"Best" chart/navigation software

[Bucket]

We have B&G chartplotters on our Vision 444 cat at the helm and nav station. We use C-map charts. We have sailed from South Africa, through Caribbean to Maine and now heading back to Grenada. We have not had any problem with chart data.

That being said, we use a wonderful app called AquaMap almost daily on our phones and tablets.
I honestly cannot speak highly enough about this app.

I really suggest you check it out for yourself, but here are the key features that make it such an important tool for us:

• Reasonable price (app and maps)
• Integration of ActiveCaptain Data
• integration of Waterway Guide Data
• Integration of USACE sounding data
• Can display AIS and vessel data from a multitude of WiFi sources
• Excellent anchor alarm which can be “mirrored” to another device logged into the same account.
• Use on five devices (same login) included
• Social aspect (best use is to find someone in an anchorage to which you are traveling and asking how crowded, etc)

I’m sure there are other good feature in missing, but seriously check this app out. I’ve tried all the other big names and none of the others compare.

(Note, I’m in no way related to this company, just really enjoy their product)

[barcoMeCasa]

Originally Posted by jfwg

I will admit to being a happy OCPN user, Android and PC.

I am a power and sail instructor, primarily in the Gulf Islands around Vancouver Island. I carry OCPN as a backup to whatever chart plotter is on the boat, and frequently use it as the primary chart plotter as I have turned the boats one off to get eyes outside the vessel (it's not a video game...) or to have students practice their manual navigation/paper chart skills. (Rule 5: I still need to use all available means...)

However, it is my go to in planning trips in the comfort of my home. It has taken me up the Inside Passage to Alaska (and became the primary when the charts ran out on the boat chart plotter), around Haida Gwaii, in the Broughton's, and around Vancouver Island. I also use it chartering.

I have an SEANEXX RX210 GPS/AIS receiver (an upgrade from and old Microsoft Streets and Trips GPS) and a WIFI module that I can plug it into if I don't want to plug directly into the laptop, or I want access to AIS data on my Samsung Android phone. I have their antenna which I rarely use. I have a small flexible 18" one in my backpack which works for my use case as a backup. I can't see out as far, but they aren't going to hit me...

The cost of OCPN is a nice feature as well as its functionality. But a bigger driver is the cost of charts. Charts are not free in Canada as they are in the US, and CHS is pleased to sell me V-PAC-A - Vancouver Island East, and V-PAC-B - Vancouver Island West - Haida Gwaii for $599.95. Apiece.

I buy them from O-Charts for 20 Euros.

I have introduced a number of people to OCPN. As I have used it for many years I am not a good use case for ease of installing and using it. But I certainly wouldn't throw any of my friends into it without walking them through the installation and giving them a half hour tour to get them started.

There is no question that interfacing with other equipment can be a challenge if you have no knowledge of IP addressing, etc. The plus is that it can be done. I currently use my boating buddies emTrak AIS Transponder as a source when travelling with him, and obviously have it interfaced with the other equipment I described above. I have even set it up as a repeater at times.

I can't say I have any problem with loading charts. Getting an O-Chart fingerprint for my laptop (and others I have installed) required a bit of careful reading but that is all. I pay them for the files, then download them through the OCPN Chart Downloader (which I loaded from within the OCPN plugin interface) and they are unencrypted with the O-Chart plugin (which I also loaded from within the OCPN plugin interface.

I like the power and functionality. There is probably more that I am not using. But it works for me.

John

Agree with all that. Also, before using Opencpn I had Maxsea, going across to Opencpn was not nice, whole new system to learn. Hated it. Then after a few months had a go again n Maxsea, hated it, not good or bad UI on either program, we just hate change.
Love being able to share routes & waypoints between the Raspberry Pi, llaptop, andriod tablet & mobile phone at the click of a button. And would really miss satellite images of anchorages to stay away from the rocks.
This setup , rasberry pi3 running openplotter, has been running 24/7 for nearly a year now constantly cruising & anchoring. Both signalk & opencpn have been rock solid.

[Cheyne]

We use Aquamaps quite a bit. Plus Navionics and now Orca.

Aquamaps is my goto for finding anchorages and marinas. Now we just cruise the east coast and the Bahamas, but it works great for us.

Also...Hey Mira. Harvest Moon is between us. We are on one of the balls.

Cheyne
SV Herkee

Originally Posted by Bucket

We have B&G chartplotters on our Vision 444 cat at the helm and nav station. We use C-map charts. We have sailed from South Africa, through Caribbean to Maine and now heading back to Grenada. We have not had any problem with chart data.

That being said, we use a wonderful app called AquaMap almost daily on our phones and tablets.
I honestly cannot speak highly enough about this app.

I really suggest you check it out for yourself, but here are the key features that make it such an important tool for us:

• Reasonable price (app and maps)
• Integration of ActiveCaptain Data
• integration of Waterway Guide Data
• Integration of USACE sounding data
• Can display AIS and vessel data from a multitude of WiFi sources
• Excellent anchor alarm which can be “mirrored” to another device logged into the same account.
• Use on five devices (same login) included
• Social aspect (best use is to find someone in an anchorage to which you are traveling and asking how crowded, etc)

I’m sure there are other good feature in missing, but seriously check this app out. I’ve tried all the other big names and none of the others compare.

(Note, I’m in no way related to this company, just really enjoy their product)

[Amapola]

In addition to my Garmin Chartplotters, I use Navionics and AquaMap on my iPad Pro with built in GPS. I also have Starlink for global internet.

[CarinaPDX]

In the past MacENC was a popular option for Mac users. It was very easy to use and was also well supported. Unfortunately it went out of business a few years ago but is now back. The original developer in Oregon transferred it to a French developer who has it available again, with integrated access to commercial charts worldwide. It has been a while since I have used it (no longer a Mac user) but even 10 years ago it was a very nice app. It would definitely be worth taking a look.

Of course, as previously discussed, the problems with connecting GPS receivers to OpenCPN are an issue with the Macs, not OCPN. So one can expect similar issues with all Mac software. I used to install the necessary drivers but these days the MacOS is so locked down that user-installed drivers may not be possible. I have learned to love Linux...

Greg

[SV Coronado]

What features are you looking for? There isn't much to chart programs beyond displaying charts and measuring distances. The wind is going to dictate your course as much as avoiding hard objects. If you're sailing heavily traveled areas, then most of the major chart brands are accurate and will do. If you're sailing off the beaten path, I would use any chart as a rough guideline and assume they're wrong to some degree. This comes from someone who cruises full-time and has tried a lot of the programs mentioned.

[wingssail]

I shifted to OpenCPN many years ago because my previous charting software would not display AIS.

Since then I have used it for all of my navigation needs. It has a depth of features that I find essential plus many many more which I have not even explored. I think OpenCPN is the most feature rich and professional charting tool in common use. It is a lot more than "look at a picture and see where we are".

Here are some capabilities which I use and appreciate daily:

1. I can create and manipulate waypoints and reuse them in routes (also race courses)
2. I can easily review a passage or leg using the "track" and create detailed history for my log.
3. I can use a variity of chats formats and manipulate the charts for accuracy and location
4. It has excellent recovery features
5. I can keep an immense amount of data regarding tracks, routs, waypoints etc, and I can manage it all easily
6. I can create very accurate routes while passage ort leg planning, either off the boat or at the nav station for display whil navigating
7. I can display MBtiles charts
8. I can use it's powerful AIS target tracking and useful alarms
9. I can use the ERBL features for additional navigation safety
10. I can display grib files for route planning

The fact that is is free is a bonus.

[IOM]

I have found OpenCPN to be very user friendly, and easy to setup, with the exception of the Android charts, which is a issue forced upon the development guys by Google policies and I was assisted so fast it was ridiculous.

I definitely cant say the same about other software I have tried, some free and some the demo version of the software I was recommended to try as its so fantastic.

The best is OpenCPN is so flexible. You can add or remove functions to make it as simple or complex as you desire.
You can use charts from practically any source you like and are not constrained to what the manufacturer decides you must use.
This constraint seems to be the OP's biggest issue, he is constrained on what GPS he can use by the OS he has chosen to use, and blames that on OpenCPN. SO far I haven't had any issues like that with Linux or Windows

I have spent way more time trying to get a B&G or Raymarine to work (or just tell me what I wanted to know at the time) than I have on any OpenCPN system, including building my own OpenPlotter based Pi system and integrating it onto a NMEA2000 network.

And the best feature about OpenCPN is not that it is free, its that I am free to choose, and above all I choose a screen with many , many square inches.
Working on 4" and 6" screens doesn't excite me anymore. Paper charts had plenty square inches of display, and OpenCPN allows me to have something similar.
Its been an absolute pleasure to work with, and configure to my preferences and needs

And as a bonus, I haven't spent vast sums annually on bugs. The few OpenCPN may have came for free, and I'm happy to live with that, I would definitely not happy to pay vast amounts for them though

[At Peace]

If you are in US waters including Bahamas and Virgin Islands, check out Google Earth Pro. It has current NOAA charts and completely free. Here's a link on "how to".
https://youtu.be/XspnmG1-3i4?si=K0fBftqxTfzSGlCW

[requiem]

Originally Posted by SV Coronado

There isn't much to chart programs beyond displaying charts and measuring distances.

Eh, I like to draw on charts, add notes, review the chart details, etc. You never know when the chart notes in out of the way places might have gems such as "This chart cannot be accurately referenced to WGS84 datum" or "positions should be transferred by bearing and distance from common charted objects, not by latitude & longitude".

(Satellite overlays are one way to verify and adjust for this, but they aren't a substitute for charts, only an additional aid.)

Originally Posted by At Peace

If you are in US waters including Bahamas and Virgin Islands, check out Google Earth Pro. It has current NOAA charts and completely free.

Err... the video is just explaining how to point GE at NOAA's RNC server. Good news is, NOAA's a decent source. Bad news is, since those RNCs are being retired, I'd bet that API's days are numbered, and if it's truly current than many detailed charts will already have been removed.

[christinekling]

Someone here mentioned the good old original Mac navigation software MacENC. I haven't used it in years - I had to get a PC just to run TimeZero - but I am still a Mac user otherwise.

This is the link to the French company that now offers the best Mac nav software and a world chart store. I think they have a free trial so you could check it out.

https://navstation.net

[ChrisJHC]

Had a look at MacENC: $331 AUD plus charts
Would have to be very good to beat OpenCPN’s $0 plus charts.
Or Navionics $90 per year including charts

[requiem]

Originally Posted by ChrisJHC

Had a look at MacENC: $331 AUD plus charts
Would have to be very good to beat OpenCPN’s $0 plus charts.
Or Navionics $90 per year including charts

Their chart prices are high, but far closer to the O-charts end of the scale than the "buy individual ENCs/paper" end of the scale.

I agree it would have to be good, but I also like seeing competition and it's good to see this back on the market.

I might give the free trial a go when time permits (which isn't anytime soon). What I'd like to see before dropping cash would be evidence of the "professional grade features" touted on the side. Currently the screenshots, docs, etc show no indication of this, but I think (hope?) the developer is in a good position to extend the app in that direction.

[nohal]

May I ask where are you looking? At https://navstation.net/chart-store-overview/ the prices seem to be by 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than o-charts (They seem to be pretty much the normal prices of the S63 cells from the IHO VARs, which ChartWorld, their partner, is). For exactly the same chart material.

[requiem]

Originally Posted by nohal

May I ask where are you looking? At https://navstation.net/chart-store-overview/ the prices seem to be by 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than o-charts (They seem to be pretty much the normal prices of the S63 cells from the IHO VARs, which ChartWorld, their partner, is). For exactly the same chart material.

Ah, I was seeing what looked like bundles, e.g. "FR - North Coast of France - La Manche (English Chanel)" for $205, which appears to have a number of charts. Clicking through CW I get about 64 for the area, which would work out to about 2400€ for a year, or 800€ for a quarter if bought from ChartWorld.