HamAlert vs Dakota Alert
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
HamAlert
Receive instant push notifications for desired amateur radio contacts. Filter alerts by various criteria like callsign, band, mode, and location. Stay updated on DX spots from multiple sources.
- Push notifications for desired stations
- Filter spots by DXCC, callsign, and location
- Support for Reverse Beacon Network, SOTAwatch, DX cluster, PSK Reporter
- Filter by band, mode, and time
- Filter by spotter callsign and DXCC
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This app is a companion to the HamAlert web site (hamalert.org) and lets you receive push notifications from HamAlert. HamAlert is a system that allows amateur radio operators to get notifications when a desired station appears on the DX cluster, the Reverse Beacon Network, SOTAwatch, POTA, WWFF Spotline, or PSK Reporter. Spots can be filtered by various criteria, including: • DXCC (both actual and callsign home DXCC) • Callsign • Island reference • Summit reference • Park reference • CQ zone • Continent • Band • Mode • Time and days of week • Source • Spotter callsign and DXCC
Dakota Alert
Receive instant push notifications from Dakota Alert 4000 series wireless sensors. Get alerted to activity in your driveway, backyard, or other monitored areas.
- Push notification alerts
- Supports 4000 series wireless sensors
- Monitors driveways and backyards
- Real-time activity detection
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Use the Dakota Alert app to get push notification alerts from the various Dakota Alert 4000 series wireless sensors. Be notified if someone enters the driveway, backyard, etc.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: HamAlert at 67% against Dakota Alert's 0%. HamAlert also leads on rating (4.0 vs 2.7) and ratings volume (34 vs 3). Dakota Alert's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.6). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
HamAlert holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 2.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HamAlert has 34 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of HamAlert's written reviews are positive against 0% of Dakota Alert's.
HamAlert ships an update every 5 months, Dakota Alert every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | HamAlert | Dakota Alert |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (34 ratings) — better | 2.7 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 34 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 193 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Manuel Kasper | Dakota Alert, Inc. |
Customer experience
HamAlert
Dakota Alert
In-app purchases
HamAlert
No in-app purchases
Dakota Alert
No in-app purchases
