Softwr

Maritime · head to head

Harbour Assist vs ZeroNorth

Harbour Assist logo

Harbour Assist

Maritime

Marina, harbour and boatyard management software for United Kingdom and European operators

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ZeroNorth logo

ZeroNorth

Maritime

Voyage optimisation, bunker procurement and emissions reporting for shipping, priced per vessel per module

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Harbour Assist no pricing is published, and the mandatory setup and data migration fee means the first-year cost is materially above the recurring subscription, which is easy to miss when budgeting.; ZeroNorth zeroNorth reported a net loss of roughly $65m for the 2024 financial year, deepening by around 57 per cent, so a multi-year fleet commitment should include contractual protection on continuity and pricing.
  • They diverge on capability: Harbour Assist covers Berth and mooring management, ZeroNorth covers Voyage optimisation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Harbour Assist and ZeroNorth actually diverge.

Attributes where Harbour Assist and ZeroNorth differ
AttributeHarbour AssistZeroNorth
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Cloud, iOS, Android

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), 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 Harbour Assist

  • Berth and mooring management
  • Contracts and licences
  • Recurring invoicing
  • Customer portal
  • Boatyard work orders
  • Team tasking
  • Online reservations
  • Reporting

Only in ZeroNorth

  • Voyage optimisation
  • Bunker procurement
  • Bunker price intelligence
  • Emissions compliance
  • Vessel selection
  • Agentic voyage automation

What people use each for

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

Harbour Assist

  • A trust port managing several hundred moorings with annual licence renewals and arrears chasingnot ZeroNorth
  • A sailing club combining membership, berthing and bar accounts under one customer recordnot ZeroNorth
  • A boatyard scheduling lifts and winter storage alongside berth contractsnot ZeroNorth
  • A harbour office cutting phone traffic by moving invoice payment and service requests to a customer portalnot ZeroNorth

ZeroNorth

  • A tanker operator wanting speed decisions that account for the freight market rather than optimising fuel in isolationnot Harbour Assist
  • A bunker buyer testing supplier quotes against independent fair value pricing before fixing a stemnot Harbour Assist
  • An owner needing EU ETS and FuelEU Maritime reporting derived from the same voyage data that drives operational decisionsnot Harbour Assist
  • A charterer evaluating which vessel to take on a cargo based on projected voyage economics rather than on nominal specificationsnot Harbour Assist

Where each one falls short

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

Harbour Assist

  • No pricing is published, and the mandatory setup and data migration fee means the first-year cost is materially above the recurring subscription, which is easy to miss when budgeting.
  • The vendor explicitly does not discount, so a small harbour has no negotiating room even when the entry point is a stretch for its budget.
  • Ownership by ClearCourse, a private-equity-backed consolidator of vertical software, brings the pricing and roadmap risks that come with that model, and buyers should ask about uplift terms before committing.
  • It is built for United Kingdom and Irish harbour practice, so an operator elsewhere gets a system full of concepts that do not match local regulation.
  • There is no marketplace or booking demand attached, so unlike Dockwa it fills no berths for you; visitor income still depends on your own marketing.

ZeroNorth

  • ZeroNorth reported a net loss of roughly $65m for the 2024 financial year, deepening by around 57 per cent, so a multi-year fleet commitment should include contractual protection on continuity and pricing.
  • The company consolidated operations during 2025, liquidating a Norwegian subsidiary, which is prudent cost control but means local presence and account continuity may not be what was originally sold.
  • Pricing is per vessel and per module, so the headline vessel figure understates the cost of an owner who wants voyage, bunker and emissions capability across a fleet.
  • Recommendation quality depends on the quality of noon reports and vessel data supplied, and an owner with poor reporting discipline will get poor optimisation regardless of the algorithms.
  • It sits between technical performance tools and chartering systems and fully replaces neither, so most owners run it alongside an existing voyage management system and pay for overlapping capability.

Pricing, plan by plan

Harbour Assist

On request
  • Harbour Assist$undefined/month
    • Quoted by size and complexity of the operation
    • Directory listings place the entry point near GBP 400 per month
    • Mandatory setup and installation fee covering customisation, data migration and training

ZeroNorth

On request
  • ZeroNorth platform$undefined/year
    • Subscription per vessel and per module
    • Voyage optimisation, bunker and emissions modules priced separately
    • Multi-year agreements typical

Which should you pick?

Choose Harbour Assist if

  • You need berth and mooring management.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want contracts and licences.
Harbour Assist review

Choose ZeroNorth if

  • You need voyage optimisation.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, iOS, Android.
  • You also want bunker procurement.
ZeroNorth review

Questions people ask

Is Harbour Assist or ZeroNorth better?
Neither clearly leads. Harbour Assist starts at On request and ZeroNorth at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Harbour Assist or ZeroNorth?
Harbour Assist starts at On request and ZeroNorth at On request.
Does Harbour Assist or ZeroNorth run on more platforms?
Harbour Assist runs on Web, iOS, Android. ZeroNorth runs on Web, Cloud, iOS, Android.
What is Harbour Assist best used for?
Harbour Assist is most often used for a trust port managing several hundred moorings with annual licence renewals and arrears chasing, a sailing club combining membership, berthing and bar accounts under one customer record, a boatyard scheduling lifts and winter storage alongside berth contracts, a harbour office cutting phone traffic by moving invoice payment and service requests to a customer portal. Of those, a trust port managing several hundred moorings with annual licence renewals and arrears chasing and a sailing club combining membership, berthing and bar accounts under one customer record are not what ZeroNorth is typically brought in for.
What can Harbour Assist do that ZeroNorth cannot?
Harbour Assist covers Berth and mooring management, Contracts and licences, Recurring invoicing, Customer portal. ZeroNorth covers Voyage optimisation, Bunker procurement, Bunker price intelligence, Emissions compliance.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Harbour Assist: How much does Harbour Assist cost?

It is quoted by size and complexity. Directory listings put the entry point near 400 pounds a month, and every client also pays a setup fee for customisation, migration and training.

ZeroNorth: How is ZeroNorth priced?

Per vessel and per module on subscription, typically multi-year and quoted. Nothing is published.

Harbour Assist: Does it bring visitor bookings?

No. It takes online visitor reservations through your own website but has no consumer marketplace, so demand generation remains your responsibility.

ZeroNorth: Is ZeroNorth financially stable?

It is well funded, raising $20m in February 2025, but reported a net loss of roughly $65m for 2024. Treat continuity terms as a contractual issue.

Harbour Assist: Who owns it?

ClearCourse, a private-equity-backed group that acquires vertical software businesses in the United Kingdom.

ZeroNorth: Does it replace my voyage management system?

No. It complements commercial voyage management platforms; most owners run both and accept some overlap.

Harbour Assist: Does it handle swinging moorings and drying berths?

Yes, and that is one of the reasons British harbours choose it over marina software designed around American pontoon dockage.

ZeroNorth: Does it need onboard hardware?

No. It works from noon reports, AIS and existing vessel data feeds rather than requiring its own collection box.

Share

Related pages

More on Harbour Assist

More on ZeroNorth

Keep looking

Other head to heads