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Maritime · head to head

StormGlass vs Vortexa

StormGlass logo

StormGlass

Maritime

Global weather data API for maritime

From
Free
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

  • Only StormGlass has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: StormGlass the free tier allows 10 API requests per day and is not licensed for commercial use; 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: StormGlass covers Marine weather data, 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 StormGlass and Vortexa actually diverge.

Attributes where StormGlass and Vortexa differ
AttributeStormGlassVortexa
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsApiWeb, Cloud, API
Founded2017Unknown

Identical on both: 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 StormGlass

  • Marine weather data
  • Wave forecasts
  • Tide data
  • Historical weather
  • REST API
  • Webhooks
  • SDKs
  • Api 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.

StormGlass

  • Pulling marine weather and sea state forecasts into a vessel routing or planning toolnot Vortexa
  • Adding tide, wave and wind data to a maritime or coastal applicationnot Vortexa

Vortexa

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

Where each one falls short

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

StormGlass

  • The free tier allows 10 API requests per day and is not licensed for commercial use
  • Commercial use and any support at all start at the Medium plan, 49 euros a month
  • The Small plan at 19 euros a month has no support and no commercial licence
  • Request allowances are daily rather than monthly, so a burst of traffic cannot borrow against a quiet week

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

StormGlass

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 10 requests per day
    • All weather parameters
    • Not for commercial use
  • Small$19/month
    • 500 requests per day
    • All weather parameters
    • 10% annual discount available
  • Medium$49/month
    • 5000 requests per day
    • All weather parameters
    • Full support
  • Large$129/month
    • 25000 requests per day
    • All weather parameters
    • Full support

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 StormGlass if

  • You need marine weather data.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Api.
  • You also want wave forecasts.
StormGlass 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 StormGlass or Vortexa better?
Neither clearly leads. StormGlass starts at Free and Vortexa at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, StormGlass or Vortexa?
StormGlass has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for StormGlass and On request for Vortexa.
Does StormGlass or Vortexa run on more platforms?
StormGlass runs on Api. Vortexa runs on Web, Cloud, API.
Can I use StormGlass for free?
Yes. StormGlass has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Vortexa starts at On request.
What is StormGlass best used for?
StormGlass is most often used for pulling marine weather and sea state forecasts into a vessel routing or planning tool, adding tide, wave and wind data to a maritime or coastal application. Of those, pulling marine weather and sea state forecasts into a vessel routing or planning tool and adding tide, wave and wind data to a maritime or coastal application are not what Vortexa is typically brought in for.
What can StormGlass do that Vortexa cannot?
StormGlass covers Marine weather data, Wave forecasts, Tide data, Historical weather. Vortexa covers Cargo-level flow tracking, Multi-commodity coverage, Floating storage analytics, API, Excel and Python access.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

StormGlass: Is there a free tier available?

Yes, Stormglass offers a free plan with 10 API requests per day, including all weather parameters, but it is not permitted for commercial use.

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.

StormGlass: What does the Medium plan include?

The Medium plan costs 49 EUR per month and includes 5000 daily requests, all weather parameters, and full support for commercial use.

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.

StormGlass: Is annual billing available?

Yes, a 10% discount is available when paying annually on Small, Medium, and Large plans.

Source
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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