SkySafari 7 Plus vs AstroHelm
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- 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
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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/
AstroHelm
This astronomy app uses on-device plate solving to guide your manual telescope or telephoto lens. It analyzes star patterns in real-time to help you precisely center celestial objects without expensive motorized mounts.
- On-device plate solving
- Real-time star pattern analysis
- Push-to guidance
- Hardware-agnostic compatibility
- Expansive deep-sky object database
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Find galaxies, nebulae, star clusters, and planets without struggling with star hopping. AstroHelm turns your iPhone into a smart push-to finder for almost any manual telescope. Using fast, on-device plate solving, AstroHelm recognizes the stars in your camera view, determines exactly where your telescope is pointing, and guides you to your target. No proprietary telescope. No motorized GoTo mount. Just attach your iPhone with a rigid phone mount and start exploring. NOT SURE WHAT TO OBSERVE? AstroHelm can help with that too. Best Tonight highlights bright, interesting objects visible from your location, so you can spend less time planning and more time observing. HOW IT WORKS Mount: Attach your iPhone securely to your telescope tube, or to your camera using a standard bracket or hot-shoe mount. Choose: Pick a galaxy, nebula, star cluster, planet, or other target from AstroHelm's catalog. Point: Move your telescope while following the on-screen guidance. AstroHelm repeatedly plate-solves the sky and shows you exactly how to reach your target. CENTER: When the reticle reaches the target, look through the eyepiece—or start your exposure. BUILT FOR THE GEAR YOU ALREADY OWN AstroHelm works with manual telescopes and cameras without requiring a specific telescope brand or proprietary accessory. It can also integrate with compatible astronomy software and equipment using standard telescope-control protocols. Whether you're exploring the sky with a Dobsonian or framing a deep-sky object with a camera, AstroHelm gets you from “I want to see that” to “there it is.”
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: AstroHelm at Free against SkySafari 7 Plus's $9.99. AstroHelm also leads on review sentiment (88% vs 46%) and update cadence (fortnightly vs monthly). SkySafari 7 Plus's advantage is ratings volume (1.7K vs 8) and chart position (#183 vs unranked). On rating, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
AstroHelm is free to download; SkySafari 7 Plus costs $9.99 up front. SkySafari 7 Plus sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and AstroHelm sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for SkySafari 7 Plus against 4.6 for AstroHelm. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SkySafari 7 Plus has 1.7K ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 46% of SkySafari 7 Plus's written reviews are positive against 88% of AstroHelm's.
SkySafari 7 Plus ships an update monthly, AstroHelm fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SkySafari 7 Plus | AstroHelm |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $9.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.7 (1.7K ratings) — better | 4.6 (8 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 45.7% of reviews | 87.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.7K — better | 8 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #183 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 14.1 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.1 GB | 78 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Simulation Curriculum Corp. | Pacizu LLC |
Customer experience
SkySafari 7 Plus
AstroHelm
Bugs and requests
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
AstroHelm
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
SkySafari 7 Plus
- SkySafari Premium Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
- SkySafari Premium7 Days trial$34.991 Year
- Apollo Lunar MissionsFree
AstroHelm
- AstroHelm Plus$9.99
- Plus to Pro Upgrade$19.99
- AstroHelm Pro$29.99
Questions
Is SkySafari 7 Plus free?
Is AstroHelm free?
Which has better reviews, SkySafari 7 Plus or AstroHelm?
Do SkySafari 7 Plus or AstroHelm have ads?
Which is updated more often, SkySafari 7 Plus or AstroHelm?
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