Golden Hour! vs Aurora Compass
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Golden Hour!
This app helps you find the perfect lighting for photography by providing precise golden hour times for any location worldwide. It also includes a five-day weather forecast and allows you to track the sun's position during these optimal periods.
- Golden hour time calculation
- Five-day weather forecast
- Location search
- Sun position during golden hour
- Multiple location notifications
- Today tab widget
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Get golden hour times with this simple, easy to use app. Easily view golden hour times for any day and any place, anywhere in the world. Features: * Get a five-day weather forecast for cities around the world. * Search for a specific location by city name. * Determine the sun’s position during the golden hour. * Receive notifications about the golden hour for multiple locations around the world. * See the golden hour times for your current location on the Today tab in Notification Center.
Aurora Compass
This app provides aurora forecasts and alerts, helping users find the best conditions to see the northern or southern lights. It offers detailed space weather data, real-time geomagnetic activity, and a cloudiness filter for accurate predictions.
- Aurora alert notifications
- Geomagnetic activity tracking
- Aurora forecast map
- Real-time aurora probability
- Solar image animation
- Cloudiness forecast
- Darkness tool
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Aurora Compass is a free aurora and space weather forecast app with no ads or paywalls. With it, you'll get all the data you need to catch the northern or southern lights in a layout that’s simple for beginners, yet detailed for experienced aurora chasers. The main features include: • Aurora alert notifications with cloudiness filter • Near real-time geomagnetic activity from over 110 magnetometers • Aurora forecast map with observation sharing tool • Current and forecasted aurora probability in your location • Solar image animation with x-ray chart and solar regions • WSA-Enlil solar wind forecast animation • Darkness tool to see when it'll be dark • Moon rise, set and phase information • Cloudiness forecast • Solar wind charts • Kp forecasts • Color theme for people with red-green colorblindness
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Aurora Compass at Free against Golden Hour!'s $3.99. Aurora Compass also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.0) and review sentiment (86% vs 60%). Golden Hour!'s advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8). On ratings volume, update cadence, 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
Aurora Compass is free to download; Golden Hour! costs $3.99 up front. Aurora Compass sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Golden Hour! asks for nothing beyond the download.
Aurora Compass holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 9 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Golden Hour!'s written reviews are positive against 86% of Aurora Compass's.
Golden Hour! ships an update every 6 weeks, Aurora Compass every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Golden Hour! | Aurora Compass |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.0 (4 ratings) | 4.8 (9 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 60.0% of reviews | 85.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 4 | 9 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 5 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 67 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Kinetic Stars | Otto Ranta-Ojala |
Customer experience
Golden Hour!
Aurora Compass
In-app purchases
Golden Hour!
No in-app purchases
Aurora Compass
- Pastel Color Palette$1.99
- Black and White Palette$1.99
- Pink Color Palette$1.99
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- Purple Color Palette$1.99
- IBM Color Palette$1.99
- Mint Color Palette$4.99
- Gold Color Palette$9.99
- Diamond Color Palette$29.99
Questions
Is Golden Hour! free?
Is Aurora Compass free?
Which has better reviews, Golden Hour! or Aurora Compass?
Do Golden Hour! or Aurora Compass have ads?
Which is updated more often, Golden Hour! or Aurora Compass?
Other comparisons
