Comparison

DeerCast vs Shooting Light

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

Head to head
About

DeerCast

This app provides hourly whitetail deer movement predictions based on weather data. It offers advanced weather forecasts, GPS mapping tools for hunters, and a community forum for sharing hunting experiences and advice.

Highlights
  • Hourly deer movement predictions
  • Advanced weather forecasts
  • GPS mapping tools
  • Property line and hunting land maps
  • Anatomical deer tracking advice
  • Hunting articles and community forum
Features
Read full description

Prep. Predict. Pursue. DeerCast is the most advanced whitetail hunting app, built for deer hunters, by deer hunters. DeerCast predicts whitetail movement down to the hour based on weather variables in your area. Install now to see today’s whitetail forecast for free! Whitetail deer behavior is driven by their environment. Become a better whitetail hunter with the DeerCast hunting app. Get data-driven deer movement predictions, advanced weather forecasts, and mapping features all specifically formulated with the whitetail deer hunter in mind. DeerCast delivers all the information you need to get your buck. ▶ FORECAST ▶ Designed by renowned whitetail experts Mark and Terry Drury of Drury Outdoors, DeerCast pulls weather and moon data for your locations and delivers a custom, deer-movement prediction, just for you. ▶ MAP ▶ Plan your whitetail hunts with multiple GPS maps and tools built specifically for the whitetail hunter. Find property lines, hunting land, and more. ◆ Property Info Maps ◆ Hunting Land Maps ◆ Custom Waypoints ◆ Wind Check ◆ Food Plots ◆ Live Doppler Radar ◆ Virtual Rain Gauges ▶ TRACK ▶ Select your hit on an anatomical whitetail model, then get expert advice to track and recover your deer. ▶ COMMUNITY ▶ Get thousands of hunting articles and share your successes in the field. Learn from the Drury Outdoors team and watch their hunts as they happen. ▶ FEEDBACK ▶ We want to know about your experience with DeerCast. Shoot us an email at support@deercast.com. Billing & Subscription: Charges apply to your iTunes Account upon purchase confirmation. Privacy Policy: https://www.deercast.com/privacy-policy/ Terms & Conditions: https://www.deercast.com/terms-of-service/

About

Shooting Light

This app provides hunters with crucial first and last light times for their hunting excursions. It offers optional sunrise and sunset times, customizable notifications, and a helpful scheduler to plan your hunt precisely. Tailor light offsets to match specific hunting area regulations.

Highlights
  • First and last light times
  • Optional sunrise/sunset times
  • Customizable notifications
  • Hunt planning scheduler
  • Adjustable light offsets
  • Supports various game types
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

First light and last light are terms every hunter is familiar with. They're based on sunrise and sunset, and those times change from day to day. Shooting Light simply shows you when those times are. It doesn't show weather, and it's not bolted onto some bloated app that wants a yearly subscription for features you'll never touch. It's a simple tool to show you first and last light, and optionally sunrise and sunset — right in the app, on your Lock Screen, or straight from your Dynamic Island. - Keep track of available light Did work let out early? Catch an unexpected break from the family? Finish the chores in time for an evening hunt? Open Shooting Light — or just glance at your Lock Screen widget — to see how many hours of hunting you have left for the day, with a simple sunrise-to-sunset ring showing exactly where you stand. It might just be the thing that helps you decide to get out and sends you home with that next big buck. - Notifications and live countdowns Tap the bell in the top left corner to schedule notifications for first light and last light, so you can leave your phone in your pocket and let it alert you when it's time to start or end your hunt. It'll also drop a live countdown right on your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island, ticking down to the next one — and once it hits zero, it'll let you know it's shooting light (or that it's over) instead of leaving you guessing. - Scheduler Shooting Light also comes with a tool that many of us have been waiting for. Doing time math in your head can be tricky, so the scheduler lets you set a start time for your hunt and add time for things like packing up, driving, and walking to the spot. It'll do the math for you and let you know exactly when you should wake up or start getting ready, showing that wake-up time in your own local time first (even if your hunt spot's in a different time zone) so there's no second-guessing which clock to trust. - Customize times for your area Every state and often hunting areas within your state have different regulations for when you can start or when you must end your hunt. You can customize the offset for first and last light to set it up for your specific hunt area. Keep in mind, it's your responsibility to make sure you're following your state's rules and regulations. Regardless of if you're hunting deer, elk, duck, or anything else, Shooting Light is a straightforward sunrise-sunset hunting app to track when you should start and stop. Good luck and good huntin!

Screenshots

DeerCast4 screens
Shooting Light4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: DeerCast at Free against Shooting Light's $2.99. DeerCast also leads on ratings volume (7.1K vs 24) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 4 months). Shooting Light's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 63%) and in-app purchases (none vs 5). On rating, 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

DeerCast is free to download; Shooting Light costs $2.99 up front. DeerCast sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per year. Shooting Light asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for DeerCast against 4.6 for Shooting Light. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DeerCast has 7.1K ratings behind it against 24, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 63% of DeerCast's written reviews are positive against 100% of Shooting Light's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

DeerCast ships an update every 3 weeks, Shooting Light every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
DeerCast versus Shooting Light: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDeerCastShooting Light
PriceFree — better$2.99
Rating4.5 (7.1K ratings)4.6 (24 ratings) — better
Positive reviews62.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings7.1K — better24
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank#3 — better#17
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size173 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGSM Outdoors37 South, LLC

Customer experience

DeerCast

All ratings6,788 ratings
Positive89.1%
Neutral3.2%
Negative7.7%
Written reviews213 reviews
Positive62.9%
Neutral7.5%
Negative29.6%

Shooting Light

All ratings24 ratings
Positive87.5%
Neutral4.2%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

DeerCast

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Screens freezing or crashing when using certain features
  • Incorrect sunrise/sunset times and moon phase information
  • Deer movement predictions changing unexpectedly throughout the day

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to view forecast more than 5 days in advance
  • Option to switch between Celsius and Fahrenheit
  • More detailed historical weather and deer movement data
  • Improved app stability and performance

Shooting Light

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

DeerCast

Subscriptions4
  • DeerCast Pro$9.991 Year
  • DeerCast Elite2 variants$29.991 Year
  • DeerCast Elite +3 Days trial$49.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • DeerCast Unlimited$74.991 Year
None

Shooting Light

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is DeerCast free?
DeerCast is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Shooting Light free?
Shooting Light costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, DeerCast or Shooting Light?
Shooting Light is rated higher. DeerCast averages 4.5 out of 5 from 7.1K ratings, while Shooting Light averages 4.6 from 24 ratings.
Do DeerCast or Shooting Light have ads?
Neither DeerCast nor Shooting Light shows ads.
Which is updated more often, DeerCast or Shooting Light?
DeerCast ships an update every 3 weeks, and Shooting Light every 4 months. Most recently, DeerCast was updated on November 2, 2026 and Shooting Light on October 29, 2026.
Which is more popular, DeerCast or Shooting Light?
DeerCast currently peaks at #3 in the App Store charts, and Shooting Light at #17. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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