Comparison

The Sky by Redshift vs SkySafari 7 Plus

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

Head to head
About

The Sky by Redshift

This app is a powerful yet easy-to-use planetarium that acts as your daily astronomy companion. Simply point your device at the sky to identify planets, stars, and constellations, and explore celestial objects with detailed views and informative explanations.

Highlights
  • Identify stars, planets, and constellations
  • Track celestial object paths
  • Simulate astronomical events
  • Explore deep-space objects
  • Learn about astronomical phenomena
  • Eclipse timetable and simulation
Features
Read full description

Developed in collaboration with THAMES & KOSMOS: The Sky – Astronomy, a powerful and easy-to-use planetarium – your daily companion for observing the sky! Which star is this? Where do I find Mars? Is it the ISS up there? Hold your smartphone or tablet up to the sky and see which planets, stars, or constellations are above you. Where is Jupiter and how can I find my zodiac in the sky? The Sky shows you the position of celestial objects in the sky with just a few taps. Get close-up views not only of near-Earth planets and moons, but also experience deep-space objects in stunning detail. What do the Saturnian moons look like? The Sky takes you on a breath-taking journey into the infinite realms of outer space. Fly to planets, stars, and other celestial bodies and let the app tell you about our Universe. What is a solar eclipse and what does an opposition of Mars mean? The Sky answers your questions with stunning animations and insightful explanations. Thus, even beginners will be able to understand the mechanics and to visually imagine the most important celestial events. No matter if you are a beginner or amateur astronomer, child or adult - with the intuitive app The Sky, everyone will immediately understand the sky - without much prior knowledge and long training. Shine with your knowledge of the sky, around the campfire or on night walks: with The Sky, astronomy will always be a pleasure! Discover the joy of watching the skies and the age-old fascination with space that has inspired mankind for millennia – and become part of the worldwide Redshift community. The app contains more than 9,000 stars, 88 constellations, hundreds of moons, asteroids and comets, as well as 200 spectacular deep-sky objects - all with accurate position calculation and motion tracking in real time. At a glance: • Recognize the stars and constellations of the night sky • Identify planets, moons, comets, and satellites and track their paths • Take breath-taking flights through space to distant stars and colorful nebulae • See what’s going on in the sky tonight with a direct simulation of the events • Learn to understand astronomical phenomena and events New in version 2.0: • Eclipse Timetable • Orbits of celestial objects • Expanded database with 6500 cities worldwide, including 2500 cities in the United States Were you able to witness the total solar eclipse in North America on April 8, 2024? This app contains everything you need know about this magical event: • Detailed description of the path of the eclipse in Mexico, the USA and Canada • Information on how to safely observe a solar eclipse • Eclipse timetable with the exact times for your location or best viewing position • Direct simulation of the eclipse in exciting animations • Sky map with the planets and stars that could be seen during the totality phase • Illustrated explanations of how a solar eclipse occurs • Everything about solar eclipses: Explanations and facts, illustrated with pictures and videos • Location selection via map, location search or GPS or selection of the "best position" for observation Your thirst for knowledge is not yet satisfied? With the premium subscription, you can activate many additional spaceflights and orbits as well as additional knowledge sections of "Discover astronomy". Here you can find more spectacular images and videos of the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024. There is also an eclipse calendar with all solar and lunar eclipses between 1900 and 2100 and a guided tour of the U.S. MARS 2020 mission. This tour includes images and animations of the landing on Mars, as well as of the environment at the landing site of the Mars rover Perseverance. ***** Questions or suggestions for improvements: Mail to support@redshiftsky.com We are looking forward to your feedback! For more information on news and updates: redshiftsky.com www.redshiftsky.com/terms-of-use-the-sky/ *****

About

SkySafari 7 Plus

Explore the cosmos with a powerful space simulator and telescope control. Discover astronomical events, track celestial objects, and plan your stargazing sessions with real-time data and historical simulations.

Highlights
  • Full-featured space simulator
  • Telescope control (ASCOM Alpaca, INDI)
  • Events Finder for astronomical occurrences
  • Real-time user observation tracking (OneSky)
  • Guided stargazing sessions (SkyCast)
  • Observation planning and recording tools
  • Home and Lock Screen widgets
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

SkySafari 7 Plus goes beyond most basic stargazing apps by providing you with a full-featured space simulator with telescope control. If you are looking to dive deeper into astronomy, start your journey with the #1 recommend app for amateur astronomers since 2009. Note that there is no discount upgrade path from SkySafari 7 Plus to SkySafari 7 Pro. Choose carefully! Here's what’s new in version 7: + Complete support for iOS 15 and iPhone 13. Version 7 brings a new and immersive stargazing experience. + Events Finder - go to the new Events section to unlock a powerful search engine that finds astronomical events visible tonight and far into the future. The finder dynamically generates a listing of moon phases, eclipses, planetary moon events, meteor showers and planetary phenomenon such as conjunctions, elongations and oppositions. + Notifications - the notifications section has been completely revamped to allow you to customize and manage which events trigger an alert notification on your device. + Telescope Support - telescope control is at the heart of SkySafari. Version 7 takes a giant leap forward by supporting ASCOM Alpaca and INDI. These next generation control protocols allow you to effortlessly connect to hundreds of compatible astronomical devices. + OneSky - allows you to see what other users are observing, in real time. This feature highlights objects in the sky chart and indicates with a number how many users are observing a particular object. + SkyCast - allows you to guide a friend or group around the night sky through their own copy of SkySafari. After initiating SkyCast, you can generate a link and conveniently share it with other SkySafari users via text message, apps or social media accounts. + Sky Tonight - jump to the new Tonight section to see what’s visible in your sky tonight. Expanded information has been designed to help plan your night and includes Moon & Sun info, calendar curations, events and the best positioned deep sky and solar system objects. + Improved Observation Tools - SkySafari is the perfect tool to help you plan, record and organize your observations. New workflows make it easier to add, search, filter and sort data. + Home Screen and Lock Screen Widgets keep your favorite astro information at your fingertips. The Small Touches: + You can now edit the Jupiter GRS Longitude Value in the Settings. + Better Moon Age calculation. + New grid & reference options allow you to display Solstice and Equinox markers, Orbit Node markers for all solar system objects, and tick marks and labels for the Ecliptic, Meridian, and Equator reference lines. + Previous In-app Purchases are Now Free - this includes the H-R diagram and 3D Galaxy view. Enjoy. + Many more. If you haven't used SkySafari 7 Plus before, here's what you can do with it: + Hold your device up, and SkySafari 7 Plus will find comets, stars, constellations, planets, and more! + Simulate the night sky up to 10,000 years in the past or future! Animate meteor showers, conjunctions, eclipses, and other celestial events. + Learn the history, mythology, and science of astronomy! Browse over 1500 object descriptions and astronomical images. Stay up-to-date with the Calendar for all major sky events every day! + Control your telescope, log and plan your observations. + Night Vision – Preserve your eyesight after dark. + Orbit Mode. Leave the Earth’s surface behind, and fly through our solar system. + Time Flow – Follow the motion of sky objects as days, months, and years are compressed into a few seconds. + Advanced Search – Find objects using properties other than their name. + Much more! For even more features, and a gigantic database aimed at the most dedicated amateur or professional astronomer, check out SkySafari 7 Pro! https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

The Sky by Redshift4 screens
SkySafari 7 Plus4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: The Sky by Redshift at Free against SkySafari 7 Plus's $9.99. The Sky by Redshift also leads on review sentiment (65% vs 46%). SkySafari 7 Plus's advantage is chart position (#29 vs unranked). On rating, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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

The Sky by Redshift is free to download; SkySafari 7 Plus costs $9.99 up front. The Sky by Redshift sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and SkySafari 7 Plus sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for The Sky by Redshift against 4.7 for SkySafari 7 Plus. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 817 and 1.7K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 65% of The Sky by Redshift's written reviews are positive against 46% of SkySafari 7 Plus's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

The Sky by Redshift ships an update every 2 months, SkySafari 7 Plus monthly. Both last shipped on November 7, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
The Sky by Redshift versus SkySafari 7 Plus: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThe Sky by RedshiftSkySafari 7 Plus
PriceFree — better$9.99
Rating4.7 (817 ratings) — better4.7 (1.7K ratings)
Positive reviews65.0% of reviews — better45.7% of reviews
Number of ratings8171.7K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank—#29 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.614.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size472 MB1.1 GB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperUnited Soft Media Verlag GmbHSimulation Curriculum Corp.

Customer experience

The Sky by Redshift

All ratings816 ratings
Positive94.5%
Neutral2.8%
Negative2.7%
Written reviews40 reviews
Positive65.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative25.0%

SkySafari 7 Plus

All ratings1,671 ratings
Positive92.5%
Neutral2.3%
Negative5.2%
Written reviews92 reviews
Positive45.7%
Neutral14.1%
Negative40.2%

User reviews

The Sky by Redshift

From 817 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Expertly done
  • 👍 Works well
  • 👍 Beautiful and accurate
  • 👍 Fun to use

Room to improve

  • 🔍 Too many ads
  • 🔍 Intrusive advertising
  • 🔍 Information banner not useful

SkySafari 7 Plus

From 1.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great app, preferred over Stellarium
  • 👍 Intuitive and clean interface
  • 👍 Useful 'Tonight' tab
  • 👍 Accurate and precise for telescope use
  • 👍 Impressive data and functionality

Room to improve

  • 🙄 Constant upgrade spam and notifications
  • 🐛 'Tonight' feature crashes on iPad
  • 💰 Paid features hidden behind paywall
  • 🐛 Crashes when using 'Tonight' feature
  • 🐛 Syncing and connectivity issues

Bugs and requests

The Sky by Redshift

Reported bugs

1 issue
  • Unauthorized access to private systems

Requested features

3 requests
  • Red light option to preserve night vision
  • Smaller, less obtrusive pointer
  • More features and accurate information

SkySafari 7 Plus

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • 'Tonight' feature crashes
  • App crashes on launch or when using certain features
  • Connectivity issues with telescopes
  • Syncing problems between devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more telescope brands and models
  • Improve notification settings to only show relevant events
  • Allow hiding of menu bar for cleaner viewing
  • Improve font sizes and readability
  • Add ability to import observation records from previous versions

In-app purchases

2 purchases

The Sky by Redshift

Subscriptions2
  • The Sky Premium 1 Month$0.991 Month
  • The Sky Premium 1 Year$3.991 Year
3 purchases

SkySafari 7 Plus

Subscriptions2
  • SkySafari Premium Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • SkySafari Premium7 Days trial$34.991 Year
One-time1
  • Apollo Lunar MissionsFree

Questions

Is The Sky by Redshift free?
The Sky by Redshift is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SkySafari 7 Plus free?
SkySafari 7 Plus costs $9.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, The Sky by Redshift or SkySafari 7 Plus?
The Sky by Redshift is rated higher. The Sky by Redshift averages 4.7 out of 5 from 817 ratings, while SkySafari 7 Plus averages 4.7 from 1.7K ratings.
Do The Sky by Redshift or SkySafari 7 Plus have ads?
Neither The Sky by Redshift nor SkySafari 7 Plus shows ads.
Which is updated more often, The Sky by Redshift or SkySafari 7 Plus?
The Sky by Redshift ships an update every 2 months, and SkySafari 7 Plus monthly. Most recently, The Sky by Redshift was updated on November 7, 2026 and SkySafari 7 Plus on November 7, 2026.

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