Comparison

Boat Sim Elite vs Ship Handling Simulator

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

Head to head
About

Boat Sim Elite

Experience realistic maritime travel by sailing and walking the decks of large vessels. Navigate challenging harbors, explore scenic islands, and enjoy dynamic weather and day/night cycles in an open-world simulation.

Highlights
  • Sail large ships
  • Walk on ship decks
  • Realistic navigation tools
  • Challenging harbor docking
  • Dynamic weather and day/night cycles
  • Explore scenic islands
Features
Read full description

Boat Sim Elite takes boat simulation to a whole new level, sail and walk the deck of your huge ships! Includes three large ships for you to sail, a large ferry, an exploration ship and now a cruise ship, each with with multiple decks. WALK around your ships - take a walk around the deck (a challenge in rough seas!) SAIL from the bridge - use the radar, map and compass to navigate. Dock ships by walking outside of the bridge and looking down at the dock, use the bow thrusters to maneuver the ship carefully to the dock side. Challenging harbors to dock at - maneuver the ship around a sea wall, or dock in busy boating areas. Dynamic day / night cycle - beautiful changing time and conditions as you sail, watch the sun come up, and stars at night. Scenic islands to explore, with lots of other boats that really float! Watch them ride the waves in rough seas! HUGE waves at sea to content with (random wave conditions). HUGE area of water to sail! Historic scenery items on some of the islands, find them and develop cruises your passengers will enjoy! By design there's no objectives, no score to get, simple relax and enjoy being the skipper of massive ships, in an open sim. So what are you waiting for, come on-board and take to the sea, sail large ships in changing conditions and see how good you are at docking these huge vessels! We're already working on the next version and appreciate the positive reviews from around the world, including; "Mind Blown!" "Wow this game is amazing, I love walking around the ferry in giant waves." - New Zealand "This game is amazing" - Canada The various boats and objects really float, the waves are dynamic and the conditions really change, therefore we recommend a newer device, without 50 other apps running for best performance! If you have any issues drop us a line.

About

Ship Handling Simulator

Experience realistic ship handling, maneuvering, and mooring with tugboats. Pilot a vast array of vessels, from historical steamships to modern carriers, through challenging scenarios. Navigate narrow passages, avoid hazards, and master complex docking procedures.

Highlights
  • Realistic ship handling and maneuvering
  • Mooring with tugboat assistance
  • 30 detailed ship models
  • Hazard navigation and AI vessel interaction
  • Dynamic weather and environmental conditions
  • Sandbox mode for custom levels
Read full description

Original simulator of ship-handling, maneuvering and mooring to a pier with tugboats. 30 high-detailed ships, included passenger ships, cruise liners, cargo ships, battleships and aircraft carriers, from historical steam ships of 19th century till modern nuclear. Realistic control of single and multi-screw vessels (including famous Titanic, Britannic 1874 and 1914, Carpathia, Mauretania, Aquitania, Californian) and azimuth propulsion. Maneuvering with thrusters. Mooring the vessel to the berth using two tugboats with separate control. Departure from the berth and arrive into target area. Narrow-swimming, bypass of hazards, minefields, passing with other AI vessels. Sea marks of hazards and channels according to international rules. Day and night modes, different environment and weather conditions, calm or storm water with ocean waves and icebergs. Sandbox mode. You can create and pass your own levels. Damage and sinking of ships at collisions, splitting in half while sinking.

Screenshots

Boat Sim Elite4 screens
Ship Handling Simulator4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Ship Handling Simulator at 4.2 against Boat Sim Elite's 3.4. Ship Handling Simulator also leads on review sentiment (83% vs 65%) and ratings volume (339 vs 81). Boat Sim Elite's advantage is price ($1.99 vs $10.99) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 15.0). On update cadence, ads, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Boat Sim Elite costs $1.99 and Ship Handling Simulator $10.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Ship Handling Simulator holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 81 and 339 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of Boat Sim Elite's written reviews are positive against 83% of Ship Handling Simulator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Boat Sim Elite ships an update every 2 months, Ship Handling Simulator every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Boat Sim Elite versus Ship Handling Simulator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBoat Sim EliteShip Handling Simulator
Price$1.99 — better$10.99
Rating3.4 (81 ratings)4.2 (339 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.3% of reviews82.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings81339 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS8.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size314 MB633 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGary ChambersAleksandr Turkin

Customer experience

Boat Sim Elite

All ratings81 ratings
Positive56.8%
Neutral12.3%
Negative30.9%
Written reviews75 reviews
Positive65.3%
Neutral12.0%
Negative22.7%

Ship Handling Simulator

All ratings332 ratings
Positive79.8%
Neutral7.2%
Negative13.0%
Written reviews248 reviews
Positive82.7%
Neutral7.3%
Negative10.1%

Bugs and requests

Boat Sim Elite

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Ship Handling Simulator

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Icebergs not spawning in sandbox mode
  • Telegraphs not loading on some ships
  • Game crashing when sinking large ships
  • Issues with ship speed controls

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add more ships (Lusitania, Queen Mary, Poseidon, etc.)
  • Improve sinking animations (funnel collapse, split in half, etc.)
  • Implement working lifeboats and passengers
  • Add underwater view and ocean floor
  • Introduce more gameplay modes (tug control, port management, etc.)
Show 1 more
  • Improve graphics and water physics

In-app purchases

None

Boat Sim Elite

No in-app purchases

None

Ship Handling Simulator

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Boat Sim Elite free?
Boat Sim Elite costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Ship Handling Simulator free?
Ship Handling Simulator costs $10.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Boat Sim Elite or Ship Handling Simulator?
Ship Handling Simulator is rated higher. Boat Sim Elite averages 3.4 out of 5 from 81 ratings, while Ship Handling Simulator averages 4.2 from 339 ratings.
Do Boat Sim Elite or Ship Handling Simulator have ads?
Neither Boat Sim Elite nor Ship Handling Simulator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Boat Sim Elite or Ship Handling Simulator?
Boat Sim Elite ships an update every 2 months, and Ship Handling Simulator every 3 months. Most recently, Boat Sim Elite was updated on October 21, 2026 and Ship Handling Simulator on October 29, 2026.

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