Comparison

BlitzortungLive vs Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Live lightning strike display
  • Historical strike visualization
  • Customizable push alerts
  • Multi-language support
  • Real-time map view
Features
Read full description

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.

About

Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby

Receive real-time wildfire alerts, including evacuation orders matched to your address. Get notifications via push, email, text, or phone call for multiple locations. Track active fires, smoke, and air quality on a live map.

Highlights
  • Address-matched evacuation alerts
  • Push, email, text, and phone call notifications
  • Live wildfire map with fire perimeters and smoke data
  • Track fire progress on Lock Screen
  • Alerts for multiple saved places
  • Firefighting aircraft detection
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

FireNearby watches every official wildfire source around the places you love and gets you the word the moment something changes: push, email, text, and a real phone call when your address is ordered to evacuate. WHY FIRENEARBY IS DIFFERENT -It can call you. When officials issue an evacuation or shelter-in-place order for your exact address, FireNearby rings your phone. -It can call your family too. Add family members to each place's evacuation circle: when an order hits, their phones ring and get a text the same moment yours does. They don't need the app or an account; they confirm with one tap on a text. -Address-matched evacuation zones. We match official evacuation feeds to your saved addresses in every state that publishes one, and alert you the moment your zone changes: warnings, orders, downgrades, and all clear. -Minutes after the first 911 call. Dispatch alerts often arrive before a fire has a name or makes the news. -Firefighting aircraft detection. When air tankers start circling a spot near you before any official incident is on the books, you'll know. NINE ALERT TYPES, YOUR RULES Evacuation orders, new named fires, fire crews dispatched, rapid fire growth, red flag warnings, air quality, firefighting aircraft, possible new fires (early signals), and all clear. Protect up to three places: home, the cabin, Mom's house. Each gets its own alert types, radius, delivery channels, and family circle. THE LIVE MAP Active fires with size, containment, and wind. Fire perimeters. Official evacuation zones. Smoke and air quality. Dispatch reports. Firefighting aircraft. Prescribed burns, early heat detections, and live wildfire cameras. Standard, satellite, and 3D terrain views. Updated continuously from official sources, always timestamped. TRACK A FIRE ON YOUR LOCK SCREEN Following a fire near a saved place? Pin it to your Lock Screen and watch acres, containment, and evacuation status update live. No unlocking, no refreshing. BUILT FOR THE MOMENT IT MATTERS -Quiet hours that never silence an evacuation order -Test alerts, a sample call, and a sample text so you know delivery works before you need it -Incident timelines: when a fire grew, by how much, and when containment changed -Fastest-growing fires at a glance -Wildfire stats and history for every state Sources include CAL FIRE, NIFC, NWS, InciWeb, state evacuation feeds, air quality networks, dispatch centers, and satellite hotspot detections. FireNearby Pro unlocks alerts: $39.99/year or $149.99 lifetime. Privacy policy: firenearby.com/privacy Terms of service: firenearby.com/terms Apple standard EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Wildfires move fast. Be the first to know.

Screenshots

BlitzortungLive4 screens
Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby at 5.0 against BlitzortungLive's 4.5. Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 6 months). BlitzortungLive's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ratings volume (675 vs 2). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $39.99 per year. BlitzortungLive asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BlitzortungLive has 675 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of BlitzortungLive's written reviews are positive against 100% of Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BlitzortungLive ships an update every 6 months, Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby every 2 days. Both last shipped on November 6, 2026.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
BlitzortungLive versus Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBlitzortungLiveWildfire Tracker by FireNearby
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (675 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings675 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#186 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMarco BauerJBL GROUP LLC

Customer experience

BlitzortungLive

All ratings665 ratings
Positive89.5%
Neutral5.0%
Negative5.6%
Written reviews267 reviews
Positive75.3%
Neutral7.5%
Negative17.2%

Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

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

Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

BlitzortungLive

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby

Subscriptions1
  • FireNearby Pro$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • FireNearby Pro Lifetime$149.99

Questions

Is BlitzortungLive free?
BlitzortungLive is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby free?
Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, BlitzortungLive or Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby?
Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby is rated higher. BlitzortungLive averages 4.5 out of 5 from 675 ratings, while Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do BlitzortungLive or Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby have ads?
BlitzortungLive shows ads; Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby does not.
Which is updated more often, BlitzortungLive or Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby?
BlitzortungLive ships an update every 6 months, and Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby every 2 days. Most recently, BlitzortungLive was updated on November 6, 2026 and Wildfire Tracker by FireNearby on November 6, 2026.

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