Comparison

CMonster vs Salt Strong

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

Head to head
About

CMonster

Control your Power-Pole Shallow Water Anchor with this app via Bluetooth LE. It offers advanced boat control for sport fishing. Requires ownership of compatible Power-Pole devices.

Highlights
  • Bluetooth LE control
  • Power-Pole device operation
  • Advanced boat control
  • Sport fishing enhancement
Features
Read full description

Over the past decade the Power-Pole Shallow Water Anchor has changed the world of sport fishing by offering the most technologically advanced boat control system ever invented. The C-Monster application is designed exclusively for controlling the operations of Power-Pole devices using Bluetooth LE connection. You must own Power-Pole devices to use this application. Currently, the iOS app is only compatible with Power-Pole hydraulic models built late January 2015 or after. This can be confirmed if the serial number ends in “AC” for the 8’ Blade or “AA” for any other hydraulic model. An add-on iOS module will soon be available to allow existing C-Monster equipped Power-Pole models not matching the criteria listed to utilize this app.

About

Salt Strong

Discover prime saltwater fishing locations with expert-curated data and real-time conditions. This app provides tide forecasts, feeding projections, and detailed maps to help anglers catch more fish. It also includes access to a fishing community, tackle discounts, and educational resources.

Highlights
  • Proprietary Smart Spots
  • 14 Day Tide Forecasts
  • Daily Strike Score
  • Hourly Feeding Projections
  • Oyster beds and Seagrass layers
  • Access to Insider Club
  • Tackle discounts and free lures
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Find the best inshore saltwater fishing spots in seconds! Smart Fishing Spots by Salt Strong is the only app built exclusively for inshore saltwater anglers who want to stop fishing blind and start finding the hottest spots for redfish, speckled trout, snook, and flounder. You'll have everything you need to know WHERE, WHEN, AND HOW to catch more fish on your next trip. HAND PICKED SPOTS BY LOCAL EXPERTS These are NOT generic, boring, static fishing spots. Our proprietary "Smart Spots" are hand picked by a team of full time fishing coaches and regional experts. Then, our custom software determines which spot is best based on real time conditions like; tides, temperature, wind, season, pressure, etc... MOST POWERFUL INSHORE SALTWATER FISHING APP You'll be able to explore new areas with confidence and start finding your own spots with the most powerful collection of map layers like: - Proprietary Smart Spots - 14 Day Tide Forecasts - Daily Strike Score - Hourly Feeding Projections - Oyster beds - Seagrass - 1ft contour lines PLUS FREE LURES, TACKLE DISCOUNTS, & LOCAL REPORTS Your subscription to Smart Fishing Spots also comes with full access to the Salt Strong Insider Club: America's largest online fishing club helping saltwater anglers catch more fish while saving time and money. You'll get:  1. Smart Fishing Spots App and Software ($97 value) - Thousands of Hand-picked spots from our regional fishing coaches - Smart Spots AI to show the best spots for your exact trip - Most accurate tide date with “Strike Score”  to plan your fishing days  2. $200 in Free Tackle Per Year ($200 value) - FREE Slam Shady lures every month - Claimed on fishstrong.com, just pay shipping - FREE Tackle Tester Enrollment - Test a free piece of tackle every month, claim at fishstrong.com, just pay shipping. 3. Private Insider Community of 65,000+ Anglers - Real-time fishing reports and local intel - Answers to any of your questions, from friendly helpful anglers. - Local chapters and meetups - The OPPOSITE of social media No cursing, belittling, or politics allowed. 4. Weekly Game Plans for Your Region - Expert breakdowns every week of your area - Know exactly where to go and what to do every weekend - Professional-level fishing advice you can’t get anywhere else 5. Courses, Cheat Sheets & Training Library - Mini Course Library, spot dissections, and tactical breakdowns - Simple cheat sheets for fast results - Learn what actually works (no fluff) 6. Hundreds in Tackle Savings at FishStrong.com - Massive discounts on our custom rods and reels - 20-30% savings site wide (excluding third party rods and reels) - Huge discounts on our custom tackle bundles with everything you need. 7. Group Discount Partners (Big Ticket Savings) - Exclusive discounts on kayaks, boats, marine electronics, reels and more - Save hundreds (even thousands) on major purchases - Access to deals you won’t find publicly WHERE, WHEN, AND HOW TO CATCH MORE FISH ON YOUR NEXT TRIP With this one subscription, you're getting everything you need to hit the water with confidence, finding the fish fast and catching more with the right gear and tackle. Download Smart Fishing Spots and become a Salt Strong Insider Today Terms of use: https://www.saltstrong.com/terms-and-conditions/ Privacy Policy: https://www.saltstrong.com/privacy-policy/

Screenshots

CMonster4 screens
Salt Strong4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Salt Strong at 76% against CMonster's 13%. Salt Strong also leads on rating (4.7 vs 2.1) and update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 months). CMonster's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Salt Strong sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. CMonster asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Salt Strong holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Salt Strong has 964 ratings behind it against 101, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 13% of CMonster's written reviews are positive against 76% of Salt Strong's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CMonster ships an update every 3 months, Salt Strong every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
CMonster versus Salt Strong: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCMonsterSalt Strong
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.1 (101 ratings)4.7 (964 ratings) — better
Positive reviews13.0% of reviews75.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings101964 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#61 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size38 MB111 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJL Marine SystemsSalt Strong LLC

Customer experience

CMonster

All ratings101 ratings
Positive20.8%
Neutral10.9%
Negative68.3%
Written reviews46 reviews
Positive13.0%
Neutral2.2%
Negative84.8%

Salt Strong

All ratings964 ratings
Positive91.3%
Neutral1.8%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews174 reviews
Positive75.9%
Neutral3.4%
Negative20.7%

User reviews

CMonster

From 101 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Convenient app control
  • 👍 Useful for battery management
  • 👍 Emergency start function
  • 👍 Good customer service (mentioned once)

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent connection issues
  • 🐛 App crashes often
  • 🐛 Incompatible with Micro anchor
  • 🐛 Does not work with iOS devices (specifically Micro)
  • 🐛 Battery balancing problems

Salt Strong

From 964 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Informative and intuitive
  • 🔍 Helpful for finding new fishing spots
  • ⭐ Game-changing for fishing success
  • 📊 Comprehensive data and features
  • 🗺️ Accurate maps and satellite imagery

Room to improve

  • 🐌 Laggy and freezes up at times
  • 🔍 Inaccurate or limited coverage in some areas
  • 🧭 Needs better offline/GPS functionality

Bugs and requests

CMonster

Reported bugs

53 issues
  • Cannot connect to server
  • App crashes constantly
  • App does not find the micro anchor
  • App does not work with micro power pole on IOS
  • App will not stay linked up with iPhone
Show 48 more
  • App randomly stopped working
  • App crashes when adjusting speed
  • App connects then crashes
  • App recognizes only one of the two poles
  • App cannot find pole via Bluetooth
  • App only found one of my two poles
  • Both poles can not be found
  • Cannot get the app to pair with the charge
  • App does not show charge direction arrows
  • App won't show charge direction arrows
  • Firmware update issues
  • Cannot connect to server
  • No such settings to allow battery info input
  • App crashes constantly
  • App crashes when adjusting speed
  • App connects to power poles then crashes
  • App does not find the micro anchor
  • App does not work with micro power pole on IOS
  • App will not stay linked up with iPhone
  • App randomly stopped working
  • App does not show charge direction arrows
  • App won't show charge direction arrows
  • App is super glitchy
  • App won't connect
  • App doesn't show why it won't pair
  • App is unreliable
  • App is useless
  • App is junk
  • App does not work with micro anchor
  • App does not read right for the charge
  • App stopped working
  • Bluetooth connectivity issues
  • Cannot get it to connect to poles
  • Not connecting to one pole
  • Cannot get out of demo mode (ISO)
  • Cannot get the app to pair with the charge
  • App/phone no longer recognizes poles
  • Will not pair at all
  • Recognizes only one pole
  • App on iOS does no good for Micro
  • Does not work with micro power pole
  • Does not find the micro anchor
  • Doesn’t work anymore
  • App crashes constantly
  • App crashes when adjusting speed
  • App connects then crashes
  • App doesn't see the powerpoles
  • App doesn't connect

Requested features

6 requests
  • Improve Bluetooth connectivity
  • App compatibility for Micro anchor
  • Fix ISO version issues
  • Add battery information settings
  • Improve app compatibility for iOS
Show 1 more
  • Update app to fix bugs

Salt Strong

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Login/account issues
  • Crashes and freezes

Requested features

3 requests
  • Offline map downloads
  • More detailed bathymetry data
  • Improved weather forecasting and integration

In-app purchases

None

CMonster

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Salt Strong

Subscriptions4
  • SFS App Only Monthly$6.991 Month
  • Monthly$12.991 Month
  • SFS App Only Yearly$59.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Yearly$97.001 Year

Questions

Is CMonster free?
CMonster is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Salt Strong free?
Salt Strong is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, CMonster or Salt Strong?
Salt Strong is rated higher. CMonster averages 2.1 out of 5 from 101 ratings, while Salt Strong averages 4.7 from 964 ratings.
Do CMonster or Salt Strong have ads?
Neither CMonster nor Salt Strong shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CMonster or Salt Strong?
CMonster ships an update every 3 months, and Salt Strong every 6 days. Most recently, CMonster was updated on November 1, 2026 and Salt Strong on November 7, 2026.

Other comparisons