Comparison

ESO Surveyor vs Middle Earth Explorer

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

Head to head
About

ESO Surveyor

This app helps players of a popular MMORPG track in-game collectibles like items, treasure maps, and skyshards. It provides detailed views and cooldown tracking for certain game elements, enhancing the exploration experience.

Highlights
  • Locate items on zone maps
  • Track treasure maps and surveys
  • View Mages Guild books
  • Find Skyshards
  • Track Public Dungeon fragments
  • Track Antiquities
  • Cooldown tracking for fragments
Features
Read full description

Collectibles, antiquities and fragments can be located on their respective zone maps and ticked off as they are completed. Detail can be viewed for each item as you hunt to save you time opening and closing your inventory. You can also find missing Mages Guild books and Skyshards while hunting other collectibles. ESO Surveyor Lite version covers the ESO base game only and does not contain surveys and treasure maps for DLC zones such as High Isles or The Deadlands. The full version (this version) is unrestricted. Updated for Season 1, ESO Update 50 (June 2025). "The Elder Scrolls: Online" is owned by ZeniMax Online Studios and Bethesda Softworks. "ESO Surveyor" and the developer of this app are not affiliated with ZeniMax Online Studios, Bethesda Softworks or other with "The Elder Scrolls: Online" related companies in any way. The information for this app was taken from the game itself and from a variety of different Internet sources. This app is an unofficial fan project.

About

Middle Earth Explorer

An interactive map and guide to the lands of Middle Earth, featuring over 50 locations, 90 events, and 10 quest timelines. Explore detailed lore, character journeys, and movie/book information. Works offline and supports accessibility features.

Highlights
  • Interactive Middle Earth map
  • 50+ detailed locations
  • 10 epic quest timelines
  • 26 major character profiles
  • Library of movies, books, and TV adaptations
  • Full-text search and bookmarking
  • Offline functionality
Features
Read full description

Your companion to Middle-earth, ready for Season 3. Explore an interactive map, follow every quest, catch up in the right order without spoilers, and find live concerts and screenings near you. NEW IN 3.0 - Journey Order: the films, the series and Tolkien's books in release order or in-world order, with runtimes and page counts - Spoiler Shield: tell the app how far you've read or watched, and the map, timeline and search hide what comes later - Live events: Middle-earth concerts, film screenings and fan gatherings near you, plus upcoming film releases - Daily Riddle: a new Middle-earth puzzle every day, with streaks and a spoiler-free result to share - Find your fellow traveller: a 10-question personality quiz with a result card to share - Optional reminders for the daily riddle and Season 3, only after you turn them on, scheduled on your device EXPLORE THE MAP - Browse Middle-earth on a detailed hand-drawn style map with 50+ locations - Tap any place for its lore: the Shire, Rivendell, Mordor, Minas Tirith and more - Filter by people: Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits, Men and the creatures of shadow FOLLOW THE QUESTS - 10 quest timelines and 90+ events, from The Hobbit to the end of the War of the Ring - Step through battles, departures, encounters and milestones in story order - See where each event happened on the map with a single tap MEET THE CHARACTERS - Profiles for 26 major characters, with their journeys traced across the map - Discover how characters and events connect LIBRARY - Films and series with cast, crew and ratings - Tolkien's books with cover art - Video clips in YouTube's official player - News: Middle-earth news from trusted sources, with optional alerts on the topics you choose TOOLS - Search across locations, events and journeys - Save places, events and clips FELLOWSHIP+ (OPTIONAL) The map, timeline, lore, character profiles, the release, chronological and reading orders, film tracking, the daily riddle, the quiz and the basic Spoiler Shield are free. Fellowship+ is an optional subscription that adds: - Live events in any city, with the full list near you - Progress tracking for every episode and book part, so you always know what's next - Curated watch orders: First-timer and Lore deep dive - Spoiler Shield precision down to the exact book you're on - Alternate app icons: 12 icons, with 3 collector's editions, Elven and 8 lands of Middle-earth - The Riddle Archive: every past daily riddle, and unlimited clues - On this day reminders for every Middle-earth anniversary - The New Zealand trip planner: the live New Zealand map, a trip planner and unlimited check-ins Fellowship+ is available as a monthly or yearly auto-renewing subscription. Eligible new subscribers get a free trial. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm the purchase, or when the free trial ends. The subscription renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel it in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://alpozcan.github.io/middleearth-site/privacy BUILT FOR EVERYONE - On iPhone and iPad, with layouts that adapt to larger screens - Available in more than 40 languages - VoiceOver and Dynamic Type support - The map and lore work offline; news, events, videos and film details need a connection Unofficial fan app, not affiliated with the Tolkien Estate, Middle-earth Enterprises, Amazon or Warner Bros. Ticket links open third-party sellers, and we may earn a commission on tickets bought through them.

Screenshots

ESO Surveyor4 screens
Middle Earth Explorer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Middle Earth Explorer at Free against ESO Surveyor's $2.99. Middle Earth Explorer also leads on rating (4.5 vs 3.0) and review sentiment (67% vs 43%). ESO Surveyor's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ads (none vs shown). On 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

Middle Earth Explorer is free to download; ESO Surveyor costs $2.99 up front. Middle Earth Explorer sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. ESO Surveyor asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Middle Earth Explorer holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 18 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 43% of ESO Surveyor's written reviews are positive against 67% of Middle Earth Explorer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ESO Surveyor ships an update monthly, Middle Earth Explorer every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 1 level
ESO Surveyor versus Middle Earth Explorer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterESO SurveyorMiddle Earth Explorer
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating3.0 (4 ratings)4.5 (18 ratings) — better
Positive reviews42.9% of reviews66.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings418 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size161 MB108 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperRyan BeruldsenAlp Ozcan

Customer experience

ESO Surveyor

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral14.3%
Negative42.9%

Middle Earth Explorer

All ratings18 ratings
Positive88.9%
Neutral5.6%
Negative5.6%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

None

ESO Surveyor

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Middle Earth Explorer

Subscriptions2
  • Fellowship+ Monthly7 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Fellowship+ Yearly7 Days trial$14.991 Year

Questions

Is ESO Surveyor free?
ESO Surveyor costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Middle Earth Explorer free?
Middle Earth Explorer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ESO Surveyor or Middle Earth Explorer?
Middle Earth Explorer is rated higher. ESO Surveyor averages 3.0 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Middle Earth Explorer averages 4.5 from 18 ratings.
Do ESO Surveyor or Middle Earth Explorer have ads?
Middle Earth Explorer shows ads; ESO Surveyor does not.
Which is updated more often, ESO Surveyor or Middle Earth Explorer?
ESO Surveyor ships an update monthly, and Middle Earth Explorer every 2 weeks. Most recently, ESO Surveyor was updated on November 3, 2026 and Middle Earth Explorer on November 2, 2026.

Other comparisons