WindSportTracker vs Waterspeed: Which App Fits You?

Which app should you use to track your sessions?

WindSportTracker is a GPS session tracking app for wingfoiling, windsurfing, kitesurfing and related wind sports on iPhone, Android, Apple Watch and Wear OS. Compared with Waterspeed it focuses on analysis you can inspect run by run — on the map and in a per-second speed chart — plus specialist GPS import and EU data residency. That analysis follows changing wind, not one wind direction and wind speed for the whole session.

Both apps record GPS sessions, work with smartwatches, and offer post-session analysis. They are built around different priorities. This comparison (updated September 2026) covers what each app actually does, where the gaps are, and which type of rider is better served by which tool.

Setup guides: Apple Watch and Wear OS. Feature overview on the homepage.

Pricing first — because it changes the comparison

Waterspeed has three tiers. The free tier only shows your last 5 sessions. Pro unlocks full session history and everyday stats. Ultra adds VMG, polar and leg tools that WindSportTracker includes as standard — listed around €229 per year in EU stores, more than eight times a WindSportTracker annual subscription.

Prices below are EU store examples as of September 2026. App Store and Play Store prices vary by country and tax.

The short version: analysis you can inspect run by run ships with WindSportTracker at €2.70/month. On Waterspeed the closest Ultra view is a list, all runs drawn on the map at once, and a short summary — usually the best numbers. Wave ride analysis is not in Waterspeed at any tier.

Note on the trial: WindSportTracker gives you 27 days of full access with no payment details required. Waterspeed’s 14-day trial requires a credit card upfront.

What “list” vs inspectable runs actually means

Ultra can show a list of VMG or downwind runs. You see those runs together on the map and a mini statistic — typically the best of the set. That is readable information. It is not the same as opening one run and working through it.

In WindSportTracker you pick a single run (or several) and show it on the map and in the speed chart. Over the speed chart you can follow that run second by second: speed, VMG speed, wind direction, wind speed, heart rate, and angle to the wind. Selected analysis — speed, VMG, 1-leg, downwinds, turns, waves — is marked on the same graph.

Waterspeed also has a speed graph. It shows speed and heart rate, and you can step through it. It is not zoomable, so you cannot isolate one second at a time in context. Precise analysis needs zoom: only then can you walk the track second by second. Waterspeed does not overlay VMG, legs, turns or waves on that graph.

The same pattern repeats across VMG, polar, legs, and upwind/downwind: Waterspeed Ultra summarises; WindSportTracker lets you select and analyse.

Feature comparison

Analysis quality: not just depth, but accuracy

Both apps detect maneuvers. Detection quality is not the same as detection count.

WindSportTracker uses sport-specific algorithms tuned separately for each discipline. A jibe on a windsurf board looks different from a jibe on a wing or a kite. Generic detection treats all of them the same, producing false positives: turns counted where no real maneuver happened, or genuine transitions missed entirely.

WST classifies each jibe by outcome — fully planing or foiling through the turn, partial, or crashed — giving you data you can actually act on. If your port jibes crash twice as often as your starboard jibes, that shows up directly.

360s are not tacks or jibes. A 360 is its own maneuver. WindSportTracker detects 360s automatically. Waterspeed does not. For wingfoilers and windsurfers practising rotations, that is not a minor gap.

On foiling and planing: WST has detected those transitions in the algorithm for years, from GPS signatures, calibrated per sport and refined against real sessions. That makes planing and foiling time comparable across sessions, riders and equipment. In Waterspeed each user can set the foil speed themselves. Once the threshold is user-set, the numbers are no longer comparable — and they cannot be treated as an accurate, shared measurement.

Wind is the same accuracy problem. On the water it shifts. WST follows those wind shifts, so VMG, polar, upwind and downwind stay aligned with the conditions you actually rode. Waterspeed uses one wind direction and wind speed for the whole session. Once the wind is frozen, every run is judged against the same assumed value — and the numbers stop being an accurate picture of that session.

GNSS accuracy: experience that shows in the data

Reliable GPS data on the water is harder to get right than it looks. Power management, sensor fusion, and watersport conditions (wet hands, neoprene, waterproof cases, screen-off recording) all affect the position data that feeds every speed calculation, maneuver detection and analysis downstream.

Phones typically deliver 1 Hz GNSS. Dedicated loggers and some watches record at higher rates. WindSportTracker is built to analyse both: it uses the extra samples when a device provides them, and it still has to get usable results from 1 Hz phone tracks. At 1 Hz the algorithm matters as much as the chip — smoothing, outlier handling and sport-specific signatures decide whether a jibe, a foil start or a speed peak is real.

WindSportTracker has been built around GNSS tracking on phones and watches for over ten years — Android phones, iPhones, Garmin watches, Apple Watch, Wear OS — by Matthias Koch, who uses the app on every session across multiple sports. That is why the data is consistently usable for speed analysis and maneuver detection, not just a rough track on a map.

Device support: specialist GPS hardware

If you use the dedicated GPS logging devices common in speedsurfing and racing, WindSportTracker is the practical option among these two apps:

• Locosys GT11, GT31, GW52, GW60 — SBN and SBP file import
• Motion GPS — OAO file import
• ESP32-GPS / DIY GPS builds — GPY file import
• Vakaros — VKX file import supported

Waterspeed supports Vakaros and standard GPX/FIT. Nothing else in this list.

Privacy: a verifiable difference

WindSportTracker stores all data on servers in Germany under EU law (GDPR). No third-party data sharing. No ads. No tracking.

Waterspeed is operated by Waterspeed Technologies Limited, registered in Dubai, UAE — outside the EU’s data protection framework. Their Play Store data safety disclosure states that data including location and personal information may be shared with third parties.

If you are EU-based, or if you care about where years of GPS session data are stored and who can access them, this is worth knowing before you commit.

What Waterspeed does better

Live safety tracking: family members can follow your session in real time. WindSportTracker does not offer this.

Session compare and merge: Waterspeed can compare sessions side by side and merge tracks into one. In WindSportTracker, session compare is manual; session merge is not available.

Community: social feed, challenges, and leaderboards are available in Waterspeed.

Sport breadth: 30+ sports including paddling, kayaking, and SUP — useful if you train across multiple disciplines beyond wind sports.

Which app is right for you

Choose WindSportTracker if:

• You want accurate, reliable GPS data — on Android, iPhone, Wear OS, or Apple Watch
• You want to inspect individual runs on the map and in the speed chart — not only read a list
• You need analysis that follows wind shifts, not one wind value for the whole session
• You have long sessions, or sessions with changing weather — if you stay at one spot and the wind shifts, WST factors that into analysis and calculations
• You use a GT31, GW60, Motion GPS, or any SBN/SBP/GPY device
• You want voice feedback or a top-speed vibration alarm while riding
• You care about privacy and EU data residency
• Your sport is wingfoil, windsurf, kitesurfing, pumpfoil, e-foil, or parawing

Choose Waterspeed if:

• Live safety tracking for family is a priority
• You want community features — leaderboards, challenges, social feed
• You do multiple water sports beyond wind disciplines and want one app for all of them
• You want in-app session compare and session merge (WST compare is manual; merge is not available)

Try WindSportTracker

The 27-day trial gives you full access on Android, iPhone, Apple Watch, Wear OS, and the web — no features locked, no payment details required until you decide to continue.

Frequently asked questions

Does WindSportTracker work without a smartwatch?

Yes. Record with your Android or iPhone directly. A waterproof case and the phone in a pocket works well for most sessions.

Can I import sessions from Waterspeed into WindSportTracker?

Yes. Waterspeed can export GPX. Import those files into WindSportTracker. Full analysis — maneuvers, speed profiles, wave rides — runs on imported files.

I have a GT31 or GW60. Does WindSportTracker support it?

Yes. Import SBN or SBP files directly. Full analysis works on all imported files.

What happens to my gear data if I sell a board or foil?

Archive the gear in WindSportTracker. All sessions tagged to that equipment remain visible and analysable. Nothing is deleted.

Where is WindSportTracker based?

Developed by Sunbits (Matthias Koch) in Germany. All data is stored in data centres in Germany.