QuakeWatch vs Next Spaceflight
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
QuakeWatch
This app provides real-time information on earthquakes worldwide. It features an interactive map, detailed reports, and customizable alerts. Stay informed about seismic activity near you or loved ones.
- Interactive world map with tectonic plates
- Sortable earthquake listings (recent, largest, closest)
- Tsunami information access
- Customizable minimum magnitude filter
- Share earthquake data via email, social media, SMS
- Detailed earthquake reports with live maps
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•• The top paid earthquake app for 10 years. •• A #1 News app in 60 countries so far including the US, UK, and Canada. •• An App Store Top 100 app in 40 countries so far including the US and Canada. •• Written-up in USA Today. •• Shown and discussed on CNN Newsroom. QuakeWatch has been the most popular paid earthquake app in the App Store for over 10 years now -- used by schools, relief agencies, media outlets, and thousands of people around the world curious about earthquakes near to them, family, or friends. It has reached the App Store Top 100, and #1 in News, multiple times. It is a feature-rich reference guide, free of ads, of the latest magnitude 1.0 and larger earthquakes from around the world as provided by ten worldwide sources including the US Geological Survey and the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre. Find out when they happened, where they happened, how big they were, and more. All in an easy-to-use interface without losing space to banner ads! The key features of QuakeWatch include: • An interactive world map view with tectonic plates showing reported earthquakes over the past week. Pan and zoom the map to focus on hot spots and click the details button to see the quake report. Also the ability to replay the earthquakes in order. • Sort the listing by the most recent earthquakes. • Sort by the largest earthquakes over the past week. • Sort by the closest earthquakes to your location and see the distance and direction from your position. • Sort by earthquakes nearest to a place anywhere on the earth that you easily specify. Great for tracking quakes near family members. Shows the distance and bearing from them. • Choose from reporting services in the US, Europe, Canada, Mexico, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Iceland, and Italy. • Select the tsunami icon in the toolbar for quick access to the latest tsunami information for the Pacific, US West Coast & Alaska, Australia, and Japan. • Send earthquake information to yourself or others through email, Twitter, Facebook, or SMS text messaging. • Filter out smaller earthquakes from the list by setting the minimum shown to be between 1.0 and 6.0. • Select an earthquake from the list to view more information along with a live map of its location and the ability to show nearby earthquakes. • Selecting the blue additional details button will take you to the reporting web site integrated into the application for more information about the earthquake which may include distances from cities, historical maps, shake maps, etc., and then easily return to the list. • Universal app - supports the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. • Supports quick view multitasking on the iPad on iOS 10 and newer. • iPod touch and iPad WiFi users can manually specify their current location if greater accuracy is needed. • The ability to define local earthquakes within a radius of your location. Then sort by "Closest" to see all local earthquakes sorted by distance or the most recent. • Earthquakes within the last 2 hours and within your local range are colored blue for quick identification. • All times are shown in your time zone. • No banner ads.
Next Spaceflight
Track all orbital rocket launches with a comprehensive schedule, news, and event updates. Explore detailed mission information, 3D simulations, and live countdowns for major space agencies and private companies. Stay informed about Starship activity and access links to live streams.
- Rocket launch schedule
- 3D launch simulations
- Past launch catalog
- Starship activity tracker
- Live launch countdowns
- Latest space news
- Launch pad satellite maps
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Next Spaceflight features rocket launch schedules, news, and events for all the key players including SpaceX, NASA, Roscosmos, ULA, Blue Origin, ISRO, Rocket Lab, and more. Features: - A rocket launch schedule with all the orbital missions - 3D launch simulations and live playback for most launches - A catalog with thousands of past orbital rocket launches - A dedicated section for Starship activity in Boca Chica - Live launch countdowns - Latest news - Upcoming events - Reuse and core history for SpaceX missions - Commercial and government launch vehicles from across the globe - Detailed satellite maps of launch pads - Links to live streams of upcoming launches and videos of past launches - A description for each mission - Notifications for upcoming launches (toggle in settings) - Statistics for most launches - Ad free! Seriously, who wants ads?
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Next Spaceflight at Free against QuakeWatch's $0.99. Next Spaceflight also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.3) and ratings volume (29K vs 79). QuakeWatch's advantage is chart position (#22 vs #103) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.1). On review sentiment, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Next Spaceflight is free to download; QuakeWatch costs $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Next Spaceflight holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Next Spaceflight has 29K ratings behind it against 79, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of QuakeWatch's written reviews are positive against 91% of Next Spaceflight's.
QuakeWatch ships an update every 3 months, Next Spaceflight every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | QuakeWatch | Next Spaceflight |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.3 (79 ratings) | 4.9 (29K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 84.5% of reviews | 90.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 79 | 29K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #22 — better | #103 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 10 MB | 90 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | LateNightProjects | NASASpaceflight LLC |
Customer experience
QuakeWatch
Next Spaceflight
User reviews
QuakeWatch
From 79 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent, comprehensive, and detailed information
- 🗺️ Great maps and ways of sorting information
- ⏱️ Updates information quickly
- 📊 Provides lots of useful data and statistics
- 🔍 Allows customization of parameters
Room to improve
- 🔔 Lacks push notification functionality
- 🔗 Some broken/outdated links
- 🗺️ Limited map scrolling and zooming capabilities
- 🕰️ Delayed or slow updates in some cases
- 🤖 Concerns about the app being abandoned or not maintained
Next Spaceflight
From 29K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Accurate launch information
- 🔍 Detailed launch data and history
- 👍 Clean and intuitive interface
- 🌍 Covers launches from around the world
- 🔔 Helpful notifications for launches
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional performance issues
- 🔔 Notification settings could be improved
- 🌐 Lacks location-specific launch notifications
- 🔍 Some information could be better organized
- 🔄 Slow to update with the latest launch details
Bugs and requests
QuakeWatch
Reported bugs
3 issues- Occasional crashes or app not loading properly
- Inaccuracies in earthquake location and magnitude reporting
- Issues with specific data feeds (e.g., USGS, GeoNet NZ)
Requested features
5 requests- Add push notification alerts for earthquakes near user's location
- Improve map functionality to allow better scrolling and zooming
- Provide more historical earthquake data and analysis
- Add support for more data sources beyond just USGS
- Integrate with other earthquake/disaster preparedness resources
Next Spaceflight
Reported bugs
2 issues- Favorites filter not working as expected
- Starship section not updating with latest information
Requested features
5 requests- Dark mode option
- Ability to add launches to calendar
- More customizable notification settings
- Spacecraft/vehicle search functionality
- Integration with Apple Watch for quick updates
In-app purchases
QuakeWatch
No in-app purchases
Next Spaceflight
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is QuakeWatch free?
Is Next Spaceflight free?
Which has better reviews, QuakeWatch or Next Spaceflight?
Do QuakeWatch or Next Spaceflight have ads?
Which is updated more often, QuakeWatch or Next Spaceflight?
Which is more popular, QuakeWatch or Next Spaceflight?
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