Comparison

Planetaria vs Solar System Viewer

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

Head to head
About

Planetaria

Explore a dynamic 3D model of the Solar System, synchronizing with real-time data to show celestial bodies in orbit. Discover planets, dwarf planets, and moons with detailed surface models. Manipulate time to view past and future solar system configurations.

Highlights
  • Interactive 3D Solar System model
  • Real-time celestial body positions
  • Detailed 3D surface models
  • Explore planets, dwarf planets, and moons
  • Time manipulation (past/future)
  • AR integration
Features
Read full description

Explore the celestial worlds of the Solar System with Planetaria, an interactive 3D simulator experience for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Vision Pro. This dynamic scale model of the Solar System synchronizes with real-time data to display the live positions of celestial bodies in their orbits, along with beautiful and detailed 3D models of their surfaces. On your journey through outer space, you can visit the Sun, the 8 planets, 5 dwarf planets, and over 20 major moons. Entire worlds await your discovery, each with their own individual features and environments. You can also fast-forward or rewind time, and see what the Solar System looks like at any time in the past or future. Photos and 3D models provided by NASA/JPL.

About

Solar System Viewer

Explore and simulate the orbits of planets in our solar system. This app allows you to speed up or slow down time, travel to any date, and view planetary positions. It also offers widgets for your home screen and Apple Watch complications.

Highlights
  • Simulate planetary orbits
  • Adjust time speed
  • Time travel to specific dates
  • Home screen widgets
  • Apple Watch integration
  • View planet overviews
Features
Read full description

8Planets is a simple viewer and simulator for planetary orbits in our Solar System. 8Planets helps you discover how the planets aligned and move around over time so that you feel the scale of the Solar System or even the Universe. By giving you quick and easy access to the Solar System everywhere, 8Planets will make you feel that the Solar System is close to us. FEATURES ・Planetary Motion Speed up or slow down time to see how the planets rotate over time and grasp the scale of the Solar System. ・Time Travel Travel back or forward in time to view the Solar System or planetary positions on any given date. ・Widgets Widgets allow you to display the real-time Solar System on your Home Screen. ・Watch View the Solar System on your wrist and use Digital Crown to travel back or forward in time. ・Others Apple Watch Complications, Overview of the planets, Option to show Pluto, Sharing your favorite moment of the Solar System, URL Scheme, and more.

Screenshots

Planetaria4 screens
Solar System Viewer3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Planetaria at none against Solar System Viewer's 4. Planetaria also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.4) and iOS requirement (16.4 vs 26.0). Solar System Viewer's advantage is review sentiment (83% vs 50%) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months). On ads, monetization model 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

Planetaria costs $4.99 and Solar System Viewer $2.99 up front. Solar System Viewer sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Planetaria asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Planetaria holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 9 and 28 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 50% of Planetaria's written reviews are positive against 83% of Solar System Viewer's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Planetaria ships an update every 5 months, Solar System Viewer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Planetaria versus Solar System Viewer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlanetariaSolar System Viewer
Price$4.99$2.99 — better
Rating4.7 (9 ratings) — better4.4 (28 ratings)
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews83.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings928 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Vision ProiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS16.4 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size510 MB22 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJoseph RupertusBLUE COMET LABS LLC

Customer experience

Planetaria

All ratings9 ratings
Positive88.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Solar System Viewer

All ratings28 ratings
Positive85.7%
Neutral3.6%
Negative10.7%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral16.7%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Planetaria

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Solar System Viewer

One-time4
  • Io Tip$1.99
  • Europa Tip$3.99
  • Ganymede Tip$5.99
Show 1 more
  • Callisto Tip$9.99

Questions

Is Planetaria free?
Planetaria costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Solar System Viewer free?
Solar System Viewer costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Planetaria or Solar System Viewer?
Planetaria is rated higher. Planetaria averages 4.7 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while Solar System Viewer averages 4.4 from 28 ratings.
Do Planetaria or Solar System Viewer have ads?
Neither Planetaria nor Solar System Viewer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Planetaria or Solar System Viewer?
Planetaria ships an update every 5 months, and Solar System Viewer every 2 months. Most recently, Planetaria was updated on October 20, 2026 and Solar System Viewer on October 18, 2026.

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