Comparison

Real vs Lightning Tracker & Thunder

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

Head to head
About

Real

Track lightning strikes in real-time with live satellite data and high-definition radar. Get instant alerts when storms are near your location and customize notification settings for a clear, fast view of the sky.

Highlights
  • Live satellite lightning detection
  • High-definition radar overlay
  • Customizable strike bubble alerts
  • Color-coded strike intensity
  • Watch app with live map
  • Lock screen and home screen widgets
Features
Read full description

See lightning the moment it strikes, and know the instant it's headed for you. Most lightning apps blink a few dots on a plain map and call it a day. MesoSky Lightning is a different animal: a real-time storm instrument that fuses satellite lightning detection with high-definition radar into one fast, beautiful screen. If you take the sky seriously, this is the lightning tracker you've been waiting for. REAL-TIME STRIKES, STRAIGHT FROM ORBIT • Live cloud-to-ground and in-cloud flashes from the GOES-18 and GOES-19 satellites' Geostationary Lightning Mapper. Strikes appear moments after they happen. • Every strike is color-coded by strength, so one glance tells a distant flicker from a violent close hit. • Tap any strike for the full story: a strength gauge, optical energy, footprint size, exact distance, and how long ago it struck. WIDGETS! Lock Screen, Home Screen WATCH APP with MAP! YOUR STRIKE BUBBLE • Draw a radius around your live location, or pin any spot, from 1 to 100 miles. • See the nearest strike's distance and direction, the total count around you, and how many are strong or intense, all updating live. ALERTS THAT RESPECT YOU • Get a push the instant lightning enters your bubble, even with the app closed. • You set the rules: how often you're notified (every 5, 15, or 30 minutes) and for how long (the next hour, 6 hours, 12 hours, or until you turn it off). • No spam, no nagging. Just the heads-up you actually want. HIGH-DEFINITION RADAR UNDERNEATH • Full-resolution NEXRAD Level 2 base reflectivity, rendered live. The same data meteorologists use, auto-tuned to the closest radar to you. • Dial in the dBZ filter and opacity to see exactly the storm you care about. READ THE STORM AT A GLANCE • Intensity glow that heats up where the strongest strikes cluster. • Footprint and activity overlays that turn storm chaos into a clear read. RIGHT ON YOUR WRIST • A live lightning map on your Apple Watch, centered on you or anywhere you pan, with every strike color-coded by strength just like the phone. • Tap any strike on your wrist for its strength, distance, direction, age, and footprint. • Set your time window (15, 30, or 60 minutes) and toggle intensity coloring right from the watch. • Watch face complications keep the strike count, the closest strike's distance and direction, and how many are strong or intense one glance away. • Your complications stay current, so a flick of the wrist is always a fresh read on the sky. BUILT BEAUTIFULLY • A clean, fast, glass interface designed to be understood in a flash. Full dark, fluid motion, and haptics throughout. • Your location is used only to center the map and power your alerts. Never sold, never used to track you. Whether you're a storm chaser, pilot, golfer, coach, or a parent watching the sky over the ballfield, MesoSky Lightning gives you the clearest, fastest read on the sky in your pocket. — Terms of Use (EULA): https://mesosky.com/terms/ Privacy Policy: https://mesosky.com/privacy/ MesoSky Lightning Pro is a $0.99/month auto-renewing subscription with a 3-day free trial. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation and renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel anytime in Settings.

About

Lightning Tracker & Thunder

Features
Read full description

See lightning strikes in real time — on a live map, on your wrist, and in push alerts when storms move toward you. Lightning Tracker shows where thunder is happening right now: individual strikes colour-coded by age, storm hotspots with strike rate and drift, precipitation radar, a world overview of active regions, and strike history you can scrub through like a timeline. WHY LIGHTNING TRACKER • Real-time lightning map centred on your location • Nearest-strike distance, direction, and trend (closing in or moving away) • Storm cells with strike count, rate per minute, and drift direction • Animated precipitation radar overlay • World view of active storm regions worldwide • Strike history with playback — see what already happened • Flash-to-Bang timer — estimate distance from flash to thunder • Storm-risk forecast and official severe-weather alerts nearby • Push notifications for lightning near your saved locations • Home Screen widget and Apple Watch — glanceable updates everywhere STAY AHEAD OF THE STORM Save alert locations for home, work, the ball field, or anywhere that matters. Choose your radius and quiet hours. Premium unlocks unlimited locations, background alerts, radar, storm rate and drift, and the full 24-hour history. Built for iPhone and iPad. IMPORTANT: Lightning Tracker is for informational use only. Always follow official local warnings and seek shelter when thunderstorms are near. Data coverage varies by region. Download Lightning Tracker and know when thunder is getting close — before you hear it. Terms: https://lightningtracker.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/terms.html Privacy: https://lightningtracker.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/privacy.html

Screenshots

Real4 screens
Lightning Tracker & Thunder4 screens

Verdict

The call

Real and Lightning Tracker & Thunder are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Real sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per month and Lightning Tracker & Thunder sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Real ships an update every 5 days, Lightning Tracker & Thunder weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Real versus Lightning Tracker & Thunder: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRealLightning Tracker & Thunder
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (11 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings11 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB44 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRobert AbrahamFeynman EinsteinAI Note Taker OU

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Real

Subscriptions1
  • Unlock all Features$0.991 Month
2 purchases

Lightning Tracker & Thunder

Subscriptions2
  • Weekly Subscription$5.997 Days
  • Yearly Subscription$49.991 Year

Questions

Is Real free?
Real is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Lightning Tracker & Thunder free?
Lightning Tracker & Thunder is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Real or Lightning Tracker & Thunder have ads?
Neither Real nor Lightning Tracker & Thunder shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Real or Lightning Tracker & Thunder?
Real ships an update every 5 days, and Lightning Tracker & Thunder weekly. Most recently, Real was updated on October 31, 2026 and Lightning Tracker & Thunder on November 4, 2026.

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