Use case
A claim says lightning damaged the property on a Tuesday. Lightning API lets you check that directly: query a small box around the address over the window in question and read back every flash that was detected, with timestamps and classification, through an API rather than an ordered report.
Was lightning detected near this location around this time. Everything else in a claim file is downstream of that answer, and it is a question with a clean shape: a small bounding box and a time window.
Strikes near an address
curl "https://api.lightningapi.dev/v1/flashes" \
-H "X-API-Key: lapi_your_key_here" \
-G -d since_minutes=1440 \
-d min_lat=35.44 -d max_lat=35.50 \
-d min_lon=-97.55 -d max_lon=-97.49Each flash comes back with its position, timestamp, and classification. Cloud-to-ground is the subset that matters for property damage, so filter on it before you draw a conclusion about plausibility.
One lookup is trivial. The reason plan choice matters is volume: a claims team checking a few hundred addresses after a severe weather outbreak is making a few hundred queries, each over a wide window across a period when the sky was busy. Row caps, not call counts, are usually the binding constraint.
| Plan | Rows per call | Fits |
|---|---|---|
| Pro | 20,000 | Occasional single-address checks |
| Ultimate | 50,000 | Batch review after an event |
| Supercell | 200,000 | Regional sweeps across a whole outbreak |
This is detection data, not an adjudication. It can show that lightning was or was not detected nearby in a window. It cannot establish that a particular flash caused a particular loss, and it is not issued as a certified report for legal proceedings.
Used honestly, that is still most of the value. A claim with no detected activity within a wide radius over a whole day is a very different file from one with cloud-to-ground strikes a few hundred metres away in the right hour.
Recommended plan
Claims work batches, and a day-wide window around a busy storm easily exceeds a 20,000 row response, so Ultimate's 50,000 row per call cap is what keeps one address one query rather than a paging loop.
Compare plansFrequently asked questions
No. Lightning API provides detection data through an API. It does not issue certified or notarised reports, and it should not be presented as one.
Positions are reported in decimal degrees. Treat a result as evidence of activity in an area rather than proof that a specific structure was hit, and size your bounding box accordingly.
The historical dataset grows continuously and its current depth is shown by state on the live data page. Check there before committing to a workflow that assumes a particular retention period.
Coverage spans the Americas, the Caribbean and Atlantic, and the Pacific including Hawaii and Alaska. The coverage pages show each region in detail.
No. You pay for API calls, not for lookups. Pay As You Go includes 5,000 calls a month at no cost, then $0.003 per call.
Related
Last checked 2026-09-20
Coverage areas
Lightning data provided as-is; not for safety-critical use. Commercial use is permitted on every current plan. Read the EULA →