Comparison

iDamage vs Stratus Cloud Journal

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

Head to head
About

iDamage

Receive real-time push notifications for severe weather events, including detailed damage reports from trained spotters and emergency responders. Customize alerts by location and weather type, and view storm data on an interactive map. Includes wildfire reports and detailed weather outlooks.

Highlights
  • Push notifications for storm events
  • Configurable location and weather filters
  • Map view with color-coded storm pins
  • List view of storm events
  • Integration with Maps app for directions
  • Convective weather outlooks and discussions
  • Wildfire thermal anomaly and report maps
Currently charting
Read full description

iDamage pushes thunderstorm damage reports originating from trained spotters, emergency responders, and members of the public to your iPhone or iPad. If you chase tornados, hail, or high winds for a living, or volunteer to assist your community during severe weather events, or just want to improve your situational awareness on days when storms might pop up, iDamage is the app for you. Here are its features: - Push notification of storm events, oftentimes including very specific damage reports. Coverage area includes the entire Contiguous (Lower 48) United States. - User-configurable filters allow you to receive notifications for the entire Contiguous US, an entire state, a local area, and/or for specific types of severe weather (tornado, hail, high wind). Use the auto-location feature of your mobile device to set a filter if you are traveling and not sure of your general location. - Filter push notifications by hail size - Optional alternate push alert sound for hail events - Map of storm events with color coded pins. Timeframes are 3-hr, full day, or archival (back to 29 Feb 2004). Touch any pin for access to details. WiFi-only iPad users, data from your last view is cached for off-line use. - Filter Map View by event type and hail size - List of storm events in table form. Touch any cell in the table for a single pin street or hybrid map view. - Link to the "Maps" app on your home screen so you can get directions to the approximate location of severe weather events. - Storm reports may be e-mailed in an external email app. - 24 hour (with CONUS radar animation + watch boxes), 2-day, 3-day, and 4-8 day convective (thunderstorm) outlook with probability maps and technical discussion. - Mesoscale discussions with maps - Convective weather watches with maps. - Local hazardous weather products (including watches and warnings), selectable by touching a location on a map or via auto-location. - Local animated radar with warning boxes *** NOTE: Watches and warnings are NOT pushed. iDamage only pushes reports of thunderstorm (convective) events. Tropical and extratropical systems may not generate reports. - 9 pm - 9 am silence switch in Settings view. Push notifications will visually display, but alert tones are silenced. - iDamage has wildfire capability! Get a map of satellite thermal anomaly detections plus public wildfire reports. All weather data presented by iDamage is from the National Weather Service and not subject to copyright protection. homedatasheet.com, Inc. is not affiliated with the National Weather Service.

About

Stratus Cloud Journal

Features
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Look up. Stratus turns every glance at the sky into a personal cloud archive — from towering cumulonimbus on a stormy afternoon to delicate cirrus filaments at 40,000 feet. No account. No internet. Just you and the sky. — KEY FEATURES — • Field Log — Record unlimited cloud sightings with date, cloud type, location label, sky color (6 options), and freeform notes. Swipe to delete entries you no longer need. • 10-Cloud Reference Catalog — Browse all 10 standard cloud genera: cumulus, cirrus, stratus, cumulonimbus, altocumulus, altostratus, cirrostratus, cirrocumulus, nimbostratus, and stratocumulus. Each entry shows altitude range, cloud family, and a practical weather hint. • Family Filter — Narrow the catalog to just the Cumulus, Cirrus, Alto, or Stratus family with a single tap on the filter chips. • Cloud Detail — Tap any catalog entry for a full-screen profile: altitude, family badge, and the weather pattern it typically signals. • Atlas — A monthly calendar density grid shades every day by how many clouds you logged. Navigate backward and forward through months to spot your most active spotting periods at a glance. • Sighting Detail — Tap any log entry to review the full observation: date, location, sky color, your notes, and the matched cloud profile side by side. • Offline First — Everything works without a network connection. Your data stays on your device — no sync, no tracking, no ads. • Ready on First Launch — 15 sample sightings are pre-loaded so you can explore the app immediately and see exactly how entries look before adding your own. Start your sky journal today. The next interesting cloud is already forming overhead. — Stratus Cloud Journal PREMIUM — A Premium subscription unlocks the complete Stratus experience: unlimited cloud sightings and field notes, the full ten-genera reference atlas, your monthly density atlas, and an entirely offline, ad-free environment — everything you need to keep a faithful record of the sky. Subscription options: • Weekly — $9.99 / week • Yearly — $49.99 / year (includes a 3-day free trial) Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the period. Manage or cancel anytime in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://pnkl26.web.app/privacy-policy

Screenshots

iDamage4 screens
Stratus Cloud Journal3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Stratus Cloud Journal at Free against iDamage's $2.99. Stratus Cloud Journal also leads on update cadence (every 8 days vs every 4 months) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). iDamage's advantage is chart position (#10 vs unranked). On 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Stratus Cloud Journal is free to download; iDamage costs $2.99 up front. iDamage sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Stratus Cloud Journal sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iDamage ships an update every 4 months, Stratus Cloud Journal every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
iDamage versus Stratus Cloud Journal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriDamageStratus Cloud Journal
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating3.4 (37 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews67.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings37 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 8 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank#10 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS26.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerhomedatasheet.com, Inc.Linh Phan Nhat Khanh

In-app purchases

1 purchases

iDamage

One-time1
  • 2026 Location-based events$1.99
2 purchases

Stratus Cloud Journal

Subscriptions2
  • Stratus Cloud Journal Weekly$9.997 Days
  • Stratus Cloud Journal Yearly$49.991 Year

Questions

Is iDamage free?
iDamage costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Stratus Cloud Journal free?
Stratus Cloud Journal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do iDamage or Stratus Cloud Journal have ads?
Neither iDamage nor Stratus Cloud Journal shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iDamage or Stratus Cloud Journal?
iDamage ships an update every 4 months, and Stratus Cloud Journal every 8 days. Most recently, iDamage was updated on November 1, 2026 and Stratus Cloud Journal on October 31, 2026.

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