Comparison

SpaceWeatherLive vs Surf

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

Head to head
About

SpaceWeatherLive

Track aurora and solar activity in real-time with detailed forecasts and historical data. Receive customizable push notifications for significant space weather events. Explore an extensive archive and learn from expert reports.

Highlights
  • Aurora and solar activity tracking
  • Real-time forecasts
  • Push notifications for space weather events
  • Dark mode for night use
  • Detailed graphs and reports
  • Extensive historical data archive
  • Beginner-friendly explanations
Features
Read full description

SpaceWeatherLive is the ultimate app for those who dream of seeing the northern lights or want to know everything about the activity on our Sun. With this app you will be able to see and understand how active the aurora is right now and if there might be a good chance to spot the northern or southern lights in the coming days. You will never miss an aurora display again with this app in your pocket no matter where you go! Beginner friendly - While the SpaceWeatherLive app is filled with all the space weather information you can think of both for beginning and advanced space weather enthusiasts, every item has a pop up with additional information to help you along if something is unclear. Learn more as you go along! Everything in one app - Switch between the auroral activity and solar activity modes with just one click! Dark mode - Preserve your night vision with our special dark mode! Ideal for aurora chasing out in the field! Push notifications - Free push notifications informing you of significant space weather events like solar flares, geomagnetic storms, earth-facing coronal holes and much more! You can turn any notification on or off so if you don't want to receive any notifications at all or are only interested in specific notifications: we got you covered! Modern graphs - All the data that you are interested in are represented in sleek, responsive graphs. Dials don't cut it when you are out in the field, you want to know how the data looks like in the past and right now. Our graphs provide all the information you need in the blink of an eye! News - Not only do we provide a ton of different automated alerts, we even have a dedicated team of space weather enthusiasts who write detailed hand written reports during high solar or auroral activity! Extensive help section - Are you a beginner and does our app look a bit daunting when you first open it? Fear not, we have a dedicated help section with tons of articles and a FAQ section. Give it a read and soon you will be able to make your very own aurora forecasts! Huge space weather archive - Ever looked back at your old aurora pictures and wonder what space weather was like on that specific date? We got you covered! Take a dive in our space weather archive that is filled to the brim with geomagnetic and solar data from the year 1996 until yesterday. Dig around and discover large sunspot regions, extreme geomagnetic storms and exciting data from the past! Free for all - Best of all... Our app is completely free of charge! We do have ads but those can be removed by purchasing a subscription which in turn supports us to keep our services online! PRICE AND TERMS: Although the app is free, it does contain advertising at the bottom of the screen which helps us to keep our services online. Don't want the ads? No problem, with a simple in-app purchase you can remove them! A monthly subscription is $0.99, half-yearly subscription $5.49 and yearly subscription $9.99. These prices apply to United States residents. Prices may vary in other countries respecting your local currency exchange rate. Your subscription will be charged to your iTunes account. At the end of the term, unless auto-renewables subscriptions are disabled, your subscription will automatically renew in your iTunes account. You will be charged for the regular price of your subscription within 24 hours prior to the end of the current term. You can turn off automatic renewal in your iTunes account settings at any time, but you must do so at least 24 hours before the end of the current term. Refunds will not be provided for the unused portion of any term. Terms and conditions: https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/en/app/terms-and-conditions Privacy policy: https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/en/app/privacy-policy

About

Surf

Get simple, accurate surf forecasts for over 7,000 breaks worldwide. Plan your sessions with detailed wave information, tide times, and mapping to find the best conditions and nearby spots. Access extended forecasts and custom alerts with premium features.

Highlights
  • Detailed surf forecasts
  • Wavefinder map
  • Live webcam links
  • Tide times
  • 12-day forecasts
  • Custom surf alerts
Features
Read full description

Surf-Forecast.com gives you simple, accurate and easy-to-read surf forecasts so you have the best chance of hitting those breaks when the waves are pumping. Built by surfers, for surfers, and trusted by millions of surfers for over 20 years, our updated app lets you see all your favorite surf spots at a glance. Providing detailed surf forecasts for over 7,000 breaks worldwide, our new features let you see further ahead than ever before - giving you plenty of advance warning for when those swells start coming in. Find the best surfing conditions near you and use the rating tool to find exactly when to go. – FREE App Features ⁃ Detailed surf forecasts ⁃ Wavefinder map ⁃ Live webcam links ⁃ Multi-swell component presentation ⁃ Tide times ⁃ Detailed mapping to locate nearby breaks – Surf Premium Benefits ⁃ Access to the full 16 days of our new Wavefinder feature ⁃ Hourly forecasts ⁃ 16 day forecasts ⁃ Custom surf alerts ⁃ Ad-free browsing on our website So what are you waiting for? Grab your board and get exploring. We’ll see you out there! For the full Terms and Conditions of this service please visit: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

SpaceWeatherLive4 screens
Surf4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Surf at 4.9 against SpaceWeatherLive's 4.0. Surf also leads on review sentiment (87% vs 53%) and update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 4 months). SpaceWeatherLive's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. SpaceWeatherLive sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Surf sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Surf holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 189 and 940 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 53% of SpaceWeatherLive's written reviews are positive against 87% of Surf's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SpaceWeatherLive ships an update every 4 months, Surf every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
SpaceWeatherLive versus Surf: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpaceWeatherLiveSurf
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (189 ratings)4.9 (940 ratings) — better
Positive reviews53.4% of reviews87.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings189940 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#193#116 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size30 MB138 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperParsec vzwMeteo365 Ltd.

Customer experience

SpaceWeatherLive

All ratings189 ratings
Positive72.0%
Neutral5.8%
Negative22.2%
Written reviews131 reviews
Positive53.4%
Neutral13.7%
Negative32.8%

Surf

All ratings940 ratings
Positive99.3%
Neutral0.1%
Negative0.6%
Written reviews124 reviews
Positive87.1%
Neutral3.2%
Negative9.7%

User reviews

SpaceWeatherLive

From 189 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent space weather information
  • 🔍 Detailed and informative data
  • 📚 Helpful tutorials and explanations
  • 🌍 Useful for aurora chasers and enthusiasts
  • 🤖 Comprehensive data from various sources

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Overwhelming amount of information
  • 🔔 Too many notifications/alerts
  • 💰 Ads becoming too intrusive
  • 🔌 Notifications not always working
  • 🤔 Confusing navigation at times

Surf

From 940 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌊 Accurate surf forecasts
  • 👍 Easy to use and navigate
  • 🗺️ Comprehensive coverage of locations
  • 🔍 Detailed information (swell, wind, tides, etc.)
  • 💰 Good value for subscription

Room to improve

  • 🔄 Inconsistent data updates
  • 🌊 Wave height/conditions not always accurate
  • 🏞️ Missing data for some locations (e.g. Great Lakes)
  • 🤔 Confusing or misleading surf ratings/forecasts

Bugs and requests

SpaceWeatherLive

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Video links not working
  • Alerts disappearing after opening the app
  • Inconsistent performance after updates
  • Notification count not clearing properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Customizable notification settings
  • Dark mode option
  • Location-based alerts
  • Ability to track solar activity trends
  • Integration with other weather/astronomy apps

Surf

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes or freezes on some devices
  • Geolocation issues with break markers

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to manually refresh data
  • More detailed tidal/current information
  • Expanded location coverage
  • Improved accuracy for wave height/conditions

In-app purchases

3 purchases

SpaceWeatherLive

Subscriptions3
  • Ad-free - monthly package$0.991 Month
  • Ad-free - half-yearly package$5.496 Months
  • Ad-free - yearly package$9.991 Year
2 purchases

Surf

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Service: Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Premium Service (Yearly)$34.991 Year

Questions

Is SpaceWeatherLive free?
SpaceWeatherLive is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Surf free?
Surf is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, SpaceWeatherLive or Surf?
Surf is rated higher. SpaceWeatherLive averages 4.0 out of 5 from 189 ratings, while Surf averages 4.9 from 940 ratings.
Do SpaceWeatherLive or Surf have ads?
Both SpaceWeatherLive and Surf show ads.
Which is updated more often, SpaceWeatherLive or Surf?
SpaceWeatherLive ships an update every 4 months, and Surf every 6 weeks. Most recently, SpaceWeatherLive was updated on October 15, 2026 and Surf on October 18, 2026.
Which is more popular, SpaceWeatherLive or Surf?
SpaceWeatherLive currently peaks at #193 in the App Store charts, and Surf at #116. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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