Gubaar vs Barrah
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Gubaar
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Stay safe and informed with real-time storm alerts across the Gulf! Dust Alerts gives you up-to-date notifications and detailed information about dust and sandstorms in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Key Features: Storm Alerts in All GCC Countries: Receive instant push notifications for new storms detected anywhere in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Live Storm Maps: View storm locations, movement directions, storm size, and affected areas directly on the map. Storm Details at a Glance: Get easy-to-read information on each storm, including distance from your location, direction, size (area and radius), movement speed, and severity. AI Insights: Our smart AI gives you quick, useful insights about current storms near you in both English and Arabic. Understand the risk and stay prepared! Accurate & Up-to-Date: Storm information is refreshed every 15 minutes using satellite image analysis. You always have the latest data. Push Notifications: Stay alerted even when the app is closed. Get notifications for new storms and all-clear updates when the air is safe again. Easy to Use: Simple design, clear maps, and information in your language (English or Arabic). Switch language anytime. Privacy Friendly: Your location is used only to calculate the distance to storms and is never shared or stored. How it Works: The app scans satellite images for signs of new sand or dust storms. When a storm is detected, you get an instant alert if it is near your location. Tap the notification to open the app and see all the details: storm distance, direction, size, severity, and more. AI-powered insights give you a simple summary of the current situation. Why choose Dust Alerts? Protect your health by knowing about dust storms before they arrive. Plan your travel or outdoor activities with confidence. Always have accurate storm information, updated every 15 minutes. Coverage: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Your safety is our priority! Download Dust Alerts now and be the first to know when a storm is coming near you. Note: This app uses your device’s location only to show storm distances and directions. Data updates every 15 minutes and uses the latest satellite images. Languages: Disclaimer: We work hard to provide accurate storm alerts, but always check official sources before making safety decisions. We are not responsible for any losses or damages resulting from app use. English & Arabic
Barrah
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Is it a good time to be outside? And if not, when will it be? Barrah answers that question for the Gulf. It evaluates every hour of the week based on heat, dust and sun — taking into account what you’re planning to do — and shows you the best times to head outside. THE OUTSIDE INDEX One simple score from 0 to 100 tells you how suitable the conditions are for the rest of today. Every hour starts at 100, then loses points as heat stress rises beyond your comfort level, dust increases in the air, or UV becomes more intense. Each score is paired with a clear rating, from Excellent to Extreme, using the same colours throughout the app so you can understand conditions at a glance. HEAT AS YOUR BODY FEELS IT Air temperature alone doesn’t tell the whole story. Barrah estimates WBGT (Wet Bulb Globe Temperature) using temperature, humidity, wind and sunlight, with separate conditions for sun and shade. That’s why a humid 34°C day can sometimes place more heat stress on the body than a dry 40°C day. DUST — BEFORE IT ARRIVES Barrah tracks PM10 and visibility using data from the Copernicus CAMS model, highlighting expected dusty days throughout the week. When a dust spike is forecast, Barrah can notify you at least six hours in advance. Alerts are scheduled directly on your phone from the forecast — no intermediary server required. THE WINDOW GUIDE Your day is divided into six easy-to-read periods, from Dawn to Night, each with its own hours and rating. Tap any period to see conditions hour by hour. The rest of today comes first, followed by tomorrow and then the rest of the week — making it easy to find your next good window to head outside. WHO’S GOING OUT? The same weather can mean a very different day for a runner, a child or an older adult. Barrah includes six profiles: • General • Runner • Kids • Elderly • Dog • Outdoor Worker Each profile has its own thresholds, so conditions are evaluated according to who will actually be outside. Switch profiles with a single tap. The Outdoor Worker profile also includes statutory midday work-ban hours for each Gulf state. 16 PLANS. ONE FORECAST. Tell Barrah what you want to do, and it evaluates the forecast based on the hours and conditions that matter for that activity. Choose from: Swimming, beach, boating, dhow cruise, kites, camping, desert safari, hiking, cycling, golf, football, picnics, stargazing, Friday prayer, iftar and National Day. Each plan considers its own relevant factors and can show nearby places for that activity using Apple Maps. Camping, for example, considers nighttime conditions and the stars. Friday prayer tells you whether conditions are suitable for the courtyard, shade only, or whether indoors would be more appropriate. AND MORE • Save up to five cities alongside your current location • Lock Screen and Home Screen widgets show your next good window • An in-app guide explains every score, rating and colour • Full Arabic and English support, switchable directly within the app • Works offline after the week’s forecast has been downloaded PRIVACY, BY DESIGN No account. No tracking. No advertising. Your location leaves your device only as coordinates rounded to approximately one kilometre when requesting a forecast. Delete Barrah, and its locally stored data is deleted with it. IMPORTANT INFORMATION Barrah is a planning tool designed to help you make more informed decisions about outdoor activities. It is not a medical device and should not be used as a record of regulatory compliance. WBGT values are estimates calculated from forecast data and are not measurements taken at your location. Weather data is provided by Open-Meteo. Air-quality and dust data is provided by Copernicus CAMS.
Screenshots
Verdict
Gubaar and Barrah are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
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.
| Parameter | Gubaar | Barrah |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 18.2 | 17.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 41 MB | 24 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Aaratus, inc. | Ghassan Ghaleb |
In-app purchases
Gubaar
No in-app purchases
Barrah
No in-app purchases








