Being a responsible person in society keeping track of what’s going on there is needed and a police scanner app can help you regarding this. Police Scanner Apps uses radio waves to provide local information to the local community. Using a police scanner app you are allowed to listen to publicly available information made by the law enforcement, which is completely legal.
So, do police scanner apps really work? Yes. Police scanner apps for iPhone make use of local radio waves or audio streams in order to pin into the law enforcement’s local frequency. Therefore the app can catch information that is made public by the police. As law enforcement itself makes information public, using a police scanner app is legal. In addition, they can switch into private mode if they do not want to share any info.
Is there an iPhone app for police scanners? Yes, you can find many police scanner apps for iPhone on the app store today and totally get confused about which one should you choose! That’s why we have listed the 7 best police scanner apps for iPhone in 2023. We have also given every app details with its features, pros, cons, and pricing, and our verdict on the best police scanner app for iPhone in the end.
What is the best free police scanner app for iPhone?
List of 7 best police scanner apps for iPhone that are free and offer in-app purchases.
- Police Scanner Radio & Fire
- 5-0 Radio Police Scanner
- Police Scanner App, live radio
- Police Scanner ++
- Police Scanner +
- Police Scanner, Fire Radio
- Local Police Scanner Radio
1. Police Scanner Radio & Fire
Police Scanner Radio & Fire is the world’s leading police scanner app for iPhone, and iPad and it is used by millions. This police scanner app provides real-time local news, emergency updates, traffic updates, and public safety updates. Or you can listen to major events of your nation as well. The best part of the Police Scanner Radio & Fire app is, it alerts you of any breaking news and lets you hear it live so that you can stay up to date with millions of others.
Best Features
- Real-time breaking news alerts.
- Newest, nearest, and popular scanner view options.
- Quick scanning option with a starred favorite scanner.
- Scanner browsing options using location or genre from all around the world.
- Notifications for receiving alerts anytime.
- Available event description.
Pros
- Police Scanner Radio & Fireworks with or without Wi-Fi.
- Easy to use and cost-effective.
- Multiple channels to switch into, anytime.
- Usable in any country. So whenever you travel, just change your location.
Cons
This app does not provide voice transcription, but many users have suggested that voice transcription will help them understand the news easily whenever the radio signal interrupts.
Pricing
Police Scanner Radio & Fire offers multiple in-app purchases starting from $0.99/month for getting the widgets feature. The price for the pro version of the app is $3.99/month or $23.99/year. However, the default version of the app is free.
App Store Ratings
Police Scanner Radio & Fire has gained more than 296K user ratings with an average of 4.6 out of 5 on the app store. It is one of the highest-rated apps and now trending at #7 in the news category. Get this amazing police scanner app for free.
2. 5-0 Radio Police Scanner
5-0 Radio Police Scanner is the most rated and most downloaded police scanner app on the app store that lets you know any news be it about floods or tornados, shootings or earthquakes, fire or bombing, etc., quickly. It has several unique features like an active alerts feed, listening to feeds from the background, customizable feeds, live chat options, and more, that make you the first to know what’s happening around you.
Best Features
- Active alerts feed: shows breaking news and ongoing activities in real-time.
- Option to listen to the app from the background while running other apps.
- A customizable feed with live chatting options.
- Shareable links to browsers or mp3 apps.
- Worldwide coverage, supports police radios from the USA, Canada, Australia, and more.
- Map integration.
- Scanner listing by country dramatically grabs new lists to provide real-time information.
Pros
- 5-0 Radio Police Scanner is the best free police scanner app for iPhone, offers only one purchasing plan for its pro version which is not even mandatory to buy. You can still enjoy many of its features using the free version.
- You get to see breaking news and important updates on the app feed, you can even customize the feed as well. It is a great advantage as you get to listen to what you want.
- Feeds are shareable through email. So you can just create a link, share it with friends or other apps or browsers, and listen to the clip how you want.
Cons
- Shows many ads and pop-up ads lead to dangerous and unethical pages.
- Small exit buttons on ads make it difficult to find and exit the ads.
Pricing
The 5-0 Radio Police Scanner app offers one in-app purchase which costs $4.99 only for the pro version with less ads.
App Store Ratings
5-0 Radio Police Scanner is the most rated and downloaded police scanner app on the app store, totaling about 340K ratings with an average of 4.6 out of 5. It is currently trending at #13 in the news category.
3. Police Scanner App, live radio
Police Scanner App, live radio has the largest source of online scanner streaming service that provides up-to-date news, alerts, emergency updates, and everything from a police radio of your locality. You can browse through thousands of scanners around the world, search by country, popularity, or other filters, and get to know what’s happening in there using this awesome police scanner app on your iPhone.
Best Features
- Customizable feeds.
- GPS to track nearby scanner locations in real-time.
- Option for background audio streaming.
- Shows popularity of each feed and real-time number count.
- Add favorite stations in one place.
Pros
- Easy to navigate and many features of this app are totally free of cost.
- It provides news about marine, aviation, rail, and more with real-time locations. In short, Police Scanner App, live radio is the best free police scanner app for iPhone.
Cons
Pop-up ads are annoying.
Pricing
Police Scanner App, live radio has one purchasing plan which costs $2.99 per week, $9.99 per month, or $39.99 a year for its pro version.
App Store Ratings
More than 31K users have rated the Police Scanner App, a live radio app 4.7 out of 5 on average which is considered the best rating for a police scanner app.
4. Police Scanner ++
Police Scanner ++ is another great police scanner app on the app store. It supports thousands of police and fire scanners around the planet and provides top current feeds and map views. Using this app, you get to stay up to date with all the recent news and updates around your locality or any location you browse.
Best Features
- Top hundreds live feed access.
- Browse through the world’s thousands of feeds.
- Option to search for favorite feeds.
- Listening feeds from the background option.
- Monitor current area while listening with map explore.
Pros
- Very good background support. Using this app you can clearly listen to the updates even when you are using other apps.
- The user interface of Police Scanner ++ is simple, and easy to use.
- Ads create no issue on the app and finish in just 3 seconds.
Cons
- No customization options for feeds.
- Asks for apple id and password on some devices while opening the app.
Pricing
Police Scanner ++ offers multiple in-app purchasing plans starting from $4.99 for the premium version monthly. The yearly cost is $39.99. The basic version of the app is free.
App Store Ratings
With more than 12.4K ratings in total and an average of 4.6 ratings out of 5, the Police Scanner ++ is one of the best and easiest to use apps on the app store. It is also tending at #49 in the news category currently.
5. Police Scanner +
Our next pick is the Police Scanner + app, a police scanner app that broadcasts 10K radio frequencies including air traffic control towers, rails, fire, and of course police updates from any locality around the world. It has the largest station collections (40000+) to provide live updates to its users for free.
Best Features
- Listen and read about active stations along with the station you’re playing.
- Share stations via social media or email.
- Set an alarm for your favorite station on air time.
- Options to chat with other listeners.
- Scanner lists based on locations and popularity.
- Custom option for adding favorite stations.
- GPS to search nearby stations.
- Enable through background.
Pros
- Police Scanner + has a lot of features, all work perfectly and many of them are customizable.
- The option for setting a timer is one great advantage this app provides. Users can set a timer, and fall asleep and the app will turn off automatically after a certain time.
- This app works tremendously well for small towns where rarely an incident happens. But, it updates all news so, nothing is missed with Police Scanner +.
Cons
- The app sometimes crashes on some iOS devices.
- The timing of in-app ads is lengthy sometimes.
- Shows multiple ads, one after another.
Pricing
Police Scanner + is free to download and use its basic features are also free. It has one in-app purchasing offer for its PRO edition which costs $3.99 per month.
App Store Ratings
The average rating of Police Scanner + is 4.5 out of 5 rated by more than 75 thousand users on the app store. There the app is now trending at #45 in the News category as well.
6. Police Scanner, Fire Radio
Police Scanner, Fire Radio is another top-rated police scanner app for iPhone and iPad. Like other police scanner apps, it also provides breaking news, fire alarms, police safety alerts, wildfire map, and more information in real-time. Using this app you get to save your favorite police scanner location and be the first to know about that locality. Moreover, you can browse through about 1000 scanners around the world.
Best Features
- Search by keywords to find favorite feeds.
- List and mark favorite feeds within a click.
- Map integration to find the location of a feed.
- Alarm setting option for scanner radio.
- Feed updates from broadcastify in real-time.
- Playback controlling system using iPhone’s lock screen.
Pros
- The Police Scanner, Fire Radio app can save you from an unfortunate situation, such as; you are walking alone or traveling on a train and an altercation breaking out and more. You can use its walkie-talkie feature and talk to other users in order to save yourself.
- Most users find the Police Scanner, Fire Radio app useful because it is very user-friendly, relevant to emergency situations, and intuitive.
Cons
No option to select bands. This app runs bands transmission that it can pick up, which leads you to listen to inaudible bands for minutes.
Pricing
Police Scanner, Fire Radio has multiple in-app purchasing offers starting from its pro version which is at $2.99/week, $9.99/month, or $39.99/year. The basic version of the app is free.
App Store Ratings
The Police Scanner, Fire Radio app has an average of 4.6 rating out of 5 from more than 64K users on the app store and tends at #9 in the News category.
7. Local Police Scanner Radio
Locating scanners of your locality and showing about 50 most listened to scanners are the best usages of the Local Police Scanner Radio app. It keeps you updated by discovering local police scanner radio or emergency alerts live, like other police scanner apps. Additionally, it provides scanner lists and keyword search features as well.
Best Features
- Scanner view of 50 most listened to scanners.
- Discovering new scanners and locating scanners in the user’s locality.
- Searchable feeds by keywords from the directory.
- Shows the popularity of each feed.
Pros
- Simple and easy to use.
- Features always work perfectly.
Cons
- Not many stations are added.
- Not free.
Pricing
Local Police Scanner Radio costs $3.99 per week, $11.99 per month, or $39.99 per year for its pro version.
App Store Ratings
Local Police Scanner Radio is rated by 400+ users so far with an average of 4.5 out of 5 as a new police scanner app on the app store. This app is slowly growing and updating to meet users’ expectations.
Wrap UP!
All police scanner apps have one service in common, which is providing emergency updates from nearby police radios. However, the best ones include additional features like, real-time news with map updates, customizable feeds, search through keywords, scanners from around the world, and more. Keeping these features in mind, earlier we have listed the best 7 police scanner apps for iOS users. We hope you have understood what each app has in common, what’s unique or best, and what they lack.
But if you want to take our opinion, we recommend our top three picks which are Police Scanner Radio & Fire, 5-0 Radio Police Scanner, and Police Scanner App, live radio apps as the best free police scanner app for iPhone.
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