Navionics® Boating vs ActiveCaptain®
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Navionics® Boating
Access detailed nautical charts and advanced boating features offline on your mobile device. Plan trips with dock-to-dock guidance, check weather and tides, and connect with a community of boaters. Ideal for cruising, fishing, sailing, and diving.
- Offline nautical charts
- HD bathymetry maps
- Dock-to-dock route planning
- Weather and tide forecasts
- Community edits and recommendations
- Track recording and sharing
Read full descriptionHide full description
Get up-to-date, detailed charts you can use offline plus a boatload of features on your mobile device, so they’re on hand wherever you go. The Boating app is a must-have for cruising, fishing, sailing, diving and all your activities on the water. Try it free for a limited time. To continue using charts and advanced features, you can purchase a yearly auto-renewable subscription*. A COMPLETE PACKAGE • INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED NAVIONICS® CHARTS: Use them offline along with multiple overlays, so you can be more aware of what’s above and below the water. - NAUTICAL CHART: Use this premier marine reference to study port plans, anchorages and safety depth contours, locate navaids, marine services and more. - SONARCHART™ HD BATHYMETRY MAPS: Extraordinary 1’ (0.5 meter) HD bottom contour detail is the ideal tool for locating new fishing areas. - U.S. GOVERNMENT CHARTS (NOAA): These are available within the following coverages: U.S. and Canada, Mexico, Caribbean to Brazil. - OVERLAYS: The relief shading overlay allows you to have a better understanding of bottom topography for improved fishing and diving. Sonar imagery reveals bottom hardness clearly and in vivid color on select lakes. Want more? Display satellite imagery on land and water. - MAP OPTIONS: Change chart-overlay combinations to customize chart views, activate night mode, highlight shallow areas, target multiple fishing ranges and more. - DAILY UPDATES: Benefit of thousands of daily updates worldwide. • TOOLS FOR PLANNING AND ENJOYING YOUR DAY - AUTO GUIDANCE+TM TECHNOLOGY**: Easily plan your trip with a suggested dock-to-dock path based on chart data and navigation aids. Get ETA, distance to arrival, heading to waypoint, fuel consumption and more. - WEATHER AND TIDES: Knowing conditions before heading out is crucial. Access real-time weather data, daily and hourly forecasts as well as wind, weather buoys, tides and currents. - MARKERS, TRACKS, DISTANCE: Place a marker on a good anchorage spot or where you reeled in a big fish. Record your track, take photos and videos within the app, and look back at your day anytime. Easily check distance among two points. • AN ACTIVE AND HELPFUL COMMUNITY - COMMUNITY EDITS and the ACTIVECAPTAIN® COMMUNITY: Obtain and contribute useful local knowledge along with thousands of fellow boaters, such as points of interest, navigation aids and valuable recommendations from people with firsthand experience of the local environment. - CONNECTIONS: Stay in touch with your friends and fellow boaters by sharing your live location, tracks, routes and markers to easily meet on the water or let them check out your adventures. - GPX IMPORT/EXPORT: Share your saved data outside the app or transfer it to your chartplotter. - SHARE MAP OBJECTS: Share a marina, repair shop or any other location outside the app. • EXTERNAL DEVICE-FRIENDLY FOR MORE FEATURES - PLOTTER SYNC: If you own a compatible chartplotter, sync it with the app to transfer routes and markers, activate, update or renew your Navionics chartplotter card subscription. - SONARCHART LIVE MAPPING FEATURE***: Connect with a compatible sonar/plotter, and create your own maps in real time while navigating. - AIS: Connect to a compatible AIS receiver with Wi-Fi® connectivity to see nearby marine traffic. Set a safe range, and receive visual and aural alerts to signal potential collisions. NOTES: *You can manage your subscription anytime, and you can turn auto-renewal off. **Auto Guidance+ is for planning purposes only and does not replace safe navigation operations ***Free features A tablet device with Wi-Fi connectivity locates your approximate position if it is connected to Wi-Fi. A tablet Wi-Fi + 3G model operates similarly to a phone device with GPS. Wi-Fi is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. iOS is a trademark licensed to Apple, Inc.
ActiveCaptain®
This app connects your mobile device to compatible Garmin chartplotters, enabling wireless chart and map transfers, software updates, and route planning. It also provides access to a community of boaters for reviews and information on marinas and points of interest.
- Wireless chart and map transfer
- Route and waypoint planning
- ActiveCaptain Community for POI reviews
- Chartplotter control via Helm feature
- Easy software updates
- OnDeck system monitoring
- Garmin Quickdraw Community map sharing
Read full descriptionHide full description
The free ActiveCaptain app creates a powerful connection between your compatible mobile device and Garmin chartplotter, charts, maps and the boating community. Whether you use your Garmin products for cruising, fishing, sailing or diving, this all-in-one app will help you enjoy your time on the water. Just pair the app with your compatible chartplotter to wirelessly transfer and access charts and maps, software updates, routes, waypoints and helpful feedback from the ActiveCaptain Community. And, with the purchase of the OnDeck™ hub(1), you can track and monitor your boat from virtually anywhere. Please note that this app is intended for Garmin chartplotter owners and is not recommended for use as a stand-alone navigational app. FEATURES AVAILABLE: - ONECHART™: > New Garmin Navionics+™ and premium Garmin Navionics Vision+™ cartography, featuring a Navionics® style appearance, advanced Auto Guidance+™ technology(2) and a one-year subscription to daily updates, is available now for North America and Europe, and coming soon to the rest of the world. Purchase our newest-generation charts or legacy BlueChart® g3 charts from your mobile device, and upload them to registered Garmin chartplotters on your vessel. You will get exceptional coverage, clarity and detail with charts that feature integrated Garmin and Navionics data and much more. Plus, the NOAA raster cartography(3) and premium features can be downloaded for free through the ActiveCaptain app. Visit Garmin.com/marinemaps. - PLAN A TRIP: Plan your trip, or e-scout a new fishing spot before you’re on the water. Then, transfer your data to your chartplotter where you can view your routes and waypoints. - USER DATA SYNC: Automatically back up and sync your data between your chartplotter and the ActiveCaptain app. - ACTIVECAPTAIN COMMUNITY: Join a community of boaters to get up-to-date feedback on marinas, boat ramps and other points of interest (POI). Check ratings, read reviews, and view pictures of POIs to make informed decisions on the water. Contribute your own POI, reviews and pictures from your compatible mobile device. - CONTROL YOUR CHARTPLOTTER: Using the built-in Helm™ feature, the ActiveCaptain app lets you view and control your compatible(4) chartplotter from your smartphone or tablet, even when someone else is at the helm(5). - EASY SOFTWARE UPDATES: Receive notifications about software updates from the app, and update your chartplotter wirelessly. - ONDECK HUB: Use the ActiveCaptain app to track, monitor and control any number of switches with the OnDeck system(1) from nearly anywhere. Door open? Bilge running? Peace of mind comes in the form of text alerts and updates. - GARMIN QUICKDRAWTM COMMUNITY: Download the latest 1’ HD contour maps shared by your fellow boaters, and sync with your chartplotter. You can also upload your own Quickdraw Contours map data. - SMART NOTIFICATIONS: Connect the app to your chartplotter, and turn on smart notifications(4) to see calls, text messages and more on the chartplotter display while your phone is somewhere safe and dry. FOOTNOTES 1)OnDeck hub sold separately and requires an active subscription plan 2)Auto Guidance+ is for planning purposes only and does not replace safe navigation operations 3)NOAA raster cartography cannot be viewed on echoMAP™ CHIRP and ECHOMAP™ Plus combos but can be viewed on mobile devices via the ActiveCaptain mobile app 4)Helm feature is not compatible with ECHOMAP series chartplotters 5)Check device compatibility on the ActiveCaptain app web page; visit https://www.garmin.com/c/marine/marine-apps/ End User License Agreement: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/legal/marine-mobile-eula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: ActiveCaptain® at 4.0 against Navionics® Boating's 2.9. ActiveCaptain® also leads on review sentiment (57% vs 15%). Navionics® Boating's advantage is chart position (#5 vs #27). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Navionics® Boating sells 15 in-app purchases, starting at $49.99 per year and ActiveCaptain® sells 18 in-app purchases, starting at $74.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
ActiveCaptain® holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 2.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.3K and 5K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 15% of Navionics® Boating's written reviews are positive against 57% of ActiveCaptain®'s.
Navionics® Boating ships an update every 6 weeks, ActiveCaptain® every 3 months. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Navionics® Boating | ActiveCaptain® |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.9 (2.3K ratings) | 4.0 (5K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 14.9% of reviews | 56.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2.3K | 5K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #5 — better | #27 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 122 MB | 195 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Garmin | Garmin |
Customer experience
Navionics® Boating
ActiveCaptain®
User reviews
Navionics® Boating
From 2.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great navigation app
- 🗺️ Detailed charts and maps
- ⚓ Useful for boating and sailing
- 💰 Good value for money
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔒 Login issues and unreliable offline access
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 🗺️ Inaccurate or outdated map data
ActiveCaptain®
From 5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Seamless integration with Garmin devices
- 💡 Useful for planning trips and managing waypoints
- 🚀 Convenient for updating software and charts
- 👍 Great app for Garmin users
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and connection issues
- 🔍 Limited chart and mapping functionality compared to competitors
- 🤔 Difficult to transfer data between devices
- 🤔 Confusing and not very intuitive user interface
- 💰 Expensive for the features provided
Bugs and requests
Navionics® Boating
Reported bugs
3 issues- GPS signal loss and position tracking issues
- Inability to download or access previously purchased maps
- Constant requirement to log in, even offline
Requested features
4 requests- Add anchor alarm feature
- Improve route planning and waypoint functionality
- Provide better support for multiple devices
- Enhance user interface and customization options
ActiveCaptain®
Reported bugs
4 issues- Charts and maps not loading properly
- Waypoints and routes not syncing correctly
- Constant prompts to purchase additional charts
- Compatibility issues with older Garmin devices
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to duplicate and edit existing routes
- Sync user data across multiple devices
- Improved chart detail and coverage
- Animated tides and currents
- Better integration with other navigation apps
In-app purchases
Navionics® Boating
- Norway$49.991 Year
- Baltic Sea3 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Australia & New Zealand7 Days trial$49.991 Year
Show 12 moreShow fewer
- Africa & Middle East7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Mexico, Caribbean to Brazil7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Indian Ocean and South China7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Pacific Islands7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- US & Canada7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- UK, Ireland & Holland7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Chile, Argentina&Easter Island$49.991 Year
- China Sea & Japan$49.991 Year
- Central and West Europe7 Days trial$59.991 Year
- Mediterranean & Black Sea7 Days trial$59.991 Year
- Adriatic & Ionian Seas7 Days trial$69.991 Year
- Scandinavia S. & Germany N.$99.991 Year
ActiveCaptain®
- NSUS007R-U.S. East$74.991 Year
- NSUS006R-U.S. South$74.991 Year
- g4 U.S. Lakes & Rivers Built-i$99.991 Year
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- NSUS001L-U.S. & Canada$99.991 Year
- g4 Vision U.S. South$129.991 Year
- g4 Vision U.S. East$129.991 Year
- GN+ US & Coast Canada Built-In$149.991 Year
- U.S. LakeVü Detail Map$59.99
- US+Great Lakes Detail Map$99.99
- BlueChart g3+LakeVu g3 Built-I$99.99
Show 8 moreShow fewer
- LUS100F - Download$149.99
- GN+ U.S. South$149.99
- GN+ U.S. East$149.99
- VUS010R - Download$174.99
- GN+ U.S. & Canada$199.99
- HXUS604X - Download$219.99
- GNV+ U.S. East$249.99
- GNV+ U.S. South$249.99
Questions
Is Navionics® Boating free?
Is ActiveCaptain® free?
Which has better reviews, Navionics® Boating or ActiveCaptain®?
Do Navionics® Boating or ActiveCaptain® have ads?
Which is updated more often, Navionics® Boating or ActiveCaptain®?
Which is more popular, Navionics® Boating or ActiveCaptain®?
Other comparisons















