SML+ vs Lake Buddy
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SML+
Stay informed about Smith Mountain Lake with real-time water levels, temperature, wind forecasts, and marine gas prices. Get alerts, track the ice cream boat, and view historical data for a better lake experience.
- Real-time water level updates
- Hourly water temperature readings
- Interactive temperature sensor map
- Historical water level and temperature charts
- Marine gas prices and locations
- 5-day wind forecast
- Water level and safety alerts
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Worried about flooding at the lake? Wondering how water levels are changing or how fast water is flowing? Curious about the current water temperature? Interested in alerts specific to SML? Or maybe you just want to track the SML Ice Cream Boat or Hotdog Boat. Whatever brings you to the lake, this app is for you — whether you visit, live on, or boat at Smith Mountain Lake and want water level, water temp, water flow, wind forecast, or map information at your fingertips. SML+ is the ONLY app that includes: - Water level measurements for SML and Leesville, updated every 10 minutes - Water temperature updated hourly from 9 sensors across 7 locations around the lake - Smith Mountain Project Inflow/Outflow from USGS gauges - Customizable date ranges for water level, water temp, and flow trends - Comprehensive map showing marine gas, water temp, restaurants, food boats, and attractions - 5-day wind forecast with speed, gust, and direction - Contextual average water level that adapts to the range you're viewing - Color-coded water level status at a glance - Tap any point on a chart for the exact reading at that moment - Water level and safety alerts
Lake Buddy
Track your favorite lakes with real-time levels, weather forecasts, and historical data. Easily manage lists of lakes by state or view them on a map. Prepare for your water activities with up-to-date conditions.
- Track favorite lakes
- View lake levels and conditions
- 7-day weather forecast
- Historical data (week, month, year)
- Lakes listed by state
- Map view of lakes
- Customizable favorite list order
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Lake Buddy lets you track the conditions of your favorite lakes that USGS and CDEC agencies monitor. Review lake levels, weather, and historical data for US states. Keep track of all your favorite lakes: The Favorite list gives you easy access to your favorites with a quick look at the lake levels. You can create your own list of favorite lakes to keep track of. Just tap the star icon to add the lake to the Favorite list. The Favorite list can also be ordered to your preference. Press to hold a row in the list and move it to where in the list you want it. Retrieve a list of lakes per state: Lakes are listed by states so you can easily look them up. Just a reminder that the lake is listed by the state that the dam is located in. Select a state to view the lakes listed for that state. You can either tap the star icon to add the lake to your Favorites or tap on the lake name to view. You may also filter the list of lakes once loaded with a name you are searching for. Find lakes on the map: You can also find lakes via the map. Enable Location Services for our app and the map will show you the lakes in your area, or scroll around the map to other areas. Tap on a map pin to get the name and then tap on the name to view the lake. You can always tap on the location button in the lower right of the map to re-center your location on the map. View the data for a lake: The lake view is where you can view all the data for the lake. We provide you with the maximums for the lake and the current data if available. We provide the 7-day weather forecast for that location to be prepared for your trip on the water. You can also get the week, month, or year historical data to see how it currently compares to previous values. Tap on the map icon to see the location on the map or tap the star to add the lake to your favorites!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: SML+ at 100% against Lake Buddy's 57%. SML+ also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.7) and ads (none vs shown). On price, in-app purchases, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
SML+ holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 47 and 10 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of SML+'s written reviews are positive against 57% of Lake Buddy's.
SML+ ships an update every 2 months, Lake Buddy every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on August 22, 2026 and June 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SML+ | Lake Buddy |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (47 ratings) — better | 3.7 (10 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 57.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 47 — better | 10 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 5 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 39 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Timothy Barr | Fork Lemons LLC |
Customer experience
SML+
Lake Buddy
In-app purchases
SML+
No in-app purchases
Lake Buddy
No in-app purchases









