Comparison

Thalos vs Diving Buddy

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

Head to head
About

Thalos

This comprehensive dive app offers a robust dive logbook, detailed dive site information with emergency plans, and multiple dive calculators. It includes features for instructors to manage students and courses, and a social feed for divers to connect and share experiences. The app works fully offline, ensuring critical data is always accessible.

Highlights
  • Offline dive logbook
  • Dive site database with emergency plans
  • 9 essential dive calculators
  • Instructor module for course management
  • Social feed and community features
  • Emergency mode for critical access
Features
Read full description

Thalos is the all-in-one dive app built for serious divers and instructors. Whether you're planning a deep technical dive or running an open water course, Thalos has everything you need — and it works fully offline when it matters most. DIVE LOGBOOK Log every dive with depth, time, gas, conditions, marine life sightings, buddy signatures, and photos. Full version history keeps your records safe. Organize dives into trips and track your personal certifications. DIVE SITES & EMERGENCY PLANS Access 510+ dive sites with detailed emergency action plans, nearest hyperbaric chambers, and emergency contacts — all stored locally so they're available even without signal. 9 DIVE CALCULATORS • Bühlmann ZHL-16C decompression planner with gradient factors • Gas planner and gas blending • SAC rate, turn pressure, weight calculator • Dive tables, unit converter, altitude diving EMERGENCY MODE One tap gets you to emergency procedures and critical contacts. Works 100% offline. INSTRUCTOR MODULE Manage students, run courses with 26 built-in templates, track skill sign-offs, generate paperwork (liability waivers, medical forms, training dives), and issue certifications. SOCIAL FEED & TANK TAPS Share your dives, follow other divers, and give Tank Taps — the diver's way of saying nice dive. COMMUNITY Discover and post dive classes, trips, and dive centers. Instructors can manage enrollments directly in the app. SUBSCRIPTION Thalos requires a subscription after a 1-month free trial. $2.99/month or $19.99/year. Terms of Use: https://blackflagdivecenter.github.io/Thalos/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://blackflagdivecenter.github.io/Thalos/privacy.html

About

Diving Buddy

Features
Read full description

Diving Buddy is a dive log, trip planner, and calculator suite for recreational and technical divers. Plan every dive. Dive the plan. Log the story. DIVE TRIPS & SITES • Build a trip, drop in dive sites by name or coords, capture the briefing, plan each dive, log it later. • Photo-backed site library — your home quarry through your bucket list. • Emergency contacts and trip notes travel with you offline. PLAN A DIVE THE WAY YOU'D BRIEF IT • Target depth, gas mix, planned bottom time, buddy, role. • Live MOD and NDL calculations as you tune the plan. • Suggestions drawn from your historical logs at the same site. LOG WITH THE FIELDS THAT MATTER • Max depth, bottom time, water temp, visibility, deco stops. • Computed SAC from your cylinder pressures — feeds back into future plans. • Gas mix (air, nitrox, or trimix), weight, buoyancy, equipment notes. • Free-form comments for the moments worth remembering. THE CALCULATOR SUITE Built around the math you actually use at the boat: • Max Operating Depth (MOD) — every mix, every PPO2 ceiling. • No-Decompression Limit (NDL) — Bühlmann ZH-L16C, including repetitive dives. • Surface Air Consumption (SAC) — derive it from any logged dive. • Run Time / Air Balance — does your gas last the planned profile? • Nitrox blending — continuous-blend planner. • Ascent gas required, oxygen toxicity, weight + cylinder weight change. • Coordinate converter. ALWAYS FREE • Reference material: Beaufort scale, deco tables, hand signals — bundled, offline, never gated. • Data export: every trip, dive, site, and photo as a JSON archive plus a PDF logbook. Export at any time. • Read-only access to everything you've already logged — forever, with or without a subscription. OPTIONAL SUBSCRIPTION Diving Buddy offers an optional auto-renewing annual subscription at $24.99/year with a 7-day free trial, or a one-time lifetime purchase at $59.99. Subscription auto-renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Manage your subscription in your App Store account settings. Your dive logs and data remain accessible on your device whether you subscribe or not. Terms of Use (EULA): https://divingbuddyapp.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://divingbuddyapp.com/privacy

Screenshots

Thalos4 screens
Diving Buddy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Thalos at 15.1 against Diving Buddy's 18.0. 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. Thalos sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Diving Buddy sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly daily. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 8 level
Thalos versus Diving Buddy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThalosDiving Buddy
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyDailyDaily
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscription—
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.1 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size41 MB12 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperJOHN WALLIS YOUNGBLOODHarry Richardson

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Thalos

Subscriptions2
  • Thalos1 Month trial$2.991 Month
  • Thalos1 Month trial$19.991 Year
2 purchases

Diving Buddy

Subscriptions1
  • Diving Buddy$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Diving Buddy$59.99

Questions

Is Thalos free?
Thalos is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Diving Buddy free?
Diving Buddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Thalos or Diving Buddy have ads?
Neither Thalos nor Diving Buddy shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Thalos or Diving Buddy?
Thalos ships an update daily, and Diving Buddy daily. Most recently, Thalos was updated on October 13, 2026 and Diving Buddy on October 24, 2026.

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