Comparison

SwellMap Boat vs Surf

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

Head to head
About

SwellMap Boat

Get detailed marine weather forecasts for hundreds of locations across New Zealand. View 7-day sea and wind graphs, tide information, and receive alerts for your favorite spots. Access forecast maps for rain, temperature, wind, and waves.

Highlights
  • 7-day sea and wind forecast graphs
  • Detailed daily forecasts
  • Forecast maps (rain, temp, wind, waves)
  • Save favorite spots
  • Customizable alerts
  • SwellMap boat ratings
Read full description

SwellMap Boat is based on our popular website SwellMap.co.nz providing you with the latest marine weather predictions for hundreds of boating and fishing locations across New Zealand. SwellMap forecasts are highly accurate and reliable. Forecasts are generated using the latest atmospheric and oceanographic numerical models providing updated information four times daily. SwellMap provides the following features: - 7 day sea and wind forecast graphs to make interpreting the boating conditions ahead easy. - SwellMap boat ratings. - Detailed daily forecasts providing ratings, summaries, sea height, sea direction, swell height, swell direction, swell period, chop height, tides, wind, gusts, sea temperature, sunset and sunrise. - Forecast maps of rain/pressure, temperature, wind, wave height, wave period and sea temperature. - Save your favourite spot forecasts. - Alerts providing you with notifications when locations are forecasted to match your preferred boating conditions. == SwellMap Boat Advert Free subscription details == For an advert free experience of the app you can purchase a monthly subscription. Payment will be charged to iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the current cost of the renewal. Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's account settings on their iPhone/iPad after purchase. Please find full terms and conditions at: https://swellmap-13fc9.firebaseapp.com/swellmap-app-terms.html

About

Surf

Get simple, accurate surf forecasts for over 7,000 breaks worldwide. Plan your sessions with detailed wave information, tide times, and mapping to find the best conditions and nearby spots. Access extended forecasts and custom alerts with premium features.

Highlights
  • Detailed surf forecasts
  • Wavefinder map
  • Live webcam links
  • Tide times
  • 12-day forecasts
  • Custom surf alerts
Features
Read full description

Surf-Forecast.com gives you simple, accurate and easy-to-read surf forecasts so you have the best chance of hitting those breaks when the waves are pumping. Built by surfers, for surfers, and trusted by millions of surfers for over 20 years, our updated app lets you see all your favorite surf spots at a glance. Providing detailed surf forecasts for over 7,000 breaks worldwide, our new features let you see further ahead than ever before - giving you plenty of advance warning for when those swells start coming in. Find the best surfing conditions near you and use the rating tool to find exactly when to go. – FREE App Features ⁃ Detailed surf forecasts ⁃ Wavefinder map ⁃ Live webcam links ⁃ Multi-swell component presentation ⁃ Tide times ⁃ Detailed mapping to locate nearby breaks – Surf Premium Benefits ⁃ Access to the full 16 days of our new Wavefinder feature ⁃ Hourly forecasts ⁃ 16 day forecasts ⁃ Custom surf alerts ⁃ Ad-free browsing on our website So what are you waiting for? Grab your board and get exploring. We’ll see you out there! For the full Terms and Conditions of this service please visit: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

SwellMap Boat4 screens
Surf4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Surf at 86% against SwellMap Boat's 34%. Surf also leads on ratings volume (997 vs 11) and rating (4.9 vs 4.6). 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. SwellMap Boat sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $1.49 per month and Surf sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Surf holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Surf has 997 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 34% of SwellMap Boat's written reviews are positive against 86% of Surf's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SwellMap Boat ships an update every 3 months, Surf every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
SwellMap Boat versus Surf: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSwellMap BoatSurf
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (11 ratings)4.9 (997 ratings) — better
Positive reviews34.1% of reviews86.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings11997 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#119 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB138 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWesley WarnerMeteo365 Ltd.

Customer experience

SwellMap Boat

All ratings7 ratings
Positive71.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative28.6%
Written reviews44 reviews
Positive34.1%
Neutral13.6%
Negative52.3%

Surf

All ratings940 ratings
Positive99.3%
Neutral0.1%
Negative0.6%
Written reviews125 reviews
Positive86.4%
Neutral4.0%
Negative9.6%

Bugs and requests

SwellMap Boat

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Surf

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes or freezes on some devices
  • Geolocation issues with break markers

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to manually refresh data
  • More detailed tidal/current information
  • Expanded location coverage
  • Improved accuracy for wave height/conditions

In-app purchases

1 purchases

SwellMap Boat

Subscriptions1
  • SwellMap Boat$1.491 Month
2 purchases

Surf

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Service: Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Premium Service (Yearly)$34.991 Year

Questions

Is SwellMap Boat free?
SwellMap Boat is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Surf free?
Surf is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, SwellMap Boat or Surf?
Surf is rated higher. SwellMap Boat averages 4.6 out of 5 from 11 ratings, while Surf averages 4.9 from 997 ratings.
Do SwellMap Boat or Surf have ads?
Both SwellMap Boat and Surf show ads.
Which is updated more often, SwellMap Boat or Surf?
SwellMap Boat ships an update every 3 months, and Surf every 6 weeks. Most recently, SwellMap Boat was updated on October 26, 2026 and Surf on October 25, 2026.

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