Comparison

Celestial Nav vs EZ Sextant

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

Head to head
About

Celestial Nav

This app provides tools for celestial navigation, offering computations for celestial bodies and sight reductions. It includes an offline perpetual almanac and allows for quick capture of observation data for accurate course adjustments.

Highlights
  • Celestial navigational computations
  • Offline perpetual almanac
  • Quick celestial observation data capture
  • High accuracy sight reductions
  • Sight planning and reduction tools
  • Celestial fix computations
Features
Read full description

We believe celestial navigation is an amazing skill and develop Celestial Nav to offer a simple, yet powerful and all encompassing app for our users. Celestial Nav is an easy to use, all-in-one tool which offers: • Celestial navigational computations for your device • Simple toolbar menu for quick access • Internally stored perpetual Almanac • Offline ready and functional without the need for other external tools • Quick and easy capture celestial observation data • High accuracy sight reductions • Star reference tables SIGHT PLANNING • Local Hour Angle (LHA) for Aries • Star tables sorted by name, magnitude, declination, and SHA • Sunrise, sunset, twilight, and location reference • Moon phase reference SIGHT REDUCTION • High accuracy sight reduction algorithm • Perpetual Almanac offering accurate data for years 1600 - 3000 • Almanac data for Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn • Detailed Almanac data for 58 navigational stars • Assumed Position (AP) for any user defined position • Line of Position (LOP) intercept data for accurate course and speed adjustments • Computational variables displayed for accuracy and validation CELESTIAL FIX • Computations by USNO algorithm in the Nautical Almanac • Save all your LOP in an easy reference table BASIC VERSION Free daytime celestial navigation tools using the sun: • Unlimited sextant sight reduction calculations • Sight reduction to a line of position using the sun • Perpetual almanac for the sun • Advanced sight corrections for index error, eye height, temperature, and pressure • Support for upper and lower limb reference • Star Table with navigational references • Detailed Sun references • Limited Moon references PRO FEATURES (IN-APP PURCHASE) Advanced Day & Night Celestial Navigation includes all BASIC features plus: • Almanac data for 65 navigational bodies for years 1600 through 3000 • Map display for saved LOPs • View intercepts with course and speed corrections • Metric and imperial unit support with automatic conversions • Support for coordinate entries in different formats (H° M’ S” or Decimals) • Save all your LOP calculations for future reference • Save user preferences and settings • Unrestricted moon references • Almanac and algorithmic models for 65 navigational bodies: • Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn • 58 navigational stars Supported stars: Acamar, Achernar, Acrux, Adhara, Aldebaran, Alioth, Alkaid, Alnair, Alnilam, Alphard, Alphecca, Alpheratz, Altair, Ankaa, Antares, Arcturus, Atria, Avior, Bellatrix, Betelgeuse, Canopus, Capella, Deneb, Denebola, Diphda, Dubhe, Elnath, Eltanin, Enif, Fomalhaut, Gacrux, Gienah, Hadar, Hamal, Kaus Australis, Kochab, Markab, Menkar, Menkent, Miaplacidus, Mirfak, Nunki, Peacock, Polaris, Pollux, Procyon, Rasalhague, Regulus, Rigel, Rigil Kent., Sabik, Schedar, Shaula, Sirius, Spica, Suhail, Vega, Zubengenubi REFERENCES Sight reductions and celestial calculations use various internationally accepted references for the most accurate results: • Jean Meeus - Astronomical Algorithms • US Naval Observatory (USNO) Almanac and Algorithms • Hipparcos New Astrometric Catalog, Published 2007 • ELP2000-85 SUBSCRIPTION TERMS Celestial Nav is free to download and the basic features free to use. A paid upgrade to the PRO version provides access to premium features and additional tools. We may offer trial subscriptions that give limited time access to all PRO features and premium content for the duration of the trial period. Trial subscriptions automatically expire and the app will revert back to the Basic version thereafter. No data is lost but access and use of premium features will no longer be available.

About

EZ Sextant

Navigate open waters using your phone's camera to sight celestial bodies. This app plots lines of position and combines them for an estimated location on a lat/lon grid. It's a powerful tool for offshore navigation without relying on GPS.

Highlights
  • GPS-free navigation
  • Camera-based celestial sightings
  • Automatic position plotting
  • Built-in almanac
  • Running fix calculations
  • Lat/lon grid display
Features
Currently charting
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Navigate in open waters without a GPS. The phone's camera is used to make sightings of the sun, moon, Venus, or Mars. The sighting results are plotted as lines of position with multiple sightings combined into a running fix. Your estimated position is displayed on a lat/lon grid. You can also use your sextant and take advantage of the built-in almanac and plotting tools.

Screenshots

Celestial Nav4 screens
EZ Sextant4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Celestial Nav at Free against EZ Sextant's $24.99. Celestial Nav also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). EZ Sextant's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.3) and review sentiment (100% vs 58%). On ratings volume, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Celestial Nav is free to download; EZ Sextant costs $24.99 up front. Celestial Nav sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. EZ Sextant asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

EZ Sextant holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 10 and 4 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Celestial Nav's written reviews are positive against 100% of EZ Sextant's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Celestial Nav ships an update every 3 weeks, EZ Sextant monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 13, 2026 and August 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Celestial Nav versus EZ Sextant: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCelestial NavEZ Sextant
PriceFree — better$24.99
Rating4.3 (10 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews58.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings10 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#174 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size20 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSkytip LLCThird Reef Software LLC

Customer experience

Celestial Nav

All ratings10 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative10.0%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive58.3%
Neutral8.3%
Negative33.3%

EZ Sextant

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Celestial Nav

Subscriptions3
  • PRO Version$1.991 Month
  • PRO Version$7.996 Months
  • PRO Version$9.991 Year
One-time3
  • 7 Day Trial License$0.99
  • 30 Day Trial License$2.99
  • PRO Version Lifetime$24.99
None

EZ Sextant

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Celestial Nav free?
Celestial Nav is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is EZ Sextant free?
EZ Sextant costs $24.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Celestial Nav or EZ Sextant?
EZ Sextant is rated higher. Celestial Nav averages 4.3 out of 5 from 10 ratings, while EZ Sextant averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do Celestial Nav or EZ Sextant have ads?
Neither Celestial Nav nor EZ Sextant shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Celestial Nav or EZ Sextant?
Celestial Nav ships an update every 3 weeks, and EZ Sextant monthly. Most recently, Celestial Nav was updated on September 13, 2026 and EZ Sextant on August 20, 2026.

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