The bite score is the app's estimate of how good an hour is for fishing at the chosen place.
The score of an hour
- A number from 0 to 100 for every hour of the day.
- 50 is a typical daylight hour. Most hours fall between about 30 and 85. The score is a scale, not a percentage chance of catching a fish.
- Next to the number is a word: Great, Good, Fair or Slow.
You see it in the Bite score section of the forecast, as a row of bars — one per hour.
What goes into it
- Tide — a rising tide and moving water score higher; slack water adds nothing.
- Dawn and dusk — the hours around sunrise and sunset score highest.
- Wind — only ever lowers the score, the more the stronger it blows.
- Rain — a light shower adds a little; drizzle and heavy rain add nothing.
- Moon — a small bonus when the moon is overhead or underfoot, and around the new moon.
- Overcast sky in the daytime — a small bonus.
Air pressure, water temperature, waves and air temperature are shown in the forecast but are not part of the hourly score. The score is not specific to a species.
If some data is missing, the score is worked out from what is there. Away from tidal water there is no tide part; without weather data the app says "bite score uses tide & sun/moon only".
The best fishing windows
A window is a stretch of consecutive hours with a high score: at least one hour of 70 or more, together with the hours around it that stay at 50 or more.
- A window is usually two hours or longer; there is no upper limit.
- A day can have several windows, or none: "No strong windows today".
- The number at the end of the row, for example 70 peak, is the best hourly score inside the window.
- A Caution line warns about strong wind or swell during a window. It is our guide, not an official warning.
The number in the ring of each day
The ring on each day is the score of the whole day, out of 100, built from that day's daylight hours.
- A typical day is in the low 60s; 90 or more is an exceptionally good day; under 25 is a poor one.
- The ring is blue from 50 up and grey below.
- Rough weather limits the day's score whatever the tide and the moon — strong wind, gusts, heavy rain or, at sea, high waves.
- A faded ring means the day was scored without weather data — from the tide, sun and moon only.
- A dash instead of a number means there is not enough data to rate the day.
The score on a catch
A logged catch shows the score for the moment and place it was caught, with a word — Great, Average or Poor: Open a catch and read its conditions
Good to know
The score is an estimate built from the tide, the sun, the moon and the weather. It cannot promise fish, and it knows nothing about the local rules or the safety of the water. Official weather warnings never change the score — read them separately: Official weather warnings