Deco planner comparison
Decosoft vs Dive Kit
Two Bühlmann deco planners for the phone, priced and built differently
Both plan open circuit and CCR dives with Bühlmann ZH-L16C and gradient factors, with trimix, bailout and lost-gas scenarios, on iOS and Android. Decosoft is a Czech subscription app that releases often and works with dive centres. Dive Kit sells the planner once for life, keeps eleven tools free, and publishes its engine's cross-check against MultiDeco.
Common ground
The same model, the same kind of diver
Both are built for technical divers planning on a phone.
Bühlmann ZH-L16C with gradient factors
Both run the same published dissolved-gas model with GF low and GF high. Neither offers VPM-B; for that, see MultiDeco or Subsurface.
Open circuit, CCR and trimix
Both plan nitrox and trimix on open circuit and on a rebreather, with bailout planning and a lost-gas scenario, plus altitude and water type.
Gas tools and plan sharing
Both bundle gas calculators (MOD, END, EAD, SAC, best mix, blending) and share a plan by link, on iOS and Android.
Two ZH-L16C planners can still give different schedules for the same dive: the model leaves stop rounding, last-stop handling and gas-switch timing to the implementer. Dive Kit publishes its engine's results next to MultiDeco's for 33 dives (decompression starts within one stop on 33); agreement shows the arithmetic matches, it does not show a plan is safe. A comparable published check for Decosoft is not documented on Decosoft's site or store listings as of 30 October 2026.
Where they differ in use
Decosoft screenshots from its Android app, taken on 2 November 2026.
Entering a dive
Decosoft walks through one screen per step: depths, then tanks, then a screen that assigns a tank to each depth, then the result. Changing a gas means going back through the steps. Dive Kit keeps the whole plan on one screen; a level or a gas opens in a sheet over it, and the result updates as you edit.
Decosoft
Dive Kit
The plan and its what-ifs
Decosoft shows a runtime table with a graph and gas consumption, and plans repetitive dives. Its lost-gas case is a "disable" button on each gas in the consumption list; the deeper and longer cases are not in the app. Dive Kit computes the contingencies in one pass: deeper (+3/+5 m), longer (+3/+5 min), a lost-gas tab per cylinder and custom failure scenarios, each with its own schedule and gas figures.
When a gas runs out
On our 55 m trimix plan, Decosoft's consumption list showed the bottom gas ending at −12 bar, with a red bar and no warning anywhere in the plan; the result looks the same as a plan with gas to spare. Decosoft's site lists gas sufficiency warnings, but none appeared. Dive Kit flags a gas that runs short of its reserve, or runs out, in the plan's warnings bar and its Plan Issues sheet, on the base plan and on every contingency.
Decosoft
Dive Kit
Rebreather bailout
Decosoft plans a CCR dive with a diluent, a list of bailout tanks and a switch to use the diluent as bailout (since version 6.3.0). Dive Kit lets you place the bailout at any point of a CCR dive, including mid-stop, with a setpoint schedule, dilout switches and an isobaric counter-diffusion check on the bailout gases.
Decosoft
Dive Kit
Sharing with a buddy
Decosoft's Share button opens the phone's share sheet with a text message that contains a link; the recipient opens it in the app and sees the plan with their own settings. Dive Kit shares by link or QR code; a buddy without the app opens it in a browser viewer at divekit.app, and the plan also exports as a printable A6 slate (image or PDF). A browser viewer for Decosoft plans is not documented on Decosoft's site or store listings as of 30 October 2026.
Free tools around the planner
Decosoft's calculators (bottom time, SAC, MOD, END, EAD, best mix, nitrox and trimix blending, top-up) come with its one paid tier, after a 14-day trial, and each shows its answer after you press Calculate. Dive Kit's eleven tools (blending, best mix, gas specs, gas usage, SAC/SRMV, weighting, cylinders, units and more) are free in the app without a trial, update as you type, and nine of them also run free on this website.
Decosoft
Dive Kit
Feature by feature
Decosoft facts from its site and store listings on 30 October 2026 and its Android app on 2 November 2026. "Not documented" means we found it in none of them.
| Feature | Dive Kit | Decosoft | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algorithm | ZH-L16C + GF | ZH-L16C + GF | Same model in both. Neither offers VPM-B. |
| Open circuit, trimix | Yes | Yes | Decosoft added hypoxic trimix in 6.4.0. |
| CCR with bailout | Yes | Yes | Dive Kit places the bailout anywhere in the dive; Decosoft can use the diluent as bailout (6.3.0). |
| Lost-gas scenario | Yes | Yes | Decosoft: a "disable" button per gas on the result. Dive Kit: a lost-gas tab per cylinder. |
| Deeper / longer contingencies | +3/+5 m, +3/+5 min, custom | No | |
| Multi-level dives | Yes | Yes | Decosoft also plans repetitive dives. |
| Twinset cylinders | Yes | No | Decosoft's tank form takes one volume per tank. |
| Plan entry | One screen | One screen per step | Decosoft: depths, tanks, tank per depth, then the result. |
| Results update as you type | Yes | No | Decosoft's calculators answer after you press Calculate. |
| CNS / OTU | Yes | Yes | |
| Warning when a gas runs out | Yes | No | Decosoft showed −12 bar left on a bottom gas with no warning in our test. |
| Gas density warning | Yes | Not documented | Decosoft documents gas sufficiency, MOD, END and altitude warnings. |
| Plan sharing | Link · QR · browser viewer | Text with a link, via the share sheet | Decosoft recipients open the plan in the app with their own settings. |
| Printable slate | A6 image or PDF | Not documented | |
| Works offline | Yes | Not documented | Dive Kit computes everything on the device. |
| Account needed | No | Not confirmed | Decosoft's website has sign-up pages; whether the app requires one is not stated. |
| Published engine cross-check | 33 dives vs MultiDeco | Not published | Decosoft's landing page says "validated math" without linking data. |
| Free tools | 11 in the app, 9 on the web | In the paid tier | Decosoft has a 14-day trial. |
| Price | $24.99 lifetime or $4.99/month | $3.99/month or $39.99/year | Decosoft's App Store page also lists one-off "Ultimate" purchases from $20.99 and partner prices. |
| Languages | 8 | English (store); EN, ES, PL, CS (site FAQ) | |
| Platforms | iOS · iPad · Mac (M1, iPad app) · visionOS · Android | iOS · iPad · Mac (M1, iPad app) · visionOS · Android | Decosoft says a web version may come later. |
| Release cadence | 48 releases, Oct 2025 to Nov 2026 | About 25 iOS releases, Oct 2024 to Sep 2026 | Dive Kit's from its public changelog, defects included. |
| Dive-centre partner programme | No | Yes | Decosoft shares revenue on student subscriptions. |
Where Dive Kit differs
- A published cross-check of the engine against MultiDeco on 33 dives
- A one-time $24.99 lifetime price, and eleven free tools without a trial
- Contingencies in one pass: +3/+5 m, +3/+5 min, lost gas per cylinder, custom failure scenarios
- The whole plan on one screen, and results that update as you type
- CCR bailout from any point of the dive
- A warning on every scenario when a gas runs short of its reserve or runs out
- Plans open in a browser for a buddy without the app, and export as an A6 slate
- Eight languages, offline, no account
Frequently asked questions
Decosoft vs Dive Kit, answered with sources.
Do Decosoft and Dive Kit use the same decompression algorithm?
Is Dive Kit a good Decosoft alternative?
Which is cheaper over one year and over three years?
Which one has free tools?
Can a buddy without the app open my plan?
Does either app publish a check of its numbers?
How do they differ for CCR bailout?
Which languages do they support?
Sources
Decosoft details were read on 30 October 2026 from decosoft.app (features, pricing, landing page FAQ, partner programme), its US App Store listing (version 6.9.4, 14 September 2026) and its Google Play listing (3.3 stars from 13 reviews, 5,000+ installs). Decosoft is made by Decosoft s.r.o. in Czechia and debuted at DEMA 2024. On 2 November 2026 we also planned dives in its Android app; the Decosoft screenshots are from that session. We have not run a numeric schedule comparison against Decosoft; this page compares documented features, prices and published evidence, not measured deco tables. We make Dive Kit, so read this page as one side's account: every Decosoft fact above has its source, and corrections are welcome at hello@divekit.app.
Get Dive Kit
Eleven tools free. Deco Planner: free trial, then $4.99/month or $24.99 lifetime.