Before It Strikes vs Lightning Tracker & Thunder
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Before It Strikes
This app provides real-time severe weather alerts and lightning prediction. It offers a 30-minute safety countdown after lightning strikes and displays high-resolution 3D radar. Receive instant National Weather Service warnings for any saved location.
- Lightning safety countdown
- Official NWS alerts
- Hi-res 3D radar
- Storm Center overview
- Heads-up storm notifications
- Apple Watch integration
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Severe weather, before it happens. You shouldn't find out about a storm when the first bolt hits. Before It Strikes watches the sky for you — pushing official National Weather Service warnings the instant they're issued, tracking storms headed your way, and counting down exactly when it's safe to go back outside. Free. Nationwide. Built for anyone who has to make the call to head inside. -Lightning safety countdown When lightning strikes within 10 miles, a 30-minute timer starts — and resets with every nearby strike, just like the 30-30 rule the pros use. When it reaches zero, you're clear. It lives right on your Lock Screen and Apple Watch. -Official NWS alerts, instantly Tornado, severe thunderstorm, and flash-flood warnings straight from the National Weather Service — for home, the lake house, the kids' school, anywhere you save. With a live expiration countdown, plain-English guidance, and every affected county. - Hi-res 3D radar Crisp, smooth radar you can tilt into 3D and zoom to your own street. 150+ live radar sites, nationwide — pan to any storm in the country. - Storm Center One screen that reads the sky: a 1–5 threat level, live lightning rate, the nearest strike, the next-6-hour outlook, and local storm reports as they land. - See it coming A heads-up when a storm is overhead or heading your way — with tornado, wind, and hail threats in plain words, before the first bolt. - On your wrist The all-clear countdown mirrors to your Apple Watch as a glowing ring — a glance tells you whether it's safe to go back out. - Follows you Save every place you care about, or let it track wherever you are. Loud when it counts, silent when it doesn't. No subscription. No paywall on safety. Every feature, free. A note on safety Official National Weather Service warnings are always the source of truth. Some features — such as lightning prediction and storm scoring — are experimental situational awareness and should never be used in place of official warnings or lightning-safety guidance. When in doubt, seek shelter.
Lightning Tracker & Thunder
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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, Apple Watch, and Mac menu bar — 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 monitoring, radar, history, and every platform. Built for iPhone, iPad, and Mac with one Universal Purchase. 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
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Lightning Tracker & Thunder at every 2 days against Before It Strikes's weekly. On price, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Before It Strikes ships an update weekly, Lightning Tracker & Thunder every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Before It Strikes | Lightning Tracker & Thunder |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (6 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 37 MB | 45 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cody Negri | Feynman EinsteinAI Note Taker OU |
In-app purchases
Before It Strikes
No in-app purchases
Lightning Tracker & Thunder
No in-app purchases





