# Sun Scout

> Visualizes sun's position and path in the sky. (iPhone/iPad app by Benjohn Barnes.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sun-scout/id375314684 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Benjohn Barnes](https://appshunter.io/developer/319043988)
- Category: Photo & Video, Navigation
- Price: $9.99
- Rating: 2.70/5 from 22 App Store ratings · 94 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 8.0 · 5 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2010-06-12
- Data updated: 2026-09-07
- Monetization: paid
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sun-scout/id375314684/reviews.md

## What is Sun Scout?

If your work or play requires sunlight, Sun Scout is built for you. Turn your iPhone in to a magic lens. Point it to the sky and understand where the sun will be and when it will be there.

* romano01, US App Store – "This app has come in handy more then once this week alone. While working on a feature film called "fairhaven" the gaffer and I (key Grip) needed to find out where and when the sun would be for a scene… well after i pulled out my Sun Scout App. everyone started downloading it!!! It is well worth it."

* WPSHM, US App Store – "This should win a gajillion awards for usability and simplicity.  I love it!!!!"

Please Note – Sun Scout uses your device's compass. Like all compasses, Sun Scout is adversely influenced by metal in buildings or vehicles. Sun Scout is only as good as the iPhone's compass and is prone to a variable margin of accuracy even under fair conditions. Please do not base high-value production decisions solely on Sun Scout. Confirming them using sun charts and a technical mission during the time of day of a future shoot.

We'd be delighted to hear what you're getting up to with Sun Scout. Give us a shout by email: shout@sunscoutapp.com

## Key features

- Sun position visualization
- Sun path tracking
- Real-time sun data
- Compass-based functionality
- Usability and simplicity

## What do users think of Sun Scout?

Overall sentiment: negative

**Pros**

- 👍 Useful for photography
- 👍 Useful for real estate
- 👍 Useful for film planning
- 👍 Useful for landscape business
- 👍 Simple and easy to use
- 👍 Accurate when working
- 👍 Invaluable tool
- 👍 Works everywhere globally
- 👍 No internet needed
- 👍 Professional quality
- 👍 Ingenious and helpful
- 👍 Simple and effective
- 👍 Works well
- 👍 Very cool AR
- 👍 Magical and amazing

**Cons**

- 🐛 No longer works
- 🐛 Not accurate
- 🐛 Abandoned by developer
- 🐛 Way off
- 🐛 Ballpark estimate
- 🐛 Not working on iPhone XS Max
- 🐛 Waste of money
- 🐛 Worthless
- 🐛 Steep price
- 🐛 Sun's path not showing
- 🐛 Regular camera screen
- 🐛 Overpriced
- 🐛 Limited functionality
- 🐛 Doesn't work
- 🐛 Terrible
- 🐛 Overpriced for function
- 🐛 Looks like the end
- 🐛 No sun appears
- 🐛 Not working anymore
- 🐛 No sun direction
- 🐛 No app support
- 🐛 Needs developer update
- 🐛 AR never shows up
- 🐛 Doesn't work in London
- 🐛 Keeps spinning
- 🐛 Works but only for dates of their choosing
- 🐛 Expensive
- 🐛 Doesn't work
- 🐛 Sun position moves
- 🐛 Still not working
- 🐛 Waste of money
- 🐛 Broken on iOS 9
- 🐛 Outdated
- 🐛 No support
- 🐛 Discontinued
- 🐛 Crashes
- 🐛 Freezes
- 🐛 Needs work
- 🐛 Inaccurate
- 🐛 Overpriced for features
- 🐛 Limited features
- 🐛 No instructions
- 🐛 Very inaccurate
- 🐛 Bad app
- 🐛 Needs improvement
- 🐛 Needs fine tuning
- 🐛 Not spot on

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Stopped working correctly
- Not accurate since
- Sun detection way off
- App does not work
- Sun's path isn't showing
- App just opens camera, no sun
- Sun position does not quite align
- Does not work with iOS 13
- No sun appears in AR tracker
- App not working anymore
- Will not show any sun direction
- No longer shows in camera settings
- AR never shows up
- Doesn't work
- Position of the sun just moves around
- Funktioniert immer noch nicht
- Sun keeps moving on screen
- Sun alignment is fixed
- App crashes
- App freezes
- App locks up
- Phone has to be restarted
- Always says it has interference
- Crashes my phone
- App will not work
- Sun just spin and never stop
- Time line seems to be about 1:30 earlier
- Sun positions on screen do not coincide
- Consistently about 1:30 earlier than actual time

**Most requested features**

- Calibration setting
- Ability to choose locations
- Ability to choose specific dates
- Calibration tool
- See with clouds
- See shiny day or raining
- See at which time is it cloudy
- Add moon position
- Take a photo including sun path and times
- Set elevation at horizon
- Select exact geographical region via Google Maps
- Select exact date
- Numerical information (angle, compass direction)
- Favourites log
- Alert/alarm for ideal times
- Show azimuth and elevation value onscreen
- Add capture button
- Ability to enter a date manually
- Indicate Golden Hour
- See all days in the future, present and past
- Take snapshots with notes

## Recent user reviews (10 of 94)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sun-scout/id375314684/reviews.md

### 5/5 — Superb and useful app

*2025-07-27*

As a photographer I have used this app for years and it's been incredibly useful. But also if you are buying a house you can check where the sun is going to be at any time of the year and similarly if you plan to shade particular windows or areas You can check the Sun position at any time of the day and any time of the year in advance…
Highly recommended

### 1/5 — Neglected app. No longer works

*2022-03-26*

I sense this app is no longer supported by the creator. It stopped working correctly a few years ago and hasn’t been close to accurate since. Do not buy

### 1/5 — Not Accurate At All – And Developer has Abandoned this App

*2022-03-23*

There needs to be some sort of calibration setting to help make it accurate.  Even with location services and Precise Location enabled, the detection of the sun is way off.  This is more of a ballpark estimate than it is anything concrete / accurate.

I would have hope that this would be fixed / improved upon, but it looks like the last update was over two years ago; so I think the developer has given up on this app. Save your money.

### 1/5 — Not Working!

*2021-07-26*

This app does not work on the iphone XS Max. 
Is it anyway to fix this?

### 1/5 — Awful

*2020-10-22*

Such a waste of money. After hearing reviews from somebody on Instagram about this app I decided to buy it. Completely worthless I get more out of the Sun Seeker app for less money. Not being able to choose locations or a specific date makes this useless for me. At such a steep price for an app I would have expected a lot more.

### 1/5 — Sun’s path isn’t showing

*2020-07-11*

I was so excited to use this to scout locations for photography but the app doesn’t work at all. Waste of $10. The app just opens my camera but doesn’t show the sun or the sun’s path at all. Just a regular camera screen. I tried calibrating and deleted and reinstalled the app. Still not working.

### 5/5 — Great!

*2020-06-07*

I using for help me with film planning. Perfect!

### 5/5 — Love this app

*2019-10-29*

I have relied on Sun Scout for my landscape business and appreciate the update for IOS 13. It is a great tool!

**Developer response:** Thanks very much chermcc. It’s great to hear how Sun Scout gets used!

### 5/5 — Works perfectly fine

*2019-10-29*

There were issues initially with the iOS 13 update, but works fine now.

**Developer response:** Thanks for the update S@j!d, I’m glad to hear Sun Scout is working for you now! Happy scouting.

### 1/5 — Needs calibration adjustment

*2019-10-05*

I like the ease of use. Simple for what it is intended. I think $10 is a bit too high for allowing only 1 function. Another app like star wall has similar function with AR view and offers much more other info. 

The sun position does not quite align with my view. I think if a calibration tool exists it would be much better. Something like you move the overlay sun to where the sun actually is and hit calibrate....

Does not work with ios13. Please update.

**Developer response:** Hi, I’m sorry about the iOS 13 issues. The 1.5 update was released a few days after your review with fixes for these problems. Could you please give it a try?

Thank you for the feature suggestion!

## Frequently asked questions about Sun Scout

### What does Sun Scout do?

Sun Scout turns your iPhone into a tool to understand the sun's position and path in the sky. It helps you determine where and when sunlight will be available, making it useful for various outdoor activities and professional work.

### What are the key features of Sun Scout?

The app provides real-time sun position visualization and tracks the sun's path. It utilizes your device's compass for functionality and is praised for its usability and simplicity.

### How much does Sun Scout cost?

Based on the provided information, Sun Scout is a paid application. There are no mentions of in-app purchases or advertisements, indicating a one-time purchase model.

### What are common use cases for Sun Scout?

Common use cases include planning for outdoor photography or filmmaking, ensuring optimal lighting for scenes. It's also beneficial for anyone working or playing outdoors who needs to know the sun's location and timing.

### What are the limitations of Sun Scout?

Sun Scout relies on your device's compass, which can be affected by metal in buildings or vehicles. The accuracy is dependent on the iPhone's compass and may have a variable margin of error. It's advised not to base critical decisions solely on the app and to confirm with sun charts or technical missions.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.5.0 — 2019-10-09

Sun Scout 1.5.0 is a critical fix – sorry that version 1.4.0 does not function correctly with iOS 13 and larger screened devices.

Fixes included in 1.5.0:
* Fixes the sun path not being shown.
* Fixes date setting not working.
* Fixes location setting not working.
* Improves layout on larger screened devices.

### 1.4.1 — 2016-02-01

* If you used Sun Scout on an iPhone 6s, you will have found that it didn't work for the first few revisions of iOS9. The sun's track simply flew about in the sky instead of staying put. This was caused by an issue in iOS9 which has been rectified in later updates. I'm very sorry this caused problems for you.

* This update is a fix for the "Where is the sun now" arrow on newer devices.

Many thanks for your support. Please get in touch with your suggestions. Happy scouting!

### 1.4.0 — 2014-10-09

Sun Scout is now universal: use it on any Apple device with a camera and G.P.S., including your iPad!

We've refined the interface so there is much more space to see where the sun is going, and polished numerous other details.

Thank you for your feedback and enthusiastic support and watch this spot for further improvements soon.

### 1.2 — 2011-04-01

This update mainly fixes a serious crashing bug with iOS 4.3 (thanks to Daniel Cilia & Rick Evans for Beta testing). We're sorry for the problems this has caused.

Other improvements are…

The magnetic North correction has been fixed (many thanks to Anthony Moringello for testing this).

The screen update algorithms have been optimised to be smoother.

The tracking algorithms have been greatly refined for smoother and faster tracking on all devices, and in particular on devices sporting a gyro.

Specific handling of the iPhone 4's camera geometry has been added in.

Thank you for your support, and please keep your excellent feedback coming in. It's very helpful to understand what you are doing with Sun Scout and know about the features you would like to see added.

Happy Scouting!

### 1.1 — 2010-09-25

Thanks for your Sun Scout feedback!

This update brings Retina display support and adds multitasking so that Sun Scout launches much more quickly. The "Attitude" computations have been tuned up to be more responsive.

Please keep your excellent feedback coming, and let us know which features you need next. Happy Scouting!

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## More apps by Benjohn Barnes

- [Get Running](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/get-running/id319043985)
- [Tune Champ](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tune-champ/id6736403510)

All apps by Benjohn Barnes: https://appshunter.io/developer/319043988

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-07.*
