AR vs DIY Solar System
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
AR
Explore a realistic solar system in augmented reality. View planets and their movements up close in your environment, from your bedroom to the outdoors. A simple and immersive way to learn about space.
- Augmented reality solar system
- Planet movement visualization
- Detailed planet information
- Immersive educational experience
- Classroom and outdoor use
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Imagine yourself immersed in a solar system and watch closely every movement of planets as you want them to be. A cool and simple way of viewing the solar system! With AR - Solar System, you can explore science in whole new dimension. And look up for the details of every planet. This uses apple's new ARkit, through which you can delve into solar system wherever you want, whether it is your bedroom, classroom and outdoor garden.
DIY Solar System
Explore the solar system with interactive activities and an augmented reality planet walk. Learn about space travel, design a moon base, and identify celestial objects. Developed by leading science institutions, this app makes learning about space engaging for families and educators.
- Interactive space activities
- Augmented reality planet walk
- Design a moon base
- Grow a space garden
- Control a Mars rover
- In or Out space game
- NASA imagery
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DIY Solar System makes it easy for families and educators to explore the solar system from anywhere, anytime! The app was developed by the Children’s Creativity Museum, Sciencenter, and Museum of Life and Science, in partnership with UC Berkeley’s The Lawrence Hall of Science. INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES DIY Solar System includes 11 easy-to-use activities to learn about space travel, living in space, and the unique objects that make up the planetary system we call home. Design a Moon base, grow your own space garden, or experience what it’s like to control a rover on Mars! Each activity includes step-by-step instructions that have been tested by educators, kids, and families. Activity materials are easily available and inexpensive—you may already have many of them in your home! AUGMENTED REALITY PLANET WALK Don’t have the time to travel several billion miles to reach Neptune? Try dropping a scale version of the solar system outside your home to start a walk that will show you planets, dwarf planets, and asteroids. At each stop, examine the space object up close using real images from NASA. Don’t forget to take a space selfie with your favorite planet! IN OR OUT GAME Quickly scan awe-inspiring images of space objects from NASA’s Earth and space observatories to decide if the objects are in or out of the solar system. While the solar system is vast, it only represents a tiny corner of the universe. After you have mastered your solar system knowledge, challenge yourself to a new round of objects in or out of our home galaxy, the Milky Way. Funding Source This work was supported by NASA under award number 80NSSC21M0082. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in these programs are those of the author and do not reflect the views of NASA. Compatibility Requires iOS 12.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone and iPad. Rated 4+.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: AR at 5.0 against DIY Solar System's 4.5. DIY Solar System's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months) and ratings volume (17 vs 2). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
AR holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DIY Solar System has 17 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
AR ships an update every 5 months, DIY Solar System every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | AR | DIY Solar System |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better | 4.5 (17 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 17 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.1 — better | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 56 MB | 180 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Akshat Goel | The Lawrence Hall of Science |
Customer experience
AR
DIY Solar System
In-app purchases
AR
No in-app purchases
DIY Solar System
No in-app purchases








