Compass Guide vs Compass XL
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Compass Guide
This app provides a reliable digital compass for outdoor navigation and everyday direction-finding. It offers live heading, coordinate display, and the ability to navigate to saved destinations. Premium features like sun/moon positions and custom styles are available.
- Live compass heading
- Coordinate and altitude display
- Navigate to destinations
- Sun and moon position markers
- Multiple compass styles
- Offline functionality
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Compass Guide is a simple, reliable digital compass for hiking, navigation, and everyday direction-finding — no account required. FIND YOUR WAY • Live compass heading in true north or magnetic north • Calibration guidance and an accuracy indicator you can trust • Your coordinates, altitude, and speed at a glance NAVIGATE TO A DESTINATION • Set a destination by map, clipboard coordinates, or manual entry • See live bearing and distance to where you're headed • Save multiple destinations with Premium SEE THE SKY • Sun and moon position markers on the dial (Premium) • Night mode with a red-tinted display to protect your night vision MAKE IT YOURS • Six compass styles: Classic, Field, Nautical, Military, Surveyor, and Minimal • Choose degrees or mils, metric or imperial units • Keep the screen on, add a haptic tick at true north, and use the built-in flashlight SHARE YOUR HEADING • Export a shareable image card with your heading and location details GO PREMIUM YOUR WAY • Unlock every feature with a one-time purchase — no subscription • Or watch a short ad anytime to unlock Premium free for 24 hours Compass Guide works fully offline for core compass features and never asks you to create an account.
Compass XL
This app provides a large, clear compass display for easy navigation in any environment. It offers multiple styles, North modes, and location-based place names, with offline functionality. An optional Pro upgrade unlocks ad removal, bearing lock, and specialized display modes.
- Large, clear compass display
- True North and Magnetic North modes
- Location-based place names
- Offline functionality
- Bearing Lock (Pro)
- Night Vision Mode (Pro)
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Know exactly where you are. Know exactly where you are heading. Compass XL gives you a large, precise compass designed for clarity and confidence in any environment. Your phone has a compass, but it is small and hard to read. Compass XL replaces it with bold, oversized displays that you can read at a glance — in bright sunlight, in darkness, or in motion. No internet required. No account needed. Open the app and go. FREE FEATURES: - Two compass styles: Classic and Minimal - True North and Magnetic North modes - Smooth, responsive heading display - Location-based place names - Dark mode support - Haptic feedback at cardinal points - Optimized for iPhone and iPad UPGRADE TO PRO: One purchase. Everything unlocked. No subscription. - Remove Ads — A clean, focused compass with nothing between you and your heading. - Bearing Lock — Lock any heading and follow it with confidence. A haptic pulse tells you when you are aligned. Stay on course without constantly watching the screen. - Night Vision Mode — A red-spectrum display that preserves your night-adapted eyes. Essential for stargazing, camping, and nighttime navigation. - Three additional compass styles: - Large Display — Maximum size for effortless reading at any distance - Military — Tactical precision with real-time altitude - Maritime — Nautical design with real-time altitude ADDITIONAL FEATURES: - GPS altitude display - Heading accuracy indicator - Magnetic declination data - Share your heading, coordinates, and location - Works entirely offline DESIGNED FOR: - Hikers, campers, and trail runners - Sailors and marine navigation - Military and tactical personnel - Stargazers and astronomers - Seniors and anyone who values readability - Surveyors and field professionals - Emergency preparedness - Everyday orientation in unfamiliar places Your direction. Your confidence. Your compass.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Compass XL at none against Compass Guide's shown. Compass XL also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.5). Compass Guide's advantage is ratings volume (126 vs 16) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Compass Guide sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Compass XL sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Compass XL holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Compass Guide has 126 ratings behind it against 16, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Compass Guide ships an update fortnightly, Compass XL every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Compass Guide | Compass XL |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (126 ratings) | 4.7 (16 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 126 — better | 16 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Every 9 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 27 MB | 10 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | APPS BAY LIMITED | Mobile Card Games & Travel Apps LLC |
Customer experience
Compass Guide
Compass XL
In-app purchases
Compass Guide
- Premium$2.99
Compass XL
- Compass Pro$1.99
Questions
Is Compass Guide free?
Is Compass XL free?
Which has better reviews, Compass Guide or Compass XL?
Do Compass Guide or Compass XL have ads?
Which is updated more often, Compass Guide or Compass XL?
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