WeatherWise.app vs Lightning Locator
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
WeatherWise.app
Get hyper-accurate, full-resolution weather radar directly from the source. This app provides official alerts, advanced forecast models, and live storm chaser feeds. Offers a robust free version with optional upgrades for enhanced features like 3D views and advanced storm analysis.
- Full-resolution live radar
- Official weather alerts
- Advanced forecast models
- Live storm chaser streams
- Radar history archives
- Home-screen widgets
- Apple CarPlay integration
Read full descriptionHide full description
Stay one step ahead of severe weather. WeatherWise delivers original, full-resolution radar straight from the source, with official alerts, forecast models and live storm chasers. Powering top YouTube weather channels, such as Ryan Hall. NEW: Take WeatherWise on the road using Apple CarPlay • Free: live radar and warning areas on your car's display • Plus: navigation that knows the weather (10 trips a month). See how many alerts are on each route before you set off, how far ahead each one is, and hear them called out as you approach • Pro: 30 trips a month, spoken hail size, wind gusts and tornado status, storm-path callouts with arrival times, and Tornado ID CORE FEATURES (ALWAYS FREE & AD-FREE) • Real-Time Radar, plus super-res storm-relative velocity and rotation in the US • Push Alerts: official warnings for your location in the US and Canada, with Critical Alerts for tornado, hurricane and tsunami warnings • Alerts & Outlooks: NWS, Environment Canada, 38 European countries and Israel, plus SPC, WPC and CPC outlooks • Radar History: replay US radar archives back to 1991 • Home-Screen Radar Widgets and the WeatherWise Home dashboard • Forecast Models: HRRR, GFS, ECMWF, ensembles, AI models and more, with soundings • Satellite: GOES, Himawari, Meteosat and VIIRS • Hurricane Tools: spaghetti models, NHC cones and recent Hurricane Hunter recon • Storm Tracks, Lightning (Americas), Local Storm Reports and a storm-track drawing tool with arrival times • Ground Truth: live streams from 40+ storm chasers, Hazcams, traffic cameras and the Spotter Network • Live Weather Stations, air quality and smoke, winter precipitation type and snowfall • 2,000 Custom Locations (free WeatherWise account required) WEATHERWISE PLUS • 3D Radar, 3D Satellite and Globe view • Split View: two maps side by side • Adjustable smoothing for radar, satellite, composites and models • Enhanced Lightning Data • Settings Sync across devices • Play up to 100 radar scans and 12 runs per model • Past warnings, discussions and storm tracks in Radar History • Premium widgets with US warnings • Y'all Mode: Ryan Hall's map and radar style, with Y'all Watches, Y'all-O-Meter, Y'all Tracks and Outlooks WEATHERWISE PRO (EVERYTHING IN PLUS, AND) • Tornado ID (Beta): AI-powered tornado detection on US radar • Radar Wind Particles: animated wind from US and Canadian radar • FastScan: ultra low-latency US radar scans • Triple/Quad View: 3 maps on iPhone, 4 on iPad • Expert Mode: pair radar, satellite or composite on one screen • Realtime radar and model cross sections • Reflectivity X, Max Reflectivity and Min CC (debris) on US radar • Flash a custom reflectivity range • Population and impact reports for alerts and discussions • Play up to 200 radar scans, 100 satellite frames and 24 runs per model • Historical satellite (to 2017) and model runs (HRRR to 2014) • Pro widgets with velocity, CC and lightning Radar coverage: USA, Canada, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, plus UK, Italy and Europe-wide composites. We believe staying safe should be accessible to all. Our core features are completely free and always free from ads. Subscription Details Payment will be charged to your account at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage your subscription from "Manage Subscription" in the menu. Download WeatherWise today and safeguard your loved ones and property. Follow us @wxwiseapp for the latest updates. Fast & Reliable; Stay WeatherWise. See our EULA (Terms of Service): https://www.weatherwise.app/eula.html Find out how we collect and store your data in our Privacy Policy: https://www.weatherwise.app/privacy-policy
Lightning Locator
Estimate the distance and location of lightning strikes by measuring the time between seeing a flash and hearing thunder. It uses your iPhone's location and heading to display strike locations on a map, serving as an educational tool.
- Measures flash-to-thunder time
- Estimates strike distance
- Uses iPhone location and heading
- Displays strike location on map
- Shows calculation details
Read full descriptionHide full description
Lightning Locator builds on the simple flash-to-thunder method to estimate a lightning strike’s distance and location. When you see a lightning flash, tap See Flash. When you hear the thunder, tap Hear Thunder. Lightning Locator uses the elapsed time and the speed of sound to estimate the distance to the strike. It combines that estimate with your iPhone’s location and heading at the time of the flash to estimate the strike’s location and display it on a map. What Lightning Locator does • Measures the time between a lightning flash and the sound of thunder • Estimates the distance to the strike using the speed of sound • Uses your iPhone’s location and heading to estimate strike direction and location • Displays the estimated strike location on a clear, uncluttered map • Shows the underlying timing and device readings for those who want to explore the calculation Lightning Locator is designed as an educational and observational tool—a simple way to explore how the speed of sound, elapsed time, location, and heading can be combined to estimate a lightning strike’s distance and location. Safety Lightning is dangerous. Never go outside or remain exposed in order to use Lightning Locator. Observe lightning only from a substantial building or a fully enclosed, metal-topped vehicle. Lightning Locator does not detect lightning, provide storm warnings, or determine whether conditions are safe. Follow official weather alerts and local safety guidance.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: WeatherWise.app at Free against Lightning Locator's $1.99. WeatherWise.app also leads on ratings volume (804 vs 3) and chart position (#20 vs unranked). Lightning Locator's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and update cadence (daily vs every 2 weeks). On ads 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
WeatherWise.app is free to download; Lightning Locator costs $1.99 up front. WeatherWise.app sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Lightning Locator asks for nothing beyond the download.
Lightning Locator holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: WeatherWise.app has 804 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of WeatherWise.app's written reviews are positive against 100% of Lightning Locator's.
WeatherWise.app ships an update every 2 weeks, Lightning Locator daily. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | WeatherWise.app | Lightning Locator |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $1.99 |
| Rating | 4.6 (804 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 77.1% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 804 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Freemium — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #20 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 111 MB | 3 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Interactive Weather Limited | Envision Development LLC |
Customer experience
WeatherWise.app
Lightning Locator
Bugs and requests
WeatherWise.app
Reported bugs
2 issues- Occasional crashes
- Incompatibility with older devices
Requested features
4 requests- Satellite loop/animation option
- More base map customization options
- Blinking/on-screen alerts for warnings
- One-time lifetime purchase option
Lightning Locator
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
WeatherWise.app
- Plus Weekly$1.997 Days
- Pro Weekly$3.997 Days
- Plus Monthly$6.991 Month
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Pro Monthly$15.991 Month
- Plus Yearly$69.991 Year
- Pro Yearly$159.991 Year
Lightning Locator
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is WeatherWise.app free?
Is Lightning Locator free?
Which has better reviews, WeatherWise.app or Lightning Locator?
Do WeatherWise.app or Lightning Locator have ads?
Which is updated more often, WeatherWise.app or Lightning Locator?
Other comparisons















