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Maritime · head to head

Clarksons vs Vortexa

Clarksons logo

Clarksons

Maritime

World's leading shipbroker and data provider

From
$3000/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Vortexa logo

Vortexa

Maritime

Real-time seaborne energy cargo flow data sold as a subscription to a feed, not an application

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Clarksons no pricing published on website; Vortexa cargo attribution is inference from AIS, imagery and pattern analysis, not measurement, so grade and volume figures carry an error band that matters if you size a position on them and the vendor cannot fully quantify it for every route.
  • They diverge on capability: Clarksons covers Market intelligence, Vortexa covers Cargo-level flow tracking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Clarksons and Vortexa actually diverge.

Attributes where Clarksons and Vortexa differ
AttributeClarksonsVortexa
Starting price$3000/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWeb, ApiWeb, Cloud, API
Founded1852Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Maritime).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Clarksons

  • Market intelligence
  • Fleet database
  • Freight rates
  • Research reports
  • API
  • Excel add-in
  • Data exports
  • Web support

Only in Vortexa

  • Cargo-level flow tracking
  • Multi-commodity coverage
  • Floating storage analytics
  • API, Excel and Python access
  • Anywhere Freight Pricing
  • Satellite and AIS fusion

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Clarksons

  • Maritime brokerage and shipping servicesnot Vortexa
  • Ship finance and leasingnot Vortexa
  • Shipping market researchnot Vortexa
  • Port services and operationsnot Vortexa

Vortexa

  • A crude trading desk sizing a position on inferred cargo flows into a region before customs data confirms them weeks laternot Clarksons
  • A shipowner assessing tonne-mile demand and ballast patterns to decide where to reposition vesselsnot Clarksons
  • A refiner tracking competing product cargoes arriving into its market to anticipate margin pressurenot Clarksons
  • A research team pulling flow data into Python models rather than reading a vendor dashboardnot Clarksons

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Clarksons

  • No pricing published on website
  • Pricing model not disclosed
  • Enterprise maritime services requiring custom quotes
  • Multiple business lines (broking, finance, research, ports, tech) with different pricing
  • Direct sales contact required

Vortexa

  • Cargo attribution is inference from AIS, imagery and pattern analysis, not measurement, so grade and volume figures carry an error band that matters if you size a position on them and the vendor cannot fully quantify it for every route.
  • What you buy is a feed rather than an application, so a firm without quantitative capability to consume it gets far less value than the subscription costs, and the terminal alone rarely justifies the price.
  • Pricing is by seat and by data scope with nothing published, so cost scales with how many analysts need access, which discourages exactly the broad internal distribution that would make the data useful.
  • It overlaps materially with other commodity flow subscriptions and price reporting services, and most desks that buy Vortexa are paying twice for a partly duplicated picture.
  • Coverage quality varies by trade and region; dark fleet activity, ship-to-ship transfers and sanctioned trades are the hardest cases and also the ones where accurate data is worth the most.

Pricing, plan by plan

Clarksons

$3000/month
  • Shipping Intelligence Network$5000/month
    • Market data
    • Fleet database
    • Research reports

Vortexa

On request
  • Vortexa$undefined/year
    • Subscription priced by seat and by data scope
    • API, Excel add-in and Python SDK access licensed separately from terminal seats
    • Commodity coverage selectable, crude, products, LPG, LNG

Which should you pick?

Choose Clarksons if

  • You need market intelligence.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want fleet database.
Clarksons review

Choose Vortexa if

  • You need cargo-level flow tracking.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, API.
  • You also want multi-commodity coverage.
Vortexa review

Questions people ask

Is Clarksons or Vortexa better?
Neither clearly leads. Clarksons starts at $3000/month and Vortexa at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Clarksons or Vortexa?
Clarksons starts at $3000/month and Vortexa at On request.
Does Clarksons or Vortexa run on more platforms?
Clarksons runs on Web, Api. Vortexa runs on Web, Cloud, API.
What is Clarksons best used for?
Clarksons is most often used for maritime brokerage and shipping services, ship finance and leasing, shipping market research, port services and operations. Of those, maritime brokerage and shipping services and ship finance and leasing are not what Vortexa is typically brought in for.
What can Clarksons do that Vortexa cannot?
Clarksons covers Market intelligence, Fleet database, Freight rates, Research reports. Vortexa covers Cargo-level flow tracking, Multi-commodity coverage, Floating storage analytics, API, Excel and Python access.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Clarksons: How much does Clarksons charge for its services?

Clarksons does not publish pricing on its website. The company operates as a marine and shipping services provider with five business lines. Pricing is customized by service line and must be obtained by contacting Clarksons directly.

Source
Vortexa: Is Vortexa an application or a data feed?

Fundamentally a data feed. There is a web terminal, but the API, Excel add-in and Python SDK are how most subscribers actually use it.

Clarksons: Which Clarksons division should I contact for pricing?

Clarksons has five business divisions: Broking, Financial Services, Research, Port Services, and Technology. Contact their specific department for pricing relevant to your needs.

Source
Vortexa: Are the cargo volumes measured or estimated?

Estimated. Vortexa infers cargo, grade and volume from AIS, satellite imagery and pattern analysis. Treat the numbers as estimates with an error band.

Vortexa: How is it priced?

By seat and by data scope, quoted annually. Redistribution and derived-data rights are negotiated separately and matter for internal use.

Vortexa: Does it cover LNG and LPG as well as oil?

Yes, alongside crude and refined products, though commodity scope affects what you pay.

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