Comparison

Lightning Tracker vs Hanalei River

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

Head to head
About

Lightning Tracker

Visualize real-time lightning strikes across North and South America on a dynamic map. Receive predictive alerts for strike patterns and intensity, with estimated arrival times for your location. Monitor current and historical lightning activity to stay informed and protected.

Highlights
  • Live lightning map
  • Real-time strike visualization
  • Predictive lightning alerts
  • Estimated time of arrival (ETA) for strikes
  • Monitor saved locations
  • 6-hour strike history
Read full description

Stay safe from lightning! Lightning Tracker delivers real-time lightning strike data for North and South America, keeping you and your loved ones protected. Live Lightning Map: Watch real-time strikes across the Americas with color-coded visuals to track lightning movement. Lightning Alerts: Predict strike patterns and intensity, with ETAs for your location. Monitor Anywhere: Check strikes near you or saved spots, like home or family, in one tap. 6-Hour Strike History: Analyze past lightning trends to stay one step ahead. Protect what matters most with Lightning Tracker. Download now to track strikes and stay safe!

About

Hanalei River

Monitor river gauge heights and road conditions on Kaua'i during heavy rains. Access real-time data from USGS river gauges and view traffic camera feeds to check road accessibility. Future updates will include push notifications for rising river levels.

Highlights
  • USGS river gauge height monitoring
  • Hanalei Initiative road camera access
  • All Kaua'i river gauge data
  • Push notifications for rising rivers (upcoming)
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

The Hanalei River decides a lot of days on the North Shore. This app tells you where it stands, in one number, plus everything you need to read it. THE RIVER RIGHT NOW Open the app and the river's height sits at the top of the screen, in feet, next to what it means against the 5 ft flood stage: Normal, Elevated, Near flood stage, or Flood stage. A trend chip says whether the river is rising, falling, or holding, and by how much in the last hour. Every reading is stamped with its age, and when a gauge goes quiet or the USGS equipment fails, the app says so. An old number never gets dressed up as a live one. THE LAST FEW DAYS AT A GLANCE A stage chart plots recent gauge history, with the flood line drawn in whenever the river is anywhere near it. You see a squall's rise and fall, not just this minute's reading. LIVE ROAD CAM The Hanalei road cam, streaming live, courtesy of the Hanalei Initiative. The app finds the current stream on its own, so it keeps working when the broadcast restarts. WEATHER THAT LEADS WITH WHAT MATTERS Watches, warnings, and advisories in force for the North Shore come first, not buried in a technical narrative. Under that, the seven-period NWS forecast with temperature, wind, and chance of rain, and the full forecast discussion from NWS Honolulu when you want the reasoning behind it. Active flood alerts show up on the river screen too. TIDE AND DISCHARGE A tide curve for the day ahead with the next high or low called out, plus the river's discharge in cubic feet per second. EVERY GAUGE ON KAUAI One tab, one row per river: current level, direction, and a sparkline of recent readings. Hanalei, Wailua, Waimea, and the rest — the whole island in a few seconds of scrolling. ON YOUR WRIST The Apple Watch app keeps current height, reading time, discharge, and the next tide a glance away. NO ACCOUNT, NO ADS Nothing to sign up for. Pull to refresh, or just reopen the app and it updates itself. Full dark mode, so a 2 a.m. check doesn't light up the room. Readings come from the USGS gauge on the Hanalei River, tide predictions from NOAA, and alerts and forecasts from the National Weather Service. A gauge reading is not a road report. The app can tell you the river has reached flood stage; it cannot tell you whether water is over the road. Follow county and emergency guidance, and never drive through moving water.

Screenshots

Lightning Tracker4 screens
Hanalei River3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Lightning Tracker at Free against Hanalei River's $0.99. Lightning Tracker also leads on ratings volume (574 vs 22) and review sentiment (76% vs 67%). Hanalei River's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). On 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

Lightning Tracker is free to download; Hanalei River costs $0.99 up front. Lightning Tracker sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Hanalei River asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Hanalei River holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lightning Tracker has 574 ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 76% of Lightning Tracker's written reviews are positive against 67% of Hanalei River's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Lightning Tracker ships an update every 4 months, Hanalei River every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
Lightning Tracker versus Hanalei River: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLightning TrackerHanalei River
PriceFree — better$0.99
Rating4.3 (574 ratings)4.5 (22 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.6% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings574 — better22
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 4 weeks — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#125 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better13.4
Further details — not scored
Size127 MB18 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperElecont LLCONOSOL LLC

Customer experience

Lightning Tracker

All ratings574 ratings
Positive82.2%
Neutral7.3%
Negative10.5%
Written reviews168 reviews
Positive75.6%
Neutral5.4%
Negative19.0%

Hanalei River

All ratings22 ratings
Positive81.8%
Neutral9.1%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral16.7%
Negative16.7%

Bugs and requests

Lightning Tracker

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App not detecting lightning strikes even when visible
  • Frequent crashes and freezes
  • Issues with app updates and functionality changes

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add distance/radius information for lightning strikes
  • Implement push notifications/alerts for lightning within a certain radius
  • Provide historical data and the ability to view past lightning activity
  • Improve overall app stability and performance

Hanalei River

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Lightning Tracker

One-time1
  • Remove Ads & Limits$2.99
None

Hanalei River

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Lightning Tracker free?
Lightning Tracker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hanalei River free?
Hanalei River costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Lightning Tracker or Hanalei River?
Hanalei River is rated higher. Lightning Tracker averages 4.3 out of 5 from 574 ratings, while Hanalei River averages 4.5 from 22 ratings.
Do Lightning Tracker or Hanalei River have ads?
Lightning Tracker shows ads; Hanalei River does not.
Which is updated more often, Lightning Tracker or Hanalei River?
Lightning Tracker ships an update every 4 months, and Hanalei River every 4 weeks. Most recently, Lightning Tracker was updated on September 29, 2026 and Hanalei River on September 22, 2026.

Other comparisons