Swell Intel holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 11 and 40 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Swell Intel's written reviews are positive against 75% of SurfMap's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 6 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Swell Intel versus SurfMap: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSwell IntelSurfMap
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (11 ratings) — better4.5 (40 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better75.0% of reviews
Number of ratings1140 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 6 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size51 MB57 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperSwell Intel LLCGuillaume Bernos

Customer experience

Swell Intel

All ratings11 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

SurfMap

All ratings40 ratings
Positive92.5%
Neutral2.5%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Swell Intel

Subscriptions3
  • Swell Intel Premium Monthly14 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Swell Intel Premium Plus14 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly14 Days trial$24.991 Year
4 purchases

SurfMap

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly Plan$1.997 Days
  • Monthly Plan$6.991 Month
  • Annual Plan14 Days trial$34.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Access$99.00

Questions

Is Swell Intel free?
Swell Intel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SurfMap free?
SurfMap is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Swell Intel or SurfMap?
Swell Intel is rated higher. Swell Intel averages 5.0 out of 5 from 11 ratings, while SurfMap averages 4.5 from 40 ratings.
Do Swell Intel or SurfMap have ads?
Neither Swell Intel nor SurfMap shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Swell Intel or SurfMap?
Swell Intel ships an update every 6 days, and SurfMap every 6 days. Most recently, Swell Intel was updated on October 24, 2026 and SurfMap on October 24, 2026.

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