Compass School Manager vs SharkSmart WA
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Compass School Manager
This app provides a centralized platform for school communities to access important information. It delivers school news, event updates, and assignment details, making it a convenient tool for staff, students, and parents.
- School news updates
- Event notifications
- Assignment tracking
- Access for staff, students, and parents
- Centralized school information
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Compass School Manager provides access to school news, events, upcoming assignments and more. This application is designed for staff, students and parents.
SharkSmart WA
Access Western Australia's official shark activity information and beach safety features. Get real-time alerts, view shark monitoring locations, and report sightings to help plan your beach trips safely.
- Shark activity alerts and warnings
- Map of shark monitoring receivers
- Patrolled beach locations
- Weather forecasts
- Report shark sightings
- Customizable location notifications
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SharkSmart WA is Western Australia’s official source of shark activity information. It also includes beach safety features such as Surf Life Saving WA patrolled beaches and weather forecast, to help you plan your trip to the beach. The app will help you switch on your Sea Sense by providing near real-time information of shark activity including current alerts and warnings. Select your favourite coastal locations and use notifications to receive relevant updates as they happen. SharkSmart WA Features: Map Filter and display shark activity and beach safety features including the locations of shark monitoring receivers, beach enclosures, and Beach Emergency Numbers (BEN) signage. Explore and save your favourite coastal locations to stay up to date of recent shark activity. Updates Stay informed of shark activity, including current alerts and warnings. Information is prioritised into ‘Nearby’, ‘Your Favourites’ and ‘Other Locations’, giving you the most relevant information first. Report Using location services, the app can provide you with information about your current coastal location. Use the details provided and the quick call link to report shark sightings or whale carcasses (which are known to attract sharks) to Water Police as soon as possible. Information within the SharkSmart WA app is designed to help you make an informed decision about your water use and take personal responsibility for your safety. You can also follow our Sea Sense tips at https://www.sharksmart.com.au/staying-safe/ and discover more about our shark mitigation strategies by visiting https://www.sharksmart.com.au/
Screenshots
Verdict
Compass School Manager and SharkSmart WA both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 68% of SharkSmart WA's written reviews are positive against 37% of Compass School Manager's. Compass School Manager's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 4 months) and device support (4 vs 2). 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Compass School Manager against 4.7 for SharkSmart WA. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 162 and 112 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 37% of Compass School Manager's written reviews are positive against 68% of SharkSmart WA's.
Compass School Manager ships an update every 3 weeks, SharkSmart WA every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Compass School Manager | SharkSmart WA |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (162 ratings) — better | 4.7 (112 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 36.8% of reviews | 68.1% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 162 — better | 112 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 140 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Compass Operations Pty Ltd | Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development |
Customer experience
Compass School Manager
SharkSmart WA
User reviews
Compass School Manager
From 162 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to navigate
- 👍 Convenient for school management
- 🚀 Helpful for students and parents
- 🚀 Reliable and efficient
- 👍 Great app for school information
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔑 Login issues and session expiration
- 🤔 Confusing and cluttered UI
- 🤖 Compatibility issues on Mac devices
- 🙄 Constant need to update the app
SharkSmart WA
From 112 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Provides awareness and information
- 👍 Awesome and improving app
- 👍 Makes users feel safer
- 👍 Useful for spear fishing and diving
- 👍 Keeps users updated and safe
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frustrating long-term sightings
- 🐛 Updates in random date order
- 🐛 Cannot select town on iPhone
- 🐛 Alerts not listed in date order
- 🐛 More info required on tagged sharks
Bugs and requests
Compass School Manager
Reported bugs
5 issues- Unable to log in or search for school
- Notifications not working as expected
- Learning tasks page layout issues
- Landscape mode not functioning properly
- Inconsistent behavior across devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add dark mode option
- Improve navigation and organization
- Allow students to remove submissions
- Show class rosters within each class
- Provide more customization options
SharkSmart WA
Reported bugs
6 issues- Cannot select a town or tap on map on iPhone
- App crashes when opening
- App hasn't updated in over a week
- Notifications delayed for incidents
- App doesn't update
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Map/location directions are incorrect
Requested features
10 requests- Add shark ID, tagging date, and size
- Include approximate age, weight, type, size, tagging location/date, and last scanned location/frequency for tagged sharks
- Expand coverage to all of Australia
- Show length and gender of tagged sharks
- Provide more information on tagged sharks (when, where, size when tagged)
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Share alerts via text message or website link
- Include information on WA government approved shark deterrent devices and rebates
- Allow sorting of sightings by date
- Add shark number to alerts
- Improve map/location directions
In-app purchases
Compass School Manager
No in-app purchases
SharkSmart WA
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Compass School Manager free?
Is SharkSmart WA free?
Which has better reviews, Compass School Manager or SharkSmart WA?
Do Compass School Manager or SharkSmart WA have ads?
Which is updated more often, Compass School Manager or SharkSmart WA?
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