For UK inshore day boats

Log the catch at sea. The returns do themselves.

DayBoat records each day’s fishing in a few taps, even with no signal. At the end of the month it fills in your IFCA shellfish return from your trips, and emails it for you once you’ve checked and signed it.

Get early access See how it works
  • Works with no signal
  • Cornwall & North Western IFCA returns
  • Big buttons for cold, wet hands
DayBoat's Today screen: a big Log today's catch button, the wind hour by hour, tide times and today's catch by species Logging the catch: edible crab cocks, hens and claws by weight, and lobster with kept and back counts The ICES map with a sub-box selected and the distance-from-shore belts Hour-by-hour wind from the Met Office, with direction, speed, gusts and force

How it works

From the haul to the IFCA’s inbox

Four steps, most of them done before you’re back on the mooring.

  1. Log the day’s catch

    Area, gear, pots hauled, soak time and bait, then the catch by species with weights, numbers and how many went back. Crab cocks, hens and claws are kept apart where your return needs it. DayBoat remembers your usual gear and species.

    Logging a trip in DayBoat

  2. Tap your box on the map

    Pick your ICES rectangle and sub-box, or press “Where am I” and let GPS find it. Choose your distance from shore: 0–3, 3–6, 6–12 or 12+ miles. Your position stays on the phone; only the area code you choose is sent.

    Choosing an ICES box on the map

  3. Your return fills itself in

    At the end of the month your IFCA’s form is built from your trips. DayBoat checks for anything missing, such as pots hauled, soak time, bait, or cocks and hens, and takes you straight to the trip to fix it. Nil months are handled too.

    A monthly return built from the month's trips

  4. Sign it and send it

    Sign once on your phone, preview the form, and DayBoat emails it to the IFCA for you. Their reply comes back to your own email, and the return is marked as sent.

    A return marked as sent

Made for the boat

Everything a day boat writes down, in one place

Works with no signal

Every trip saves on the phone first and sends itself when you’re back in signal. Each one shows whether it’s still on the phone or safely sent.

The ICES map

Rectangles and sub-boxes drawn over the chart, with GPS to find where you are. Your usual area is remembered.

Returns checked first

Before anything goes to the IFCA, DayBoat flags gaps in the month and takes you to the trip that needs fixing. The due date is never far away.

Catch against last year

Every species, month and year next to the same time last year, with green and red arrows. Part way through a month, it compares only up to today’s date.

Tides and wind

Tide times for your nearest station and the Met Office wind, hour by hour, on the first screen. Downloaded in harbour, so they’re still there at sea.

Wheelhouse folder

Insurance, liferaft and EPIRB servicing, flares, licences and crew courses, with photos and PDFs, and what’s expired or due soon.

Owner, skipper, more than one boat

Everyone on the same boat sees the same records, whoever logged the trip. Run two boats? Switch between them from the home screen.

Wet-hands friendly

Big buttons, few screens and nothing fiddly. Built to be used on deck, not at a desk.

Your records are yours

Sign in with a code sent to your email: no passwords. No adverts and no tracking. Your catch is never sold, and a return only goes to your IFCA when you send it.

Catch stats

Better or worse than last year? See it at a glance.

DayBoat puts every month next to the same month last year, species by species, with a green arrow when you’re up and a red one when you’re down. Part way through a month, it compares only up to today’s date, so the 14th is measured against last year’s 14th.

  • Days at sea this month, on your home screen
  • Every species, with its change on last year
  • A month-by-month chart of days at sea, or any one species
Catch stats for the year: days at sea against last year with an up arrow, and a month-by-month chart
Catch by species: this year's and last year's bars for each species, with green up and red down arrows

Monthly returns

The form you used to fill in on the kitchen table

DayBoat builds your IFCA’s own monthly shellfish form from the trips you’ve already logged. You check it, sign it and send it. Replies come straight back to you.

ReadyCornwall IFCAMonthly Shellfish Statistics form
ReadyNorth Western IFCACategory One crab and lobster, and whelk permit returns
On the wayMore IFCAsTell us which one you need and we’ll put it on the list.
A Cornwall IFCA monthly return built from the month's trips
A North Western IFCA permit return

Wheelhouse folder

Certificates in date, without the shoebox

Keep every certificate the boat needs in one list, with a photo or the PDF of each, and see at a glance what’s expired and what’s coming up.

  • Insurance, liferaft and EPIRB servicing, flares and licences
  • Crew courses and tickets
  • Photos and PDFs on every phone on the boat, ready to show or share
  • Expired and due-soon items flagged
The wheelhouse folder listing certificates with expired, due soon and in date labels

Tides & wind

Check the day before you leave the harbour

Tide times and the wind forecast for your nearest tide station, right on the first screen. They download when you have signal, so they’re still there when you don’t.

  • Highs and lows for the week, with heights and a tide curve
  • Met Office wind for the next two days: direction, speed and gusts
  • Coloured by force, so a blowy afternoon stands out
  • Knots, mph or km/h, whichever you prefer

Tide data: ADMIRALTY, © Crown copyright. Wind: contains Met Office data. Predictions, not for navigation.

Hour-by-hour wind for today and tomorrow, with direction arrows, speed, gusts and force
The week's tides for the boat's station, with a tide curve and today's highs and lows

Pricing

One price per boat. Owner and skipper share it.

DayBoat is free while it’s being tested. When it launches, the catch log stays free and one subscription covers the whole boat.

Free

£0

For as long as you like

  • Catch log that works offline
  • ICES map and trip history
  • Tides and wind
  • Preview of your monthly return
  • Up to 3 certificates in the wheelhouse folder

DayBoat

£2.99 a month

or £29.99 a year. First 2 months free.

  • Everything in Free
  • Monthly IFCA returns, sent from the app
  • Unlimited certificates
  • Owners and skippers sharing one boat

Paid through the App Store or Google Play, and cancelled there at any time. If you stop paying, nothing is deleted: your trips and certificates stay readable, and only sending returns stops. Handy for boats that lay up for the winter.

Who makes it

Made with inshore fishermen

DayBoat comes from the developer of iCatch, rebuilt from the deck up with fishermen who use it every day. If something is slow, confusing or hard to use with wet hands, we want to hear about it.

Be one of the first boats on DayBoat

We’re testing with a small group of boats before it goes on the App Store and Google Play. Tell us about yours and we’ll send you an invite.

Get early access Questions & answers