Comparison

StarMap 3D+ Plus vs Stellar Tour

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

Head to head
About

StarMap 3D+ Plus

Explore the cosmos with a portable star atlas. Identify planets, constellations, and deep sky objects using your device's sensors. Features detailed information and 3D visualizations for both beginners and advanced astronomers.

Highlights
  • Real-time satellite tracking (ISS, Hubble)
  • Extensive star and deep sky object database
  • Detailed constellation information and lines
  • Location-based celestial object identification
  • 3D universe visualization
  • Adjustable date and time for celestial viewing
Features
Read full description

Use your iPhone's compass and gyroscope to find planets, constellations, satellites, and more with crisp, colorful, high-definition Retina graphics that use every pixel of your iPhone or iPad! Hold the universe in your pocket! StarMap 3D Plus is the portable star atlas for beginners or advanced astronomers. Use StarMap 3D Plus to find the planets, stars, constellations, star clusters, galaxies, and nebulae visible to you based on your location and time. StarMap 3D will even use the compass to automatically align the map! • Real-time positions of 150 artificial satellites, including the International Space Station (ISS), and the Hubble Space Telescope • iPad Support • Over 100,000 stars, with detailed information for each of them • 6,441 deep sky objects, with details such as distance from Earth, diameter, apparent size and orientation, and morphology • All 88 modern constellations, with lines based on the outlines from "The Stars: A New Way to See Them" by H.A. Rey • MacRobert and Classic constellation lines also available • Location-based-services (LBS) / Global Positioning System (GPS) support, or manually enter your longitude and latitude • Adjustable date and time of day • Also adjust time instantaneously and interactively with the Time Scroll feature • Compass support, if present • Planetarium Mode for seeing only objects visible to you, or browse the entire celestial sphere • 3D Mode for visualizing the universe in three dimensions

About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read full description

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 • Fifteen 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 planner, the catalog, the eclipses, the exoplanets, the galaxies, the full year of the calendar, and the whole course in a single purchase that is yours forever. Take the Stellar Tour!

Screenshots

StarMap 3D+ Plus4 screens
Stellar Tour4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Stellar Tour at Free against StarMap 3D+ Plus's $2.99. Stellar Tour also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 5 weeks). StarMap 3D+ Plus's advantage is ratings volume (6.8K vs 1.7K) and iOS requirement (16.6 vs 26.0). On rating, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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

Stellar Tour is free to download; StarMap 3D+ Plus costs $2.99 up front. StarMap 3D+ Plus sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Stellar Tour sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for StarMap 3D+ Plus against 4.7 for Stellar Tour. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6.8K and 1.7K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 86% of StarMap 3D+ Plus's written reviews are positive against 84% of Stellar Tour's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

StarMap 3D+ Plus ships an update every 5 weeks, Stellar Tour fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
StarMap 3D+ Plus versus Stellar Tour: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarMap 3D+ PlusStellar Tour
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (6.8K ratings) — better4.7 (1.7K ratings)
Positive reviews86.0% of reviews — better83.5% of reviews
Number of ratings6.8K — better1.7K
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.6 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size576 MB570 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSanville SoftwareAaron Day

Customer experience

StarMap 3D+ Plus

All ratings6,821 ratings
Positive96.6%
Neutral1.5%
Negative1.9%
Written reviews752 reviews
Positive86.0%
Neutral5.1%
Negative8.9%

Stellar Tour

All ratings1,695 ratings
Positive93.5%
Neutral3.7%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews91 reviews
Positive83.5%
Neutral5.5%
Negative11.0%

User reviews

StarMap 3D+ Plus

From 6.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌟 Excellent star mapping and identification
  • 🔍 Detailed information on celestial objects
  • 👍 Easy to use and navigate
  • 🔭 Helpful for amateur astronomers
  • 🌍 Works well across locations

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional tracking/alignment issues
  • 🔍 Lack of detailed instructions/guides
  • 🔒 Privacy concerns regarding data collection
  • 🎨 Dislike for cartoon-style constellation art

Stellar Tour

From 1.7K App Store ratings

What 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

StarMap 3D+ Plus

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App crashes or freezes on launch
  • Incorrect moon and planet positioning
  • Inconsistent performance after updates

Requested features

4 requests
  • More detailed deep sky object representations
  • Improved tracking and compass accuracy
  • Addition of educational content and tutorials
  • Customization options for constellation art

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

1 purchases

StarMap 3D+ Plus

One-time1
  • More Stars$1.99
5 purchases

Stellar Tour

One-time5
  • Remove Ads 1$2.99
  • Upgrade: Lessons & Sky Tools$3.99
  • Cosmic Expansion2 variants$9.99
Show 2 more
  • Remove Ads 2$9.99
  • Remove Ads 3$14.99

Questions

Is StarMap 3D+ Plus free?
StarMap 3D+ Plus costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Stellar Tour free?
Stellar Tour is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, StarMap 3D+ Plus or Stellar Tour?
StarMap 3D+ Plus is rated higher. StarMap 3D+ Plus averages 4.8 out of 5 from 6.8K ratings, while Stellar Tour averages 4.7 from 1.7K ratings.
Do StarMap 3D+ Plus or Stellar Tour have ads?
Neither StarMap 3D+ Plus nor Stellar Tour shows ads.
Which is updated more often, StarMap 3D+ Plus or Stellar Tour?
StarMap 3D+ Plus ships an update every 5 weeks, and Stellar Tour fortnightly. Most recently, StarMap 3D+ Plus was updated on September 24, 2026 and Stellar Tour on September 25, 2026.

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