Comparison

NESW vs Compass

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

Head to head
About

NESW

A simple, easy-to-read compass app showing heading, cardinal direction, and magnetic north. It also features a flashlight toggle for convenience during outdoor activities.

Highlights
  • Heading and cardinal direction indicator
  • Magnetic North pointer
  • Large font degree heading
  • Rotating compass rose
  • Background color change for North
  • Integrated flashlight toggle
Features
Read full description

NESW is a clean, fast compass app built for hikers, campers, travelers, and anyone who needs reliable direction at a glance. Get a live compass with large heading readouts, cardinal direction, and a smooth rotating dial designed for quick outdoor use. Switch between true north and magnetic north, monitor heading accuracy, and stay oriented with a minimal interface that keeps the essentials front and center. NESW goes beyond a simple compass: - Save objectives and lock onto a destination bearing - Share your current location quickly - View altitude, speed, and magnetic declination - Track direction with clear turn guidance Whether you're hiking, camping, backpacking, overlanding, boating, traveling, or navigating unfamiliar places, NESW helps you keep your bearings with less clutter and more confidence. Key features: - Large degree heading and clear cardinal direction - True north and magnetic north support - Smooth rotating compass dial - Objective pinning and bearing lock - Live location sharing - Altitude, speed, and declination readouts - Calibration and heading status guidance - Minimal design built for fast readability Great for: - Hiking and trail navigation - Camping and backpacking - Road trips and travel - Orienteering and outdoor exploration - Marine and land navigation Notes: - For best accuracy, avoid strong magnetic interference, metallic objects, and magnetic phone cases - True north accuracy may improve after location access and GPS lock are available If you have questions, feedback, or ideas for future updates, we'd love to hear from you.

About

Compass

This navigation app provides a digital compass and map to help you find your way. It displays your current GPS location, address, and direction, with features like a torchlight and traffic information.

Highlights
  • Digital compass with map integration
  • Displays current GPS location and address
  • Shows true and magnetic north
  • Torchlight function
  • Traffic information
  • Distance measurement
Features
Read full description

Digital Compass Map app for your device! Incredibly simple and very useful compass & map app, Your GPS information like address, latitude, longitude, altitude, speed will be shown on the map. Best Compass with Map, is a smartphone tool available for identify the direction. Easy to use in combination with maps, explore at hand. => How to Use Compass for Maps : - Keep your phone parallel to the ground and turned toward the arrow that you want to define - Combined with maps, navigating the path has never been easier - Compass Map will display on-screen directions and degrees Features: - Display your current position via GPS - Identify your current location accurately on the map - Equivalent measuring system when determining the level of flatness => Features : - Explore places like restaurant, hospital, bar, bank, ATM, coffee shop, gas station etc. - Turn on the Torch Light in dark with one tap - Find traffic around you before you plan to travel out - Get compass directions - Current address will show on the Map - if there are network, the address will auto update periodically - shows direction of north, south, east and west - shows the true north, magnetic north - Large numbers and large rotating bezel - Find area by Lat-Long or Co-ordinates - Distance results will be output in meters, kilometers, nautical mile, feet & miles, yards. - Support coordinate at your position - Display your current position via GPS - Identify your current location accurately on the map

Screenshots

NESW3 screens
Compass4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: NESW at 5.0 against Compass's 4.0. NESW also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and review sentiment (25% vs 0%). Compass's advantage is update cadence (every 8 months vs every 57 months) and ratings volume (35 vs 1). On price, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Compass sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. NESW asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

NESW holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Compass has 35 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 25% of NESW's written reviews are positive against 0% of Compass's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NESW ships an update every 57 months, Compass every 8 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
NESW versus Compass: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNESWCompass
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better4.0 (35 ratings)
Positive reviews25.0% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings135 — better
Update frequencyEvery 57 monthsEvery 8 months — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS16.612.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB48 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSolaz Dazen srlNalin Savaliya

Customer experience

NESW

Written reviews4 reviews
Positive25.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative75.0%

Compass

All ratings26 ratings
Positive65.4%
Neutral11.5%
Negative23.1%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

None

NESW

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Compass

One-time1
  • Compass with Maps$4.99

Questions

Is NESW free?
NESW is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Compass free?
Compass is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, NESW or Compass?
NESW is rated higher. NESW averages 5.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Compass averages 4.0 from 35 ratings.
Do NESW or Compass have ads?
Both NESW and Compass show ads.
Which is updated more often, NESW or Compass?
NESW ships an update every 57 months, and Compass every 8 months. Most recently, NESW was updated on October 24, 2026 and Compass on October 24, 2026.

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