Comparison

Sun Seeker vs Luminos Map

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

Head to head
About

Sun Seeker

Track the sun's hourly direction, path, and times for sunrise, sunset, and twilight. Visualize solar data with a compass or AR view, and receive notifications for key solar events. Ideal for planning outdoor activities, photography, and property assessment.

Highlights
  • Hourly sun direction intervals
  • Sunrise, sunset, and twilight times
  • Golden hour and blue hour visualization
  • Flat compass and 3D AR views
  • Sun shadow length calculation
  • Sun event notifications
  • Location-based solar data
Features
Read full description

Sunseeker is a comprehensive solar tracking & compass app. It shows the sun’s hourly direction intervals, its equinox, winter & summer solstice paths, sunrise sunset times, twilight times, sun shadow, the golden hour & more. The app allows you to add sun-event notifications & has a widget showing the day’s solar data & position on an arc. The surveyor view shows the solar direction for each sunlight hour. Sunseeker has both a flat compass view & a 3D Augmented Reality (AR) view to show the solar position & path. The app is useful for - ▶ Photographers- to plan according to the golden hour or blue hour & optimal sunlight conditions, sunrise & sunset times & directions. ▶ Cinematographers- this sun tracker & sun surveyor enables you to find the sun exposure, directions, sun shadow & sunrise sunset times for any location. ▶ Real Estate Buyers- can use the app before buying a property to check the sun path & to find the sun exposure of properties. ▶ Drivers - Sunseeker lets you track the sun path & movement during the days & helps drivers know the sun position to find how long the car will remain in the shade at any given parking spot. ▶ Campers & Picnickers- for anyone planning a day out, Sunseeker app will help in finding where to camp, sit or pitch an umbrella depending on the sunlight & sun direction. ▶ Gardeners- Sun Seeker can also help with finding optimal planting locations & seasonal sunlight hours as a sun rise calendar ▶ Architects & Surveyors- for visualising the spatial variability of the solar angle throughout the year & using the compass app as a sun surveyor & calendar to determine the sunlight directions. Main Features * Sunseeker is a sun locator which uses GPS, magnetometer & gyroscope to find the correct solar position & sun path for your current location. * Flat compass view shows current solar position, diurnal solar angle & elevation (separated into day & night segments), sun shadow length ratio, atmospheric path thickness. * 3D augmented reality (AR) camera overlay view shows the sun's current position, its path with hour points marked. Check golden hour using this feature! * Camera view has an optional pointer to guide you towards the current location of the sun & help you with sun direction. * Map view shows solar direction arrows, sun path & elevations for each hour of the day. * Choose any date to view sun position & path on that day. You can view sunset & sunrise times for each day as well. * Choose any location on earth (includes 40,000+ cities or custom locations available offline, as well as a comprehensive online map search capability) * Get additional details including sun rise, sunset & culmination times, maximum elevation, civil, nautical & astronomical twilight times of the sun. * Optional device notifications for all manner of sun-related periods & events, such as golden hour or blue hour, various twilight & shadow periods, or sun at a given compass heading or above a given elevation. * This sun rise calendar app allows the user to include equinox, summer & winter solstice paths on both flat compass view & camera view. Sun Seeker app has been featured in numerous high-profile blogs, websites & publications, including Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Sydney Morning Herald etc. "Truly amazing", "Incredible", "Brilliant" - the most genuinely useful application of augmented reality - ever! Check out our YouTube video here: https://bit.ly/2Rf0CkO Simply search YouTube for "Sun Seeker app" to find many videos, websites & blogs created by our enthusiastic users FAQs * See https://bit.ly/2FIPJq2 - also easily accessible from the app's info screen Note * The compass accuracy depends on having an undistorted magnetic field around your device. If you use it close to metallic objects or electrical equipment, directional accuracy may be impaired. The device’s compass accuracy can be optimised by calibrating it prior to use. See app’s FAQs for more help.

About

Luminos Map

This app provides precise global data on sun and moon positions, sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset times. It features an interactive map and time-chart for easy visualization of celestial paths and seasonal shifts, with offline calculations for current location.

Highlights
  • Real-time Sun/Moon data
  • Sunrise/sunset and moonrise/moonset times
  • Celestial path visualization
  • Global location search
  • Twilight data
  • Moon phase information
Features
Read full description

Enhance your outdoor adventures with Luminos Map: Twilight Nav Tool. Curious about Sunrise, Sunset, Moonrise, and Moonset times? This app has you covered. Discover precise Sun and Moon positions, plus upcoming twilight, anywhere globally. Its stunning time-chart and interactive map make rich data accessible and intuitive. Explore how sunrise/sunset times shift across seasons with customizable dates. Access real-time Sun/Moon info for any worldwide location, beyond just your current spot. Play with the map feature—tap ‘Map’ to navigate globally for detailed celestial data. Data updates automatically; switch to chart view for location specifics and refresh. Time zones adjust seamlessly to your chosen location, ensuring accuracy. Features of Luminos Map: Twilight Nav Tool: - Real-time Sun/Moon, sunrise/sunset, and moonrise/moonset data - Rise/set locations for Sun/Moon on any day - Exact Sun/Moon paths at specific times - Landscape capture tips (e.g., sunset, milky way) - Altitude and azimuth details - Solstice and equinox dates for any year - Moon phase info (name/days) - New and full moon dates - Twilight data (official, civil, nautical, astronomical) - Select locations via search or manual latitude/longitude input; adjust date/time/zone as needed. - Apple Watch users enjoy automatic location detection. Note: Calculations are offline, but internet is required for updates and searches. Offline mode supports current location data with location services on. Terms of use: https://mapnitude.com/terms-of-service ## Subscriptions ## "Luminos Map: Twilight Nav Tool" is completely free to use with all features. You can subscribe to this application to remove ads. Device subscriptions are available in these plan and will renew automatically each month, six months or year, unless cancelled. (Per month) - $0.99 (Per six-months) - $4.99 (Per year) - $8.99 Pricing shown is for the United States store. Pricing in other stores will vary. Payment for subscriptions will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Subscriptions may be managed by going to your iTunes Account Settings after purchase or by clicking the “Purchase / Manage Subscription. Auto-renewal may be turned off by going to Account Settings after purchase. Subscription cannot be cancelled during the active subscription period More information: https://mapnitude.com/distance Privacy policy: https://mapnitude.com/privacy-policy Terms of use: https://mapnitude.com/terms-of-service

Screenshots

Sun Seeker4 screens
Luminos Map4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Luminos Map at Free against Sun Seeker's $11.99. Luminos Map also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 18.0). Sun Seeker's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (13K vs 299). On 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

Luminos Map is free to download; Sun Seeker costs $11.99 up front. Luminos Map sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Sun Seeker asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Sun Seeker holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sun Seeker has 13K ratings behind it against 299, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of Sun Seeker's written reviews are positive against 68% of Luminos Map's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sun Seeker ships an update every 2 months, Luminos Map every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
Sun Seeker versus Luminos Map: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSun SeekerLuminos Map
Price$11.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (13K ratings) — better4.6 (299 ratings)
Positive reviews88.1% of reviews — better67.9% of reviews
Number of ratings13K — better299
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationAd-supported — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#4 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS18.015.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size43 MB55 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperozPDAMapnitude Company Limited

Customer experience

Sun Seeker

All ratings12,946 ratings
Positive96.6%
Neutral1.5%
Negative1.9%
Written reviews494 reviews
Positive88.1%
Neutral2.2%
Negative9.7%

Luminos Map

All ratings297 ratings
Positive90.6%
Neutral3.7%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews56 reviews
Positive67.9%
Neutral8.9%
Negative23.2%

User reviews

Sun Seeker

From 13K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Real-time sun tracking
  • 👍 Comprehensive sun data
  • 👍 Useful for photography and solar planning
  • 👍 Accurate sun path predictions
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional inaccuracies in 3D mode
  • 🐛 Compass calibration issues
  • 🔍 Could use more detailed instructions
  • 🔍 Difficulty entering new locations

Luminos Map

From 299 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Useful for sunbathing
  • 👍 Great for photography
  • 👍 Detailed sun/moon info
  • 👍 Good for teaching navigation
  • 👍 Tracks sun/moon anywhere

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes after updates
  • 🐛 Ads are intrusive
  • 🐛 Inaccurate moonrise/set
  • 🐛 No English option/Thai popup
  • 🐛 Location search difficult

Bugs and requests

Sun Seeker

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App crashes on certain devices
  • Compass not working properly

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add moon tracking and phases
  • Improve offline functionality
  • Provide more customization options
  • Integrate weather data for better planning

Luminos Map

Reported bugs

11 issues
  • App crashes seconds after losing
  • App crashes on launch
  • Popup in Thai, no English option
  • Does not update on Apple Watch
  • Useless on Apple Watch
Show 6 more
  • Displayed only 5 of 8 sun times on Watch
  • Won't open to your location
  • Appearance of Chinese letters
  • Failure to launch to your location
  • Does not save last location
  • App crashed from the beginning in Jun 17, 2017 update

Requested features

8 requests
  • Add Azimuth for sun/moon
  • Add option to remove ads
  • Add city search feature
  • Add input for coordinates
  • Add new moon date and time
Show 3 more
  • Regain previous features (city press for sunrise/sunset)
  • Add future time projections
  • Lock position button on map

In-app purchases

None

Sun Seeker

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Luminos Map

Subscriptions3
  • Plus Upgrade$0.991 Month
  • Plus Upgrade$5.496 Months
  • Plus Upgrade$9.991 Year

Questions

Is Sun Seeker free?
Sun Seeker costs $11.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Luminos Map free?
Luminos Map is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sun Seeker or Luminos Map?
Sun Seeker is rated higher. Sun Seeker averages 4.8 out of 5 from 13K ratings, while Luminos Map averages 4.6 from 299 ratings.
Do Sun Seeker or Luminos Map have ads?
Both Sun Seeker and Luminos Map show ads.
Which is updated more often, Sun Seeker or Luminos Map?
Sun Seeker ships an update every 2 months, and Luminos Map every 3 weeks. Most recently, Sun Seeker was updated on October 21, 2026 and Luminos Map on October 22, 2026.

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