Comparison

OBX Hurricane Tracker vs VortexWeather

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

OBX Hurricane Tracker

Track hurricanes, tropical storms, and depressions in the Atlantic with detailed mapping layers. Access real-time data on cloud cover, wave height, precipitation, and wind from official sources.

Highlights
  • Hurricane, tropical storm, and depression tracking
  • Atlantic Ocean focus with Outer Banks detail
  • Global cloud cover layer
  • Wave height and precipitation data
  • NOAA buoy and ship observations
  • GPS location integration
  • Global surface wind data
Features
Read full description

OBX Hurricane Tracker is an interactive mapping application for tracking hurricanes, tropical storms and tropical depressions in the Atlantic ocean with a focus on the outer banks of North Carolina. All data comes from the NHC, NOAA and NWS. Listed below are the featured layers of this application. -Global Cloud Cover -Hurricane Tracks -NHC Chance of Development -Tropical Storm Tracks -Tropical Depression Tracks -Wave Height Data -3 Hour Precipitation Data -NOAA Buoy and Ship Observation Data -GPS Location -Wave Direction -Global Surface Winds

About

VortexWeather

Access detailed weather data including hurricanes, radar, satellite, and forecast models. Offers free basic features and paid subscriptions for advanced capabilities like 3D viewers and extended forecast data.

Highlights
  • Live storm tracks and forecast cones
  • NEXRAD radar and satellite imagery
  • Forecast radar and satellite animation
  • Numerical forecast models (GFS, ECMWF)
  • Real-time lightning detection
  • 3D hurricane and radar viewers (Pro)
Features
Read full description

VortexWeather turns raw NOAA data into fast, interactive weather maps — hurricanes, radar, satellite, lightning, and full numerical models, all in one app. Free to download and use. Features marked (Basic) or (Pro) require a paid auto-renewable subscription — see Subscriptions below. Available in English, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional) and Thai. TROPICAL & HURRICANES • Live storm tracks and forecast cones from the National Hurricane Center • Wind radii and tropical watches/warnings • Spaghetti plots from 35+ forecast models (Basic) • Historical storm tracks (Basic) • Storm wind and precipitation animation with max wind swath and rain totals (Pro) • GPU-accelerated 3D hurricane viewer with wind particle animations and isosurfaces (Pro) RADAR & SATELLITE • National and single-site NEXRAD radar (reflectivity & velocity) • Forecast radar: loops continue into the HRRR model's forecast (Basic) • 3D NEXRAD volume scan viewer with cross sections, cell isolation, and tornado rotation tools (Pro) • GOES and Himawari satellite imagery • Satellite animation (Basic) • Real-time lightning FORECAST MODELS • GFS and ECMWF surface temperature, dewpoint, pressure, humidity, and wind — free with a VortexWeather account • Animated surface wind particle flow — free with a VortexWeather account • Upper-air heights and winds, CAPE, precipitation, cloud cover, and more (Basic) • High-resolution HRRR model and animated wind barbs (Basic) SEVERE, AVIATION & MORE • SPC outlooks, WPC forecasts, and live NWS alerts (Basic) • Aviation hazards: SIGMET/AIRMET/PIREP and METARs (Basic) • USGS earthquakes SUBSCRIPTIONS VortexWeather is free to download, with ads. A paid subscription removes ads and unlocks the features marked above: • VortexWeather Basic — $4.99 per month or $50.90 per year • VortexWeather Pro — $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year; includes everything in Basic plus the features marked (Pro) Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Terms of Service: https://vortexweather.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://vortexweather.com/privacy VortexWeather is provided for informational and educational purposes only. Always rely on official sources such as the National Weather Service and National Hurricane Center for life-safety decisions.

Screenshots

OBX Hurricane Tracker4 screens
VortexWeather4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: VortexWeather at 5.0 against OBX Hurricane Tracker's 2.9. VortexWeather also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 9 months). OBX Hurricane Tracker's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and ratings volume (14 vs 2). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. VortexWeather sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. OBX Hurricane Tracker asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

VortexWeather holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: OBX Hurricane Tracker has 14 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OBX Hurricane Tracker ships an update every 9 months, VortexWeather fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
OBX Hurricane Tracker versus VortexWeather: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOBX Hurricane TrackerVortexWeather
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.9 (14 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews12.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings14 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB66 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developercorey hoggardVORTEXWEATHER LLC

Customer experience

OBX Hurricane Tracker

All ratings14 ratings
Positive35.7%
Neutral28.6%
Negative35.7%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive12.5%
Neutral50.0%
Negative37.5%

VortexWeather

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

OBX Hurricane Tracker

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

VortexWeather

Subscriptions4
  • Basic Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Basic Annual$50.901 Year
Show 1 more
  • Pro Annual$99.991 Year

Questions

Is OBX Hurricane Tracker free?
OBX Hurricane Tracker is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is VortexWeather free?
VortexWeather is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, OBX Hurricane Tracker or VortexWeather?
VortexWeather is rated higher. OBX Hurricane Tracker averages 2.9 out of 5 from 14 ratings, while VortexWeather averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do OBX Hurricane Tracker or VortexWeather have ads?
Both OBX Hurricane Tracker and VortexWeather show ads.
Which is updated more often, OBX Hurricane Tracker or VortexWeather?
OBX Hurricane Tracker ships an update every 9 months, and VortexWeather fortnightly. Most recently, OBX Hurricane Tracker was updated on October 24, 2026 and VortexWeather on October 25, 2026.

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