Almost every boating app is free to download and then asks for a subscription for the part you need. These ones do something useful without paying: for each one you'll find what stays free and what costs money.
🧭 Marine forecast, waypoints and route in one app with Scirocco → — free, no account.
Simone Ruggiero, Naples (Italy)
For marine weather, compass and navigation without paying
Free: the hourly 7-day marine forecast, the compass with course corrections, the route that goes around the coast, GPS tracks, GPX export, personal documents with reminders and up to 20 waypoints. The free version shows banner ads.
Windyty, SE · 4.8 out of 5 (80,150 ratings)
For animated weather maps and model comparison
More than 50 animated weather maps and more than 15 models (ECMWF, GFS, ICON, ICON-EU, HRRR, NAM, AROME-HD and others), radar and satellite, waves, swell, tides, currents, sea temperature, webcams and custom weather alerts.
Navico · 4.5 out of 5 (2,424 ratings)
For a chart viewer without a subscription
Free C-MAP chart viewer with Autorouting, waypoints, tracks, marine weather along the route and GPX import and export. Premium adds offline maps, high-resolution bathymetry, REVEAL shaded relief and AIS.
The Navigation Family · 4.8 out of 5 (836 ratings)
For marinas and anchorages with reviews
More than 35,000 marinas and anchorages with 500,000+ community reviews and photos, 700+ bookable marinas, route planning, Protection Scores for wind and swell, community chat and anchorage alerts.
Windfinder.com · 4.8 out of 5 (62,351 ratings)
For live wind from weather stations
Wind and weather forecasts for over 160,000 locations, live measurements from 21,000 weather stations, tides for over 20,000 locations, wave height, period and direction, and an animated wind map.
MarineTraffic Applications Ltd · 4.7 out of 5 (64,997 ratings)
For the ships around you
Live ship positions worldwide from AIS data, with vessel type, destination, speed, course and voyage history, fleets to follow and wind on the map.
NOFOREIGNLAND LTD · 4.9 out of 5 (90 ratings)
For cruising sailors' place reports
Sailing community app with thousands of place reports, photos and reviews from sailors, your boat and track on the map shared live with family, and boat groups with in-app chat.
IdeaBoys GmbH · 4.8 out of 5 (3,597 ratings)
For an anchor alarm
Anchor alarm: set the anchor as you drop it, define the swing zone with one or two radii, monitor position, GPS signal and battery, and get alerts ashore by Telegram or email, also on Apple Watch.
No single free app does everything. One for the weather and one for navigation or your marks usually cover a day trip. Charts with depths cost money in every app.
Not with nautical charts: Navionics, C-MAP and Aqua Map charge for them. Without charts, yes: in Scirocco the forecast, compass, navigation and tracks are free, with up to 20 waypoints and banner ads.
Windy for models on a map, Windfinder for live station data, Scirocco for hourly wind, gusts and waves at your destination.
Yes. The phone's GPS works without data. Scirocco's free version marks your position, takes you to a point with the compass and records your track with the screen off.
Compass, GPS and tracks do; maps only if downloaded first. Scirocco keeps the last forecast for 7 days so you can read it without coverage.
The only boating app you need
Marine forecast, waypoints, compass, GPS tracks, boat management, maintenance and documents.
Download Scirocco →Prices, features and ratings of the apps come from their US App Store listings on October 20, 2026 and may change: Scirocco, Windy.com, C-MAP: Boating, Navily, Windfinder, MarineTraffic, noforeignland, Anchor Pro.
Windy, C-MAP, Navily, Windfinder, MarineTraffic, noforeignland, Anchor Pro, Navionics and Aqua Map are trademarks of their respective owners. Scirocco is not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by them.