Garmin ActiveCaptain®

Garmin

In-app purchases

About this app

The free ActiveCaptain app creates a powerful connection between your compatible mobile device and Garmin chartplotter, charts, maps and the boating community. Whether you use your Garmin products for cruising, fishing, sailing or diving, this all-in-one app will help you enjoy your time on the water.

Just pair the app with your compatible chartplotter to wirelessly transfer and access charts and maps, software updates, routes, waypoints and helpful feedback from the ActiveCaptain Community. And, with the purchase of the OnDeck™ hub(1), you can track and monitor your boat from virtually anywhere.

Please note that this app is intended for Garmin chartplotter owners and is not recommended for use as a stand-alone navigational app.


FEATURES AVAILABLE:

- ONECHART™:
> New Garmin Navionics+™ and premium Garmin Navionics Vision+™ cartography, featuring a Navionics® style appearance, advanced Auto Guidance+™ technology(2) and a one-year subscription to daily updates, is available now for North America and Europe, and coming soon to the rest of the world.

Purchase our newest-generation charts or legacy BlueChart® g3 charts from your mobile device, and upload them to registered Garmin chartplotters on your vessel.

You will get exceptional coverage, clarity and detail with charts that feature integrated Garmin and Navionics data and much more. Plus, the NOAA raster cartography(3) and premium features can be downloaded for free through the ActiveCaptain app. Visit Garmin.com/marinemaps.

- PLAN A TRIP: Plan your trip, or e-scout a new fishing spot before you’re on the water. Then, transfer your data to your chartplotter where you can view your routes and waypoints.

- USER DATA SYNC: Automatically back up and sync your data between your chartplotter and the ActiveCaptain app.

- ACTIVECAPTAIN COMMUNITY: Join a community of boaters to get up-to-date feedback on marinas, boat ramps and other points of interest (POI). Check ratings, read reviews, and view pictures of POIs to make informed decisions on the water. Contribute your own POI, reviews and pictures from your compatible mobile device.

- CONTROL YOUR CHARTPLOTTER: Using the built-in Helm™ feature, the ActiveCaptain app lets you view and control your compatible(4) chartplotter from your smartphone or tablet, even when someone else is at the helm(5).

- EASY SOFTWARE UPDATES: Receive notifications about software updates from the app, and update your chartplotter wirelessly.

- ONDECK HUB: Use the ActiveCaptain app to track, monitor and control any number of switches with the OnDeck system(1) from nearly anywhere. Door open? Bilge running? Peace of mind comes in the form of text alerts and updates.

- GARMIN QUICKDRAWTM COMMUNITY: Download the latest 1’ HD contour maps shared by your fellow boaters, and sync with your chartplotter. You can also upload your own Quickdraw Contours map data.

- SMART NOTIFICATIONS: Connect the app to your chartplotter, and turn on smart notifications(4) to see calls, text messages and more on the chartplotter display while your phone is somewhere safe and dry.



FOOTNOTES
1) OnDeck hub sold separately and requires an active subscription plan
2) Auto Guidance+ is for planning purposes only and does not replace safe navigation operations
3) NOAA raster cartography cannot be viewed on echoMAP™ CHIRP and ECHOMAP™ Plus combos but can be viewed on mobile devices via the ActiveCaptain mobile app
4) Helm feature is not compatible with ECHOMAP series chartplotters
5) Check device compatibility on the ActiveCaptain app web page; visit https://www.garmin.com/c/marine/marine-apps/

Ratings and reviews

Not the most intuitive app to use. Several menu selections are not where expected or don't function as expected. Continue to have issues with sharing Quickdraw contours. App doesn't appear to recognize when new contours are added. Having to select "cancel" each & every time I go to the "chart" page is absolutely abominable! To allow/disallow access to location should be a one time choice at the beginning of the session or a on/off switch added to settings. Otherwise a very nice option to use.

The Garmin active captain app will not work on my phone all of a sudden. The app will open but when I click on Maps the app closest restarts again. Have reinstalled it several times one time it worked for a day and a half and then it buged out while I was in the middle of the ocean needing to use it on my buddies boat which I've been able to do several times no matter where I was at. Tech support keeps saying it's my phone. Samsung Galaxy A13 all my other apps work great.

This is one of the worst pieces of garbage I've ever had the displeasure of dealing with. It says "not connected", then when you attempt to connect it won't allow it because it thinks it's already connected. The UI is horrible (I've had it for a week and I still can't make it sync properly), it has no option to download maps I've subscribed to and it won't allow anything to be transferred to the chartplotter anyways. These clowns should be ashamed to attach their names to this.

What's new

- View seabed areas in an updated color palette along with details about the nature of the sea floor such as sand, mud, rock or vegetation. Seabed areas menu option will display only where seabed area content exists. Look for new seabed areas content coming for European coverage areas
- Bug fixing and optimization