Solo vs group diving: benefits, limits and safety

The buddy system is one of the foundational principles of recreational diving: you always dive with at least one other person. But within that framework, there is a wide spectrum of how diving is actually organised, from intimate pairs to guided groups of 12 or more. And on the other end of the spectrum, there is the controversial practice of solo diving, now formalised through the PADI Self-Reliant Diver specialty. This guide examines every format honestly, so you can decide what works best for your experience level, goals and comfort.

Why does the buddy system exist?

The buddy system is not arbitrary tradition; it is built on a straightforward safety logic. Underwater, you are in an environment where you depend on equipment to breathe. Equipment can fail. You can have a medical issue. You can become disoriented, entangled or separated from the group. In any of these situations, having another person nearby who can assist, share air or go for help dramatically improves your chances of a safe outcome.

During your Open Water course, you learn buddy checks (BWRAF: BCD, Weights, Releases, Air, Final check), air sharing procedures, buddy communication signals, and the importance of staying within visual and touching distance of your buddy. These skills are foundational, and they assume you will always have someone to practise them with.

The buddy system works well when both buddies are committed to it: checking on each other regularly, staying close, matching air consumption rates, and communicating clearly. It works poorly when one buddy is a distracted photographer, when skill levels are dramatically different, or when the buddy is a stranger assigned to you on a dive boat who has no investment in your safety.

What are the advantages of diving in small groups?

A small group, typically 2 to 4 divers plus a guide or instructor, is widely considered the sweet spot for recreational diving. Here is why:

Safety: in a small group, the guide can monitor each diver individually. If someone has buoyancy issues, is consuming air too fast, or shows signs of stress, the guide notices and intervenes before it becomes a problem. In a group of 2 to 4, everyone is within arm's reach.

Personalised experience: a guide with 3 divers can adapt the dive plan to the group's experience level, interests and air consumption. Want to spend more time watching a turtle? The group can pause. Running low on air? The guide adjusts the route. This flexibility is impossible in large groups.

Marine life encounters: large groups scare marine life. A quiet group of 3 to 4 divers with good buoyancy moves through the water like part of the environment. Turtles approach, octopuses stay out, and fish schools let you pass through rather than scattering. This alone makes small groups worth it.

Learning: if you are still developing your skills (and most divers with fewer than 50 dives are), a small group means more attention, more feedback and faster improvement.

At Dive With Lau, we never exceed 4 divers per guide, and most of our guided dives and courses are even smaller. This is a deliberate choice. It means we can offer more dives and more personalised attention than centres running groups of 8 to 12.

What are the drawbacks of large group diving?

Large groups, typically 8 to 12 divers with one or two guides, are the standard at many commercial dive centres, especially in tourist-heavy destinations. They are cost-effective for the operator, but they come with significant compromises:

• Reduced safety margin: a single guide managing 10 divers cannot effectively monitor each individual. If two divers have problems simultaneously, the guide has to choose who to help first.
• Lowest common denominator: the dive pace is set by the weakest, least experienced or most air-hungry diver in the group. If one person consumes their air in 25 minutes, everyone surfaces in 25 minutes, regardless of how much air you have left.
• Marine life disruption: a column of 12 divers creates a trail of exhaust bubbles, fin kicks and noise that clears marine life from the area long before the last divers arrive. If you are at the back of the group, you are essentially diving through a recently emptied environment.
• Impersonal experience: in a group of 12, the guide cannot remember everyone's name, let alone their skill level. The briefing is generic, the dive plan is fixed, and individual needs are not accommodated.
• Buddy pairing issues: in large groups, you are often paired with a stranger. You know nothing about their experience, their emergency procedures or their reliability as a buddy. This undermines the entire point of the buddy system.

This is not to say that large group dives are always bad. Many divers have perfectly enjoyable experiences in bigger groups, especially at well-managed dive centres with experienced guides. But if you have a choice, smaller is almost always better.

What is solo diving and is it safe?

Solo diving means diving without a buddy, deliberately and with appropriate preparation. For decades, it was considered taboo in recreational diving. PADI and other agencies taught that diving alone was inherently dangerous and irresponsible. But the reality was that many experienced divers, underwater photographers, videographers and professionals were already diving solo regularly, often without any formal training for the specific risks involved.

In response, PADI introduced the Self-Reliant Diver specialty, which acknowledges that some divers will choose to dive alone and provides the training and equipment requirements to do so more safely.

Is solo diving safe? It is riskier than buddy diving, full stop. Without a buddy, you have no one to share air with in an out-of-air emergency, no one to assist if you become entangled, and no one to call for help if you have a medical issue underwater. Solo diving requires a higher level of self-sufficiency, more redundant equipment, greater situational awareness and significantly more experience.

What does the PADI Self-Reliant Diver specialty require?

The Self-Reliant Diver is one of the most demanding PADI specialties, and it has strict prerequisites:

• Minimum 100 logged dives: this is far more than any other recreational specialty requires. The experience threshold exists because solo diving demands automatic, practised responses to problems, responses that only come from extensive diving experience.
• PADI Rescue Diver certification: you must have completed the Rescue Diver course (or equivalent). This ensures you have emergency response training.
• Minimum age: 18 years.
• Redundant equipment: the course requires you to carry and practise with independent redundant air (either a pony bottle, a bailout bottle or a sidemount configuration), a redundant inflation device, redundant cutting tools and surface signalling equipment.

The course itself involves theory on risk management, self-rescue techniques, and equipment configuration, followed by 3 open water dives where you practise switching to backup air, managing emergencies alone, and executing self-rescue scenarios.

The honest truth: the Self-Reliant Diver specialty is not for most divers. It is designed for experienced divers who have a specific reason to dive alone (photography, specific dive sites, personal preference) and who are willing to invest in the equipment and training to do it more safely. If you have fewer than 100 dives, the buddy system and small-group diving serve you better.

How do you find the right buddy?

The quality of your buddy relationship makes an enormous difference to your diving experience. Here is how to find and develop good dive buddies:

• Dive with friends: the best buddies are people you know, trust and communicate well with on land. If you convince a friend to get certified with you, you automatically have a buddy who is invested in your safety.
• Match experience levels: the ideal buddy pair is two divers of similar experience and skill level. A 200-dive photographer paired with a 10-dive beginner creates frustration for both. If you are less experienced, dive with someone slightly more experienced, not dramatically so.
• Communicate before the dive: a good buddy team discusses the dive plan, hand signals, emergency procedures and personal limits before entering the water. "What is your turn-around pressure? What signals do we use? What do we do if we get separated?"
• Stay close underwater: the buddy system only works if you are close enough to actually help each other. Within arm's reach at depth, within 2 to 3 metres in clear water. If your buddy is a dot in the distance, they are not your buddy.
• Check on each other regularly: periodic OK signals, air pressure checks and general awareness of each other's state. A good buddy is always aware of where the other person is and how they are doing.

For more on the common mistakes that undermine buddy diving, see our 10 common diving mistakes article.

What format should you choose for your level?

Here is a straightforward recommendation based on experience:

• 0-20 dives (newly certified): dive with a guide or instructor in small groups of 2 to 4. You are still building fundamental skills and benefit enormously from professional supervision. Consider the Advanced Open Water course. See our after Open Water guide.
• 20-50 dives (developing diver): continue with guided dives when in unfamiliar environments, but start buddy diving independently with experienced partners in locations you know well. Focus on buoyancy refinement and air management.
• 50-100 dives (confident diver): buddy diving independently is comfortable. Choose your buddies carefully. Start developing the awareness and self-reliance that will serve you regardless of whether you ever dive solo. Consider the Rescue Diver course.
• 100+ dives (experienced diver): if you have a reason to dive solo, the Self-Reliant Diver specialty is available to you. Otherwise, continue buddy diving with compatible partners and enjoying the social aspect of the sport.

The bottom line

The format of your dive matters more than most divers realise. A small group with a skilled guide delivers a safer, more enjoyable and more educational experience than a large group or an ill-matched buddy. Solo diving is a valid option for experienced, properly trained divers with the right equipment, but it is not for everyone and should never be the default.

At Dive With Lau, the philosophy is simple: small groups, personalised attention and no compromise on safety. Whether you are a first-time diver or working towards your Divemaster, you dive in a group that is right for you.

Questions about group sizes, buddy diving or the Self-Reliant Diver specialty? Contact Lau.