BOATING SAFETY APP · LIVE TRACKING + SOS · FREE iPHONE BETA

The worst day on the water, already handled.

The people ashore watch you move with just a link. And if something goes wrong, your position, your boat and a one-tap 911 call are already on one screen.

Get the free beta Safety gear by boat

Boating elsewhere? AustraliaNew ZealandUSAEurope

Boat tracking app live link: your boat's position, speed and phone battery on a map, shared with family ashore · VesselSOSBoat trip tracking: trip in progress with return time and who can see you live · VesselSOSCall 911 from a boat: the call script reads your position out in words; on the coast the app shows Coast Guard Sector Miami · VesselSOSWaiting for Coast Guard rescue: checklist until help arrives and a text message with your live location link · VesselSOSBoat towing with TowBoatUS and Sea Tow: engine failure or dead battery: one tap calls the 24-hour dispatch line · VesselSOS
SAFETY GEAR · BY BOAT

What do you take out?

Build your full checklist →

Lake day, sandbar, sunset cruise. Someone ashore sees you on the map the whole time.

LIFE JACKET
Life jacket (USCG-approved) FEDERAL MINIMUM
One wearable per person, the right size, within reach. Kids under 13 wear it underway unless your state sets its own age.
THROWABLE
Throwable cushion or ring FEDERAL MINIMUM
Required on boats 16 ft and over, ready to throw. Canoes and kayaks are exempt.
EXTINGUISHER
Fire extinguisher (5-B) FEDERAL MINIMUM
Required on most boats with an engine; outboards under 26 ft with no enclosed spaces are exempt. Disposables expire 12 years after the date stamp.
FLARES
Visual distress signals COASTAL & GREAT LAKES
Day and night signals on coastal waters and the Great Lakes (boats 16 ft+). Not federally required on inland lakes. Flares expire 42 months after manufacture.
The powerboat basics Federal minimums plus good practice. Your state may add more.
Open the checklist →

Federal minimums from 33 CFR 175, 33 CFR 83 and 46 U.S.C. 4312, checked Oct 2026. States add their own rules, and laws change: confirm with the Coast Guard and your state boating agency. Full tables: Coast Guard required equipment · life jacket laws by state.

Works offline.
GPS needs no cell signal. Your position is always on screen.
Ocean, Great Lakes, lake or river.
One-tap 911 everywhere in US waters, plus your Coast Guard sector on the coast.
Nothing to install ashore.
Your people open a link. That’s it.
LIVE TRACKING

Ashore, they see you. Live.

Tap “Going to sea” and text your chosen people a link. It opens in any browser and shows position, speed, course and battery, until you tap “I’m ashore”.

→ Nothing to install, no account on their end→ You decide who sees it, and the link expires on its own

On the water, where are you, exactly?

A 911 dispatcher needs a location, and “on the lake” isn’t one. On the coast and the Great Lakes, a VHF radio on Channel 16 is still your first call. When all you have is a phone, the first minute decides how fast help finds you.

WITHOUT THE APP
1
You call 911
The dispatcher asks where you are. You’re somewhere off a shoreline you can barely see.
2
You describe the scenery
A point, a cove, a channel marker, in the wind, with a wet phone in one hand.
3
They work out who responds
The sheriff’s marine unit, conservation officers, fire rescue or the Coast Guard, depending on the water.
4
Meanwhile, you drift
Every minute spent on “where” is a minute nobody is on the way.
WITH VESSELSOS
1
Your position, ready to read
Latitude and longitude spelled out in words, plus a prompt to name your lake, river or bay.
2
One question, then it dials 911
Is a life in danger? Yes, and the app calls 911 at once. On the coast it also shows the responsible Coast Guard sector.
3
The words are already written
“Boat emergency, I’m on the water,” then who, where, what happened and how many, line by line.
BY POSITION, NOT SIM CARD COASTS · GREAT LAKES · INLAND WATERS

Life at risk, or just a dead engine?

THE APP ROUTES YOU TO
911 · VHF Channel 16

With a radio, a MAYDAY on Channel 16 reaches the Coast Guard and every boat nearby, and the app shows the script. By phone, it dials 911 with your position and a word-for-word script on screen. It never gets between you and help; it makes the call faster.

Boating safety app: SOS button, 911 and the Coast Guard sector for your position · VesselSOSBoat emergency SOS: is anyone's life in danger? Yes dials 911, no opens towing · VesselSOSVHF channel 16 MAYDAY: the official distress call script filled in with your boat's name, call sign and position · VesselSOS
THREE STEPS

Nobody remembers coordinates in a panic.

01
Press SOS

One big red button, on every screen. Your coordinates are ready, no cell signal needed.

02
Answer one question

Is anyone’s life in danger? Yes dials 911 at once. No takes you to TowBoatUS and Sea Tow.

03
Read it out

Step by step: who you are, where, what happened. On the radio, the official MAYDAY with your call sign in the NATO alphabet.

The SOS screen is free. Forever.

Calling for help never sits behind a paywall. Plus adds live tracking and your contacts.
FREENO ACCOUNT
$0
FOREVER
SOS screen with your positionOne-tap 911 call with a word-for-word scriptMAYDAY script + position by text message
PLUSFREE DURING BETA
$0
IN BETA · ACCOUNT NEEDED
Text your SOS and a live link to your contactsBoat profile goes into the call scriptLive tracking, return-time check, trip history
PROCOMING SOON
$9.99
PER YEAR
Everything in PlusFamily sharing — up to 5 peopleNot available yet — no payment now

During the beta, Plus is free with an account, and we never ask for payment details. If paid plans come later, the price will be shown in the app before you buy anything.

What VesselSOS does not replace.

A beacon is a beacon, and a radio is a radio. This is the backup that's always with you, and on most small boats the only thing there.
EPIRB Satellite beacon registered to the boat Anywhere, far offshore included Cospas-Sarsat satellites → rescue coordinators See the gear
PLB Personal beacon on your life jacket Anywhere with open sky Same satellites, tied to a person See the gear
VHF-DSC Marine radio with a digital distress button Within radio range of the coast and other boats Coast Guard + boats nearby, at once See the gear
VesselSOS The phone that's with you anyway Wherever you have cell coverage 911 and your people Get the free beta
BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE DOCK

Four minutes, once.

01
Your phone number
A text code instead of a password. It also goes into the call script, so responders can call you back.
02
Add the boat
Name, type, length in feet, color, MMSI, call sign: the first things you'll be asked.
03
Choose your people
As many as you like, each set to None, Emergency or Live.
04
Allow location
“Always”, so tracking works with the phone locked. Used only during a trip.

Questions people actually ask.

Does the app call the Coast Guard? +

No. In US waters, “Yes, a life is in danger” dials 911. On coastal waters and the Great Lakes the screen also shows the responsible Coast Guard sector, and radio mode gives you the Channel 16 MAYDAY script for your own VHF. The app isn’t connected to the Coast Guard or to any 911 system: it dials the call and shows you the words.

When does the US version arrive? +

US support (911, Coast Guard sector names, American English, miles and mph) is in version 1.4 of the iPhone beta (October 2026). Update the app in TestFlight if you have an older build: earlier versions treat US waters as outside their coverage. The app is a TestFlight beta by invite; it isn’t in the App Store yet, and there’s no Android version.

Does it replace a VHF radio, EPIRB or PLB? +

No. The Coast Guard doesn’t consider a cell phone a substitute for a VHF marine radio, and a beacon works where there’s no cell signal at all. VesselSOS is the fast backup that’s there when the radio and beacon aren’t, and the only option on many small boats.

Does it work on inland lakes and rivers? +

Yes. On inland waters the SOS screen dials 911, which reaches the local responders, often the county sheriff’s marine unit, state conservation officers or fire rescue. Your position works offline; the call itself needs cell coverage.

How much battery does it use? +

Ashore, none: the app doesn’t track you outside a trip. During a trip it reports in the background at the interval you choose (every 30 seconds by default, roughly 4% an hour by our estimate), and slows to every 5 minutes below 20% battery. The people watching see your battery level.

What if I don’t come back on time? +

Set a return time when you leave. If you haven’t ended the trip by then, your phone asks you “Are you OK?”. That’s all it does today: nobody else is alerted automatically. Automatic texts to your contacts are planned but not built yet, so also leave a float plan with someone who will act on it.

Who can see my position? +

Only the people you send the link to. It stops when you tap “I’m ashore” (a quick share link lasts one hour), and we never sell or share location data.

Be aboard first.

We're testing on iPhone now. We'll email you the day VesselSOS opens to everyone in the App Store. Android comes later.

Launch email always included. Never shared or sold, one-click unsubscribe. Privacy notice

IMPORTANT

VesselSOS is an aid, not a rescue service. It doesn't replace a VHF radio, an EPIRB or PLB, the Coast Guard-required equipment on your boat, or a call to 911, and it depends on your phone's battery, GPS and coverage.

SUPPORT

A human answers within one business day.

support@vesselsos.com