# DrakeEQ vs CatalogueMessier

The clearest difference is review sentiment: DrakeEQ at 38% against CatalogueMessier's 0%. CatalogueMessier's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 5 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

DrakeEQ costs $0.99 and CatalogueMessier $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

DrakeEQ ships an update every 5 months, CatalogueMessier every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | DrakeEQ | CatalogueMessier |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $0.99 | $0.99 |
| Rating | **[2.7 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/drakeeq/id314827795/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **3** | — |
| Positive reviews | **37.5% of reviews** | 0.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Size | 8 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 | **17.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Onomaly LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/314686981) | [Laurent DURLIAT](https://appshunter.io/developer/1796721727) |

## What reviewers say

### DrakeEQ

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/drakeeq/id314827795)

Explore the possibility of extraterrestrial life with a visually stunning calculator based on the Drake Equation. This app allows you to manipulate the equation's parameters and visualize galaxies in motion, offering an educational and entertaining experience.

**Highlights:** Drake Equation calculator, Interactive 7 parameter manipulation, Beautiful 3D galaxy visualizations, Galaxene Galaxy Engine, Educational and entertaining simulator, Universe exploration

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### CatalogueMessier

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cataloguemessier/id6747948514)

Explore the Messier, NGC, and Caldwell astronomical catalogs. Log your observations with photos, filter celestial objects by type, and track your progress with detailed statistics. Export your data for further analysis.

**Highlights:** View Messier, NGC, and Caldwell catalogs, Add observation photos, Filter objects by category, Track observation progress, Export observation data, Multi-language support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is DrakeEQ free?

DrakeEQ costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is CatalogueMessier free?

CatalogueMessier costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Do DrakeEQ or CatalogueMessier have ads?

Neither DrakeEQ nor CatalogueMessier shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, DrakeEQ or CatalogueMessier?

DrakeEQ ships an update every 5 months, and CatalogueMessier every 3 weeks. Most recently, DrakeEQ was updated on October 31, 2026 and CatalogueMessier on October 30, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*