Hull Speed vs Speedometer Ultra
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Hull Speed
This app provides sailors with a clear and accurate GPS speedometer displaying speed in knots. It features a live trend graph to help optimize sail trim and can show your theoretical hull speed for easy comparison. It is designed for privacy with no ads or tracking.
- Accurate GPS speed in knots
- Live speed trend graph
- Theoretical hull speed display
- Apple Watch app with Keep Awake mode
- Completely private, no tracking or ads
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Hull Speed is a simple speedometer for sailors. It shows your speed over the water in knots — big, clear, and accurate — on your iPhone and Apple Watch, with nothing else to clutter the display. Built for trimming sails: make a small adjustment, then watch the live trend graph to see if the speed changed. FEATURES • Accurate GPS speed in knots, updated every second, using the same Doppler method as dedicated marine instruments — no paddlewheel to foul or calibrate. • A live speed graph on a steady, fixed scale, so a small gain from a trim change is easy to spot. • Enter your boat's waterline length and Hull Speed draws your theoretical hull speed right on the graph — see at a glance how close you are to it. • Apple Watch app with a Keep Awake mode that holds the screen on while you sail. • Completely private — your location is used only to compute speed on your device, and is never stored, sent, or shared. No accounts, no ads, no tracking.
Speedometer Ultra
Track and record your speed with this GPS-enabled tool. It offers multiple movement modes, speed limit alerts, and detailed trip logging with route data export. Features a HUD mode for at-a-glance viewing and Lock Screen integration.
- GPS speed tracking
- Multiple movement modes
- Speed limit alerts
- Detailed trip logging
- HUD mode
- Lock Screen & Dynamic Island integration
- CSV trip data export
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Measure, record and track your speed wherever you’re moving with Speedometer Ultra, the all-in-one GPS speedometer, HUD and trip logger for iPhone. From a morning ride to a highway drive, a hike to a harbor crossing, Speedometer Ultra makes it easy to see your speed, stay aware of the limit and keep a detailed record of every journey. Precision Speed, Wherever You Go: Read your speed straight from your iPhone’s GPS, without installing or calibrating a wheel sensor. Choose from nine modes – walking, running, cycling, driving, motorcycle, truck, train, boat and plane – each with a gauge scaled to the speeds you expect. Display speed in mph, km/h or knots. When the signal isn’t good enough to trust, Speedometer Ultra shows – rather than a guess. Stay Under the Limit: Set a speed limit and see it clearly on the gauge. Cross it and the app warns you with a chime and a tap, helping you stay informed without taking your attention off the road. Turn the sound off if you prefer a visual warning, and keep recently used limits one tap away as the road changes. Record the Whole Journey: Start recording to save your route, distance, average moving speed, maximum speed, moving time, elevation, average temperature and a graph of your speed throughout the trip. Any time without reliable location data is shown as a signal gap, so you can judge how completely the journey was measured. Rename trips, add notes and export the underlying route data as CSV. Trips stay on your device and sync privately through your own iCloud account. Keep the Journey in View: Follow your position on a live map while keeping your speed front and center. Switch between north-up and heading-up, pan freely, or use the compass, altitude, temperature and time until sunset for more context. While recording, time, distance and average speed remain on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island, with a Stop button that works without reopening the app. Use HUD at Night: Switch to a large, high-contrast heads-up display for a speed reading you can take in at a glance. Mirror it when you want the reflection in the windshield to read the right way around, or leave it as it is and keep your iPhone on the dash. The screen stays awake while the app is open. Download now and use the GPS speedometer, nine movement modes, live map, compass, speed limits and trip recording for free. Choose PRO to unlock HUD mode, live and recorded speed graphs, and CSV trip exports. GPS accuracy and availability depend on your device, surroundings and signal conditions. Speedometer Ultra is not a substitute for a vehicle’s certified instruments or safe driving practices. Do not interact with the app while driving. Terms of Use: https://speedometerultra.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://speedometerultra.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Speedometer Ultra at 5.0 against Hull Speed's 3.7. Speedometer Ultra also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 5 weeks). Hull Speed's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (100% vs 75%). On price, in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Speedometer Ultra holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 1 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 100% of Hull Speed's written reviews are positive against 75% of Speedometer Ultra's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Hull Speed ships an update every 5 weeks, Speedometer Ultra weekly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Hull Speed | Speedometer Ultra |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (3 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 75.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, Apple Watch — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 — better | 26.2 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1 MB | 44 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Peter Zink | Ultrafine |
Customer experience
Hull Speed
Speedometer Ultra
In-app purchases
Hull Speed
No in-app purchases
Speedometer Ultra
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Hull Speed free?
Is Speedometer Ultra free?
Which has better reviews, Hull Speed or Speedometer Ultra?
Do Hull Speed or Speedometer Ultra have ads?
Which is updated more often, Hull Speed or Speedometer Ultra?
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