Comparison

Solar Walk vs Pocket Planets

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

Head to head
About

Solar Walk

Explore a detailed 3D model of our solar system and the universe. Interact with planets, moons, and satellites, and take virtual flights through space. Travel through time to see the universe's past and learn with educational movies.

Highlights
  • Interactive 3D solar system model
  • Virtual flights between celestial bodies
  • Time travel feature for historical views
  • Educational movies about space
  • Orrery and true-to-scale view modes
  • Milky Way Galaxy view
Features
Read full description

Solar Walk is an amazing 3D model of our Solar system bringing the universe to the palm of your hand and allowing you to interact with planets, satellites, moons, comets and other space objects anytime and anywhere. Start your fascinating journey through the realms of space and learn more about the universe we live in. *** Over 6 million users!*** *** National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) - GOLD winner in the Educational Tools for Parents and Children category! *** *** A Parents’ Choice Gold Award Winner *** “Simply amazing.” - Macworld “Solar Walk serves up a visually impressive 3D model of our solar system. Set against a haunting, atmospheric soundscape, the app shows planets and satellites in their correct positions, and offers mini movies, facts and other related tidbits.” - TNW “This jaw-dropping app provides a wholly interactive 3D model of our solar system, one that’s had me hooked for days. It’s the kind of thing you can imagine a science teacher using in the classroom of the future — except that we don’t have to wait.” - CNet “Zoom from Mercury to Pluto (which makes the cut in this app), passing each planet’s moons along the way. Because Solar Walk knows what time it is, the planets are in proper orientation to the Sun: Earth is dark where it is currently night and gradually lightens to daytime on the other side.” - NY Times "It's great for showing my students the relative positions of the planets in the solar system, the satellites orbiting the Earth and our place in the galaxy. Awesome with a smartboard as well." - by jbrown61 Solar Walk enables you to: ► Observe the 3D model of our Solar system with all its objects in real time and in a proper orientation. Turn into an astronomer and explore planets, moons, satellites, asteroids, dwarf planets, comets, stars and other celestial bodies. Enjoy gorgeous graphics and visuals while navigating through the solar system. ► Make virtual flights from one space object to another. ► Travel in time and see what the universe and our Solar system looked like at a certain period. ► Find an exciting view of the Milky Way Galaxy. ► Watch a collection of educational solar system movies to learn about space-related topics including Earth's moon phases, Earth's cycles, tidal phenomena, and zodiacal constellations. ► Enjoy 3D planetarium with the help of special glasses and activating the anaglyph mode. ► Share interesting screenshots of the app with your friends. ► Choose the view mode comfortable for you (orrery/true-to-scale). The app contains In-App Purchases. Solar Walk is a great educational tool appropriate for both adults and children. The amount of information users can learn about the planets, moons, satellites and other celestial bodies is impressive. All information is age-appropriate and detailed. Animated video clips will make learning about our Solar system even more engaging. Start exploring the universe with Solar Walk!

About

Pocket Planets

Explore our solar system with detailed information on planets, moons, and astronauts. Track who is currently in space and receive notifications for new launches. Access NASA images and compare celestial body characteristics.

Highlights
  • Detailed planet and moon data
  • Astronaut information and missions
  • Real-time space occupancy
  • Launch notifications
  • NASA image gallery
  • Celestial body comparisons
Features
Read full description

Pocket Planets gives you all the information you need about our solar system and human activity in space. Learn more about all 565 astronauts who been to space. What was their mission? How long had they been up there? See who is in space now! Get notified when somebody goes into space. Get up to date information about every planet and moon in the solar system. Including: - Physical characteristics: mass, radius, density, gravity, escape velocity - Orbital characteristics: real-time distance from the Sun and Earth, orbital period, orbital speed, eccentricity, apsis, periapsis, visualise orbit - Atmosphere: pressure, atmospheric composition - Images from Nasa - Moons: compare their size and distance

Screenshots

Solar Walk4 screens
Pocket Planets4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Pocket Planets at Free against Solar Walk's $4.99. Pocket Planets also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 11) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 5 months). Solar Walk's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (8.2K vs 22). On rating, review sentiment 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

Pocket Planets is free to download; Solar Walk costs $4.99 up front. Solar Walk sells 11 one-off in-app purchases. Pocket Planets asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Solar Walk against 4.6 for Pocket Planets. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Solar Walk has 8.2K ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 72% of Solar Walk's written reviews are positive against 67% of Pocket Planets's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Solar Walk ships an update every 5 months, Pocket Planets every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Solar Walk versus Pocket Planets: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSolar WalkPocket Planets
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (8.2K ratings) — better4.6 (22 ratings)
Positive reviews72.2% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings8.2K — better22
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size451 MB66 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVito Technology Inc.Ad Lunam Kereskedelmi es Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag

Customer experience

Solar Walk

All ratings8,149 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral3.5%
Negative3.5%
Written reviews461 reviews
Positive72.2%
Neutral7.2%
Negative20.6%

Pocket Planets

All ratings22 ratings
Positive86.4%
Neutral4.5%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral16.7%
Negative16.7%

Bugs and requests

Solar Walk

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes on launch for some users
  • In-app purchases not working correctly
  • Freezing and performance issues on older devices
  • Incorrect planet/moon positioning and timing

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more planets, moons, and objects to the solar system
  • Expand to include other star systems and galaxies
  • Improve navigation and controls for easier exploration
  • Offer more free content instead of paid add-ons
  • Fix reported bugs and crashes

Pocket Planets

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Solar Walk

One-time11
  • Mission of Cassini-HuygensFree
  • Cycles of the Earth SystemFree
  • Major Circles of LatitudeFree
Show 8 more
  • Movies BundleFree
  • 3D Satellites in Real TimeFree
  • Planets of the Solar SystemFree
  • What is a Solar Eclipse?Free
  • The Moon Phases ExplanationFree
  • Zodiacal ConstellationsFree
  • High Resolution Bundle$1.99
  • All Additional Content - Sale$2.99
None

Pocket Planets

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Solar Walk free?
Solar Walk costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Pocket Planets free?
Pocket Planets is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Solar Walk or Pocket Planets?
Solar Walk is rated higher. Solar Walk averages 4.7 out of 5 from 8.2K ratings, while Pocket Planets averages 4.6 from 22 ratings.
Do Solar Walk or Pocket Planets have ads?
Pocket Planets shows ads; Solar Walk does not.
Which is updated more often, Solar Walk or Pocket Planets?
Solar Walk ships an update every 5 months, and Pocket Planets every 3 weeks. Most recently, Solar Walk was updated on October 27, 2026 and Pocket Planets on October 24, 2026.

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