Shadowmap vs Shade Tracker
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Shadowmap
Analyze sunlight and shadows for any location worldwide. Optimize solar energy, assess real estate, plan photography, and find ideal outdoor spots. Offers advanced 3D editing and data export capabilities.
- Sun and shadow simulation
- Solar energy optimization
- Real estate and architecture analysis
- Photography and cinematography planning
- 3D world editing
- Solar data export to CSV
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Shadowmap shows where the sun shines and where shadows fall – for any rooftop, street, or garden on Earth. Built on global building, tree, and terrain data, it simulates sunlight down to the minute, on any date. Trusted by realtors, solar professionals, photographers, and anyone planning life around the sun. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Find the sunniest home, apartment, or plot • Optimize solar panel placement & yield • Scout photo & film locations remotely • Plan gardens, terraces & outdoor spaces • Time your day around natural light WHAT'S NEW • Major performance update: increased stability and improved UX • Edit the 3D World – place objects, adjust buildings, share your scene (free) • Export Solar Data to CSV – run analytics in your spreadsheet or tool of choice GET STARTED FOR FREE • Simulate sunlight & shadows • Explore the global 3D map • Edit existing 3D buildings and trees • Place basic 3D objects (cuboids, cylinders, trees) •. Share your edited 3D scene Explorer (In-App Purchase): • Unlock 3D camera view of the Sun • Change date & time in the future or the past for precise planning Home (In-App Purchase): • All Explorer features • Extended 3D objects (freeform, roofs, trees) • 14-day global weather and UV forecast, along with historical data • High-quality 3D maps & extra base maps • Adjust default building height • Visualize floor levels on facades Studio (In-App Purchase): • Our most advanced offering • All Explorer + Home features • Interactive 3D Solar Analytics • High resolution textured 3D digital twin • Edit existing 3D buildings and trees • Create individual shapes & use prefabs • Upload your own 3D models • Share & embed your projects anywhere Shadowmap is an award-winning app: • APTI Award Winner 2024 • Golden Kitty Awards Finalist 2021 • #3 Product of the Day – Product Hunt – Download Shadowmap today and connect with the Sun in unprecedented ways. – Technical support: support@shadowmap.org You can purchase "Shadowmap Home" and "Shadowmap Studio" as monthly or yearly subscription. You can subscribe and pay through your iTunes account. Payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription will automatically renew unless it is cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You may manage your subscriptions and turn off auto-renew after purchase by going to the ‘Manage Subscription’ page in settings. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited if you purchase a subscription, where applicable. All subscriptions will renew at their respective cost. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://shadowmap.org/privacy-policy
Shade Tracker
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Will your balcony get sun at 4pm? Where should you park so the car is still shaded in three hours? Does that table stay in the sun through dinner? Shade Tracker answers those questions on a live map. Drag the timeline and watch the shadows of buildings and trees move in real time. The sun's position comes from actual astronomical calculation. LIVE SHADOW MAP • Building and tree shadows drawn directly onto the map • Tree heights come from a global canopy model, so shade under trees counts too • 2D, tilted 3D, and satellite views THE TIMELINE • Scrub with your finger and the shadows follow instantly • One pixel is one minute, with about six hours of context on screen • The color of the timeline is the real solar elevation for that minute, so night, twilight, golden hour, and full day are visible at a glance • Scroll as far into the past or future as you want, or jump to any date • One tap on Now returns you to the current moment HOURS OF SUN • Turn the map into a heat map of how many hours each spot gets sun, over a range you pick: sunrise to sunset, now to sunset, or the whole day • Tap anywhere to read the exact figure for that point ANNUAL SUNLIGHT • The same heat map sampled across a full year, for longer decisions about a roof, garden, or balcony SHADOW CALCULATOR • Draw a structure on the map, give it a height, and its shadow is included immediately • Set the height to zero to erase instead: see what changes if a tree comes down or a building is removed • Drawings stay on your device and can be edited or deleted SUN DIRECTION AND STATUS • Arrows from the map center show the current sun direction, the sunrise direction, and the sunset direction • A floating badge gives the sun's compass bearing and elevation, plus whether you are in sun or shade right now, read from the shadow data rather than guessed • Sunrise and sunset times UV INDEX • Current UV for your location, in the standard health color bands • Scrub the timeline to see the UV forecast for that hour SAVED PLACES • Long-press a point and name it: Home balcony, Work parking, that café • The address resolves automatically; tap the list to fly back SEARCH • Place and address search with live suggestions • Type coordinates to go straight to a point • Times are shown in the local time zone of wherever you are looking GOOD FOR Apartment hunting, parking in the shade, picking a side of the terrace, gardening and the full sun versus partial shade question, photography and golden hour, early thinking about solar panels, shaded walking routes on hot days, architecture and site studies, and planning outdoor events. WHAT IT DOES NOT DO Building heights are mostly estimates from open map data, so not every roof is modeled exactly. Tree heights come from a global model rather than individual measurements. UV is a clear-sky value and does not account for you being in shade. Clouds and weather are not part of the calculation: this answers where the sun falls when the sun is out. No account and no sign-up. The calculations run on your device. WHAT'S FREE AND WHAT'S PRO The live shadow map with today's timeline, sun direction lines, sunrise and sunset times, the UV index, search, and up to 3 saved places are free. Shade Tracker Pro is an optional paid upgrade, available as an auto-renewing subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase. It unlocks: • HOURS OF SUN (one free preview included) • ANNUAL SUNLIGHT • SHADOW CALCULATOR • Viewing days other than today • The sun arc time control • Unlimited saved places -------------- Privacy Policy: https://shadetracker.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://shadetracker.app/terms EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Shade Tracker at none against Shadowmap's 10. Shade Tracker also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks). Shadowmap's advantage is chart position (#110 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). 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
Both are free to download. Shadowmap sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Shade Tracker asks for nothing beyond the download.
Shadowmap ships an update every 6 weeks, Shade Tracker every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Shadowmap | Shade Tracker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.2 (6 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 45.5% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Best chart rank | #110 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 24 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Shadowmap Technologies GmbH | Sermin Demirbas |
In-app purchases
Shadowmap
- Shadowmap Home – Monthly$9.991 Month
- Shadowmap Home – Monthly Trial3 Days trial$9.991 Month
- Shadowmap Explorer – Yearly$29.991 Year
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- Shadowmap Explorer – Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Shadowmap Studio – Monthly$59.991 Month
- Shadowmap Studio – Yearly3 Days trial$59.991 Month
- Shadowmap Home – Yearly$99.991 Year
- Shadowmap Home – Yearly Trial3 Days trial$99.991 Year
- Shadowmap Studio – Yearly$599.991 Year
- Shadowmap Studio – Yearly3 Days trial$599.991 Year
Shade Tracker
No in-app purchases







