FloodWatch vs Blue Liner Flows
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
FloodWatch
Monitor real-time river and flood data across the United States. Track river height, discharge, precipitation, and water temperature with data from USGS and NWS. Ideal for property owners, outdoor enthusiasts, and anyone needing flood awareness.
- Real-time river data
- Historical trends and graphs
- Favorites list for gauges
- Nationwide US coverage
- Flood awareness alerts
- Recreation water condition checks
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Whether you live near a river, enjoy kayaking or fishing, or simply want to stay informed about potential flooding, FloodWatch keeps you connected to the latest conditions across the United States. Powered by data from the US Geological Survey (USGS) and National Weather Service (NWS), FloodWatch helps you monitor rivers and streams with precision and confidence. Key Features • Real-Time River Data – Track current river height, discharge, precipitation, and water temperature from thousands of USGS gauges nationwide. • Historical Trends & Graphs – Visualize how river levels, streamflow, rainfall, and temperature change over time. • Favorites List – Save your most important gauges for instant access to the latest readings. • Nationwide Coverage – Explore data for rivers and streams throughout the U.S., including flood-stage information from NWS. • Flood Awareness – Keep watch on flood-prone areas and monitor rising waters before they become a threat. • Great for Recreation – Check water conditions before heading out to fish, paddle, or swim. Only USGS gauges with real-time data capabilities are included, so you’ll always get the most accurate and up-to-date information available. Whether you’re safeguarding your property, planning your next river trip, or simply fascinated by hydrology, FloodWatch gives you the insight to stay prepared when water levels change.
Blue Liner Flows
Access detailed USGS and NOAA river flow data, including discharge, temperature, and gauge height. Explore rivers with an interactive map, set custom tags for organization, and receive alerts for condition changes. Plan your outdoor activities with integrated weather forecasts.
- River flow data (discharge, temperature, pH)
- Interactive map with directions
- Customizable stream tagging
- Real-time condition alerts
- Home screen widgets
- Integrated weather forecasts
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With Blue Liner Flows, you are only one click away from easy access to detailed and comprehensible river flow information. With data aggregated from both the USGS and NOAA, parameters such as discharge, temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, pH, and gauge height are available for thousands of rivers and streams across the U.S. This simple and easy-to-use app offers endless searching and viewing options, allowing you to effortlessly check in with your favorite streams. And, with an interactive map embedded within the interface, exploring and gaining directions to new rivers has never been made easier. Blue Liner Flows also gives you the ability to categorize any watershed into your own set of personalized tags, making organization a breeze. These features and many more can be available to you and have never been more accessible. - Set up alerts to be directly notified when river conditions change. - Use widgets to gain practical flow information at a glance directly from your Home Screen, Lock Screen, or Today View. - Organize streams under your own array of fully customizable tags. - Along with NOAA river forecasts, use detailed weather information such as barometric pressure, cloud cover, and more to plan your day on the water. - Useful for any activity on the river, whether it be fishing, rafting, kayaking, boating, or even swimming! All river gauge information is provided by the USGS and NOAA. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Blue Liner Flows at none against FloodWatch's shown. Blue Liner Flows also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and chart position (#191 vs unranked). FloodWatch's advantage is ratings volume (327 vs 42). On price, rating, review sentiment and in-app purchases 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. FloodWatch sells 5 one-off in-app purchases and Blue Liner Flows sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for FloodWatch against 4.7 for Blue Liner Flows. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: FloodWatch has 327 ratings behind it against 42, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 58% of FloodWatch's written reviews are positive against 64% of Blue Liner Flows's.
FloodWatch ships an update every 2 months, Blue Liner Flows weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | FloodWatch | Blue Liner Flows |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (327 ratings) | 4.7 (42 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 58.3% of reviews | 64.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 327 — better | 42 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | #191 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 17.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 16 MB | 4 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Brian Deshong | Ryan Olson |
Customer experience
FloodWatch
Blue Liner Flows
Bugs and requests
FloodWatch
Reported bugs
19 issues- App crashes on opening
- App crashes when updating levels
- App crashes when scrolling through favorites
- App crashes a lot
- App kicks out when viewing favorites
Show 14 moreShow fewer
- Map keeps returning to current location
- Layout changed, not preferred
- Does not work since September 11
- Update didn't resolve problem
- App kicks out when trying to access
- New update made nothing work
- Interface not intuitive
- Gauges not appearing on map initially
- Full page ads impede navigation
- App doesn't work at all
- No data or functions
- Inaccurate and missing major points
- App crashes on initial launch
- App crashes when trying to scroll thru favorites
Requested features
21 requests- Add alerts for flood stage
- Add Lock Screen widgets
- Add search bar for gauges
- Add CFS readings
- Add alerts for flow rate
Show 16 moreShow fewer
- Add historical data query
- Add data extractor to email
- Add link to data source website
- Add more information on the gage itself
- Add average conditions or trends
- Add push notifications
- Add ability to email charts
- Add automatic surfing to USGS website
- Add flood level for each river
- Add ability to send push notification for flooding potential
- Add discharge data
- Add complications for watch faces
- Add ability to remove ALL ads
- Add a "tell friends" function
- Add more sensors to pop up
- Add ability to get notified when water reaches a certain level in a certain area
Blue Liner Flows
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
FloodWatch
- Tip Level 1$0.99
- Tip Level 2$2.99
- Tip Level 3$5.99
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- Ad Removal$8.99
- Tip Level 4$9.99
Blue Liner Flows
- Premium Annual Subscription7 Days trial$6.991 Year
- Premium Lifetime Edition$19.99
Questions
Is FloodWatch free?
Is Blue Liner Flows free?
Which has better reviews, FloodWatch or Blue Liner Flows?
Do FloodWatch or Blue Liner Flows have ads?
Which is updated more often, FloodWatch or Blue Liner Flows?
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