BlitzortungLive vs LightningMaps
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
BlitzortungLive
Monitor lightning strikes in near real-time on a map. Receive push alerts for detected strikes in a customizable area. Supports multiple languages and displays historical strike data.
- Live lightning strike display
- Historical strike visualization
- Customizable push alerts
- Multi-language support
- Real-time map view
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See thunderstorms the moment they happen. BlitzortungLive shows lightning strikes from the worldwide Blitzortung.org community network on the map in near real time – now together with precipitation radar, thunderstorm forecasts and wind, so you can see at a glance where a storm is, how strong it is and where it is heading. LIVE LIGHTNING • New strikes appear within seconds and fade from yellow to red as they age • Lightning map with the strikes of the last hours (lightningmaps.org) • Strike counter for the visible area • Optional sound for new strikes WEATHER RADAR & FORECAST • Precipitation radar for Germany and neighbouring regions, updated every 5 minutes • Animated timeline: the last two hours plus a 2-hour nowcast • Forecast images are clearly marked – you always know whether you see measured or predicted data • Satellite cloud images and animated wind THUNDERSTORMS • Current and forecast thunderstorm areas across Europe • Thunderstorm tracks in Germany with direction, speed and warning level • Lightning density map • Instability (Lifted Index) shows where thunderstorms can develop LOOK BACK • Scroll back through the last two hours of radar – each image shows the lightning the app received at that time while it was open THUNDERSTORM ALERT • Push notification when lightning is detected near you • Choose the alert area on the map or use your location, radius from 1 to 300 km (0.6 to 186 mi) MADE FOR TODAY'S IPHONE AND IPAD • Completely redesigned for iOS 17 and later • Smooth map with GPU rendering – zoom and pan without waiting • Dark Mode, Dynamic Type, VoiceOver and Reduce Motion support • 12 languages: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal and Brazil) and Russian FREE – NO ADS, NO TRACKING BlitzortungLive is free and contains no advertising and no tracking. ABOUT BLITZORTUNG.ORG BlitzortungLive is an additional service of the Blitzortung.org project, a community network of volunteers operating lightning detection stations all over the world. Coverage and accuracy depend on the stations in each region. For general questions about Blitzortung.org or to join the network with your own station, please visit www.blitzortung.org and read the documentation and FAQ first. DATA SOURCES Weather data: Deutscher Wetterdienst (CC BY 4.0), satellite data EUMETSAT. Instability: NOAA GFS (model data). Lightning: Blitzortung.org. BlitzortungLive is not an official warning service. In case of danger, follow the warnings of your national weather service.
LightningMaps
Pinpoint the exact location and distance of real-life lightning strikes using your phone's sensors. Simply tap when you see a flash and again when you hear thunder to instantly reveal the strike's coordinates. It's like having a personal lightning detector in your pocket.
- Pinpoint lightning strike locations
- Measure distance to strikes
- Intuitive tap-based interface
- Real-time tracking
- Safety guidelines included
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Unleash Your Inner Thor with LightningMaps! With LightningMaps, you can harness the power of Thor himself. The app takes your current location as a reference point, enabling you to pinpoint real life lightning strikes with unmatched precision. Here's how it works: Step 1: When you spot that electrifying flash in the sky, tap your screen. Step 2: Aim your phone in the direction of the lightning, channeling your inner god of thunder and Tap again when the thunder roars. LightningMaps works its magic, revealing the lightning's exact location in an instant. It's like carrying your very own lightning rod right in your pocket! You see the lightning location and the distance from you. So, feel like Thor and conquer the storm with LightningMasp. Lightning tracking has never been this electrifying! Note: LightningMaps prioritizes safety. Always adhere to safety guidelines when observing thunderstorms.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: LightningMaps at 5.0 against BlitzortungLive's 4.5. LightningMaps also leads on ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). BlitzortungLive's advantage is ratings volume (665 vs 1). On price, update cadence, 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.
LightningMaps holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BlitzortungLive has 665 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
BlitzortungLive ships an update every 6 months, LightningMaps every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | BlitzortungLive | LightningMaps |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (665 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 75.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 665 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 3 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Marco Bauer | Andrii Rudenko |
Customer experience
BlitzortungLive
LightningMaps
Bugs and requests
BlitzortungLive
Reported bugs
4 issues- Crashes on startup
- Delayed or missing strike notifications
- Inaccurate location of strikes
- Issues with map updates
Requested features
5 requests- Customizable alert radius
- Historical lightning data
- Weather radar integration
- Ability to report missing strikes
- Option to remove ads
LightningMaps
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
BlitzortungLive
No in-app purchases
LightningMaps
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is BlitzortungLive free?
Is LightningMaps free?
Which has better reviews, BlitzortungLive or LightningMaps?
Do BlitzortungLive or LightningMaps have ads?
Which is updated more often, BlitzortungLive or LightningMaps?
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