Is MyShipTracking Free, and What Do the Pricing Plans Add?

MyShipTracking is presented as a free realtime AIS vessel tracking service: the site describes itself as a "FREE REALTIME AIS vessel finder tracking service" where you can monitor ship positions, vessel traffic, and port activity on a realtime map. The site also links to pricing and plans pages, which indicates paid options exist alongside the free map — but the available page material does not list prices or state exactly what each plan includes. Treat the free map as the default starting point and check the pricing pages directly before relying on any paid feature.

What the free service covers

Based on the site's own description and the map interface, the free offering centers on:

• Realtime vessel positions on an interactive map, with vessel details such as size, build, speed, and voyage status (under way using engine, at anchor, moored, engaged in fishing, and similar states).
• Port information: a port database, port calls, and the ability to submit a new port.
• Map and layer controls: standard, dark, satellite, and Navionics base maps; overlays including OpenSeaMap, graticule, daylight, and contributors; vessel-type icons and labels; and weather layers for wind, temperature, cloud cover, rain, and pressure.
• Tracking tools: past track and history, playback with speed multipliers, distance measurement, fleet mode, "My Areas," and saved views.
• Mobile apps for iOS and Android, plus an embeddable map.

The site's disclaimer states that all data is provided for informational purposes only, "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE," without warranties, and that reliability and accuracy are not guaranteed. That applies to the free service as described.

What the pricing pages suggest

The navigation includes Pricing, Plans, API for AIS Data, and Services, and there are dedicated pricing pages at /pricing/contributors and /services/pricing-plans. This structure implies that at least some capabilities — most plausibly API access to AIS data and certain service tiers — sit behind a plan rather than the free map.

What the available material does not show: specific prices, free-trial terms, feature-by-feature plan comparisons, or whether login is required for any particular feature. The page includes Login and account links, but nothing in the provided content states that the free map requires an account. Don't assume either way — confirm on the pricing pages.

How to decide whether you need a plan

Use this as a practical checklist:

1. Start with the free map. Search for your vessel or port, open vessel details, and try the layers and playback tools. If your task is occasional position checks or general port activity monitoring, the free interface as described may be enough.
2. Identify the capability you actually need. If your need is programmatic access (feeding positions into your own application), the "API for AIS Data" entry is the relevant one — that is the area most likely to be plan-based.
3. Open the pricing pages before committing. Go to the Pricing and Plans links in the site navigation and read the current terms, since prices and inclusions are not documented in the material available here.
4. Check the reliability caveat against your use case. Because the site disclaims accuracy guarantees, avoid treating any tier as suitable for safety-critical navigation decisions without independent verification.

Quick reference

If you only need to look up where a ship is or what is happening at a port, begin with the free map and its layer and playback tools. If you need data delivered through an API or a service arrangement, go straight to the pricing and plans pages to confirm current terms before building anything on top of it.