Exoplanet vs Stellar Tour
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Exoplanet
Explore a vast, interactive database of discovered exoplanets and their host stars. Visualize their physical properties, locations in the night sky, and orbital paths. Discover the observable universe from Earth to the cosmic microwave background with stunning 3D models and augmented reality features.
- Interactive visualizations and animations
- Daily updated exoplanet and host star properties
- 3D Milky Way model with exoplanet locations
- Augmented reality sky map
- Exoplanet orbit and habitable zone visualizations
- Data from multiple exoplanet catalogs
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Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars beyond our own solar system. This app allows you to explore all discovered exoplanets, their measured physical properties, their location in the night sky, and their host stars. An interactive model shows you the entire observable universe, all the way from the surface of the Earth to the cosmic microwave background. This app has been developed by a professional astronomer. Main features: * Interactive visualizations and animations. * Physical properties of all detected exoplanets and their host stars, updated on a daily basis. * Stunning 3D model of our Milky Way showing the location of all known exoplanets. You can zoom into any planetary system, explore how the night sky and the constellations look from the surface of other planets, or zoom out and see other local galaxies and galaxy clusters as well as the cosmic microwave background. * Visualizations of exoplanet orbits and the habitable zone. * Choose between the Open Exoplanet Catalogue, the NASA Exoplanet Archive, and the Extrasolar Planet Encyclopedia (exoplanet.eu). * Push notifications are sent out whenever a new planet is discovered. * Augmented reality sky map: point the phone towards the sky to find an exoplanet! * Interactive multi-touch correlation plots. * Solar System planets, major moons, and asteroids are included. * Explore S-Stars orbiting the black hole at the Galactic Center of our Milky Way * Background information about exoplanets and detection methods. * Full support of planets in binary, triple, quadruple systems and orphan planets. * Real-time ray tracing on the GPU.
Stellar Tour
Explore the cosmos with an augmented reality stargazing app guided by an astrophysicist. Discover exoplanets, solar system bodies, and deep-sky objects with scientifically accurate narratives and detailed visuals.
- Augmented reality stargazing
- Astrophysicist-guided tours
- Detailed exoplanet information
- High-resolution solar system visuals
- Exploration of galaxies and nebulae
- Interactive 3D planet and moon models
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Stellar Tour is the only AR stargazing app written by an astrophysicist. Point your phone at the night sky and get a guided tour of everything up there: 1.7 billion real stars, every planet and major moon, eclipses, meteor showers, 13,000 deep-sky objects, and a course in astronomy that starts with the sky over your head and ends at the edge of the universe. Astrophysicist Dr. Aaron Day wrote every word. Instead of the standard flood of random facts, Stellar Tour tells the scientifically accurate story of each world: what it is like on the ground, in the seas, or floating through the clouds. THE NIGHT SKY, FOR REAL • 1.7 billion stars from ESA's Gaia survey, each in its true position. Pinch to zoom from your backyard to the galactic core. • The Milky Way as it actually looks, drawn from every star Gaia measured, with constellations, planets, and satellites overlaid on your live sky. • A sky that looks like the time it is: dawn, daylight, twilight, and full dark, with a real atmosphere and hazy ridges on the horizon. The Moon shows its earthshine, and Earth's night side its city lights. • Night Vision mode keeps your eyes dark-adapted with a pure red display. LEARN THE SKY • Sixteen short lessons, from the sky over your head to the edge of the universe. Every stop is a live visit: the lesson flies you to the star, steps the clock, or opens the tool it is talking about. The first three lessons are free. • Three reference books inside the app, How We Know, The Sky, and The Whole Story, with a glossary and dozens of labeled diagrams. SEVEN SKIES • See the stars the way Japan, China, Korea, Vietnam, India, and the Arabian desert saw them: their star figures and folk names drawn on your sky, their stories on each star's page, and their lunar festivals on the calendar. PLAN YOUR NIGHT • Sky Calendar: every eclipse, meteor shower, conjunction, and full moon, filtered by type. The week ahead is free; the full year comes with the expansion. • Night Planner: the best targets for your sky tonight, hour by hour. Sky Forecast: the cloud cover over your spot, hour by hour. • Reminders that fire only when something is worth stepping outside for, including ISS and Tiangong passes with a live countdown. • Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets for rise and set times and the next sky event. Ask Siri what is visible tonight. ECLIPSE EXPLORER Simulate any solar or lunar eclipse from any place on Earth: local timings, a disc animation of the Moon crossing the Sun, and a live countdown. The next solar eclipse at your own location is free: its times, what you will see there, and a reminder. GO DEEPER • Telescope Catalog: 13,000 NGC, IC, and Messier objects, searchable and shown on your sky. • Exoplanets: nearly every known world, in its actual position on the sky, with sizes, temperatures, and orbits. • The Solar System up close: planets and major moons in NASA probe imagery, in visible light, ultraviolet, infrared, and radar. Rotate them to any angle. • Hubble and James Webb Space Telescope pictures, on the pages of the objects they show. FOR EVERYONE • Kid Mode rewrites the whole tour for explorers aged five to seven. • Birthday Sky: a shareable card of the sky on the night you were born. • Smart search: ask for exactly what you want. • Fifteen languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Arabic, Hindi, Vietnamese, and Icelandic. Dates in your own calendar. • VoiceOver and Dynamic Type throughout. ONE PURCHASE, NO SUBSCRIPTION Cosmic Expansion adds the 1.7 billion stars, black holes up close, the exoplanets, the galaxies, the eclipses, the planner, the catalog, and the whole course in a single purchase that is yours forever. Take the Stellar Tour!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is device support: Exoplanet at 4 against Stellar Tour's 2. Exoplanet also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 26.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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. Exoplanet sells 7 one-off in-app purchases and Stellar Tour sells 5 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 Exoplanet against 4.7 for Stellar Tour. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 975 and 1.7K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 91% of Exoplanet's written reviews are positive against 84% of Stellar Tour's.
Exoplanet ships an update every 2 weeks, Stellar Tour every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Exoplanet | Stellar Tour |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (975 ratings) | 4.7 (1.7K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 90.9% of reviews — better | 83.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 975 | 1.7K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 105 MB | 582 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hanno Rein | Aaron Day |
Customer experience
Exoplanet
Stellar Tour
User reviews
Exoplanet
From 975 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great app
- 👍 Insanely entertaining
- 👍 Amazing graphics and interactive diorama
- 👍 Detailed explanation of planets
- 👍 Awesome app for astronomy and physics lovers
Room to improve
- 🐛 Some exoplanets not showing up in search
- 🐛 Inconsistent behavior when switching between databases
- 🔒 Paid upgrades required to access more features
- 🐛 Upgrade purchase issues with Galaxy Clusters and CMB add-on
- 🐛 Exoplanets represented as generic white balls
Stellar Tour
From 1.7K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🌟 Amazing app
- 👍 Excellent for stargazing and learning
- 🔭 Helpful for identifying stars and constellations
- 🌌 Detailed information on planets and exoplanets
- 🎓 Great educational tool for all ages
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and glitches
- 🤔 Some features not intuitive or user-friendly
- 💰 Wish it was completely free without in-app purchases
- 🌍 Language localization could be improved
Bugs and requests
Exoplanet
Reported bugs
2 issues- Upgrade purchase issues with Galaxy Clusters and CMB add-on
- Kepler objects of interest disappearing when switching databases
Requested features
9 requests- Add more detailed textures and visuals for exoplanets
- Ability to view multiple databases simultaneously
- Option to see planet surfaces and atmospheres
- Inclusion of dwarf planets in our solar system
- Ability to zoom in on and explore other galaxies
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- Addition of black holes, pulsars, and other celestial objects
- Inclusion of satellite and spacecraft orbits
- Narration or audio commentary for key discoveries
- Ability to view the universe from the surface of planets
Stellar Tour
Reported bugs
3 issues- Login screen freezes
- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
- Videos not playing offline as expected
Requested features
4 requests- Add support for viewing comets and other celestial events
- Improve AR functionality and integration
- Provide more detailed information on exoplanets
- Introduce a dark mode option for better visibility at night
In-app purchases
Exoplanet
- Galaxy Clusters and CMB$0.99
- Asteroids$0.99
- Gaia Stars$0.99
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- S-Stars$0.99
- Catalogues$0.99
- Developer Appreciation Coffee$1.99
- Kepler Add-on$2.99
Stellar Tour
- Remove Ads 1$2.99
- Upgrade: Lessons & Sky Tools$3.99
- Cosmic Expansion2 variants$9.99
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- Remove Ads 2$9.99
- Remove Ads 3$14.99
Questions
Is Exoplanet free?
Is Stellar Tour free?
Which has better reviews, Exoplanet or Stellar Tour?
Do Exoplanet or Stellar Tour have ads?
Which is updated more often, Exoplanet or Stellar Tour?
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