Comparison

Explorer vs Visit Harvard

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

Head to head
About

Explorer

Navigate a world-renowned museum with ease. This app provides interactive maps, turn-by-turn directions to exhibits and amenities, and personalized recommendations based on your interests. Enhance your visit with behind-the-scenes content and engaging quizzes.

Highlights
  • Interactive museum map
  • Turn-by-turn directions
  • Customized exhibit recommendations
  • Exhibit information and quizzes
  • Amenity finder (restrooms, shops)
  • Multi-language support
Read full description

Download Explorer, the Museum’s free mobile app! Get a map, turn-by-turn directions to exhibits and amenities, customized recommendations for what to see, and more!    “A great aid to anyone seeing the museum for the first or 40th time.” - The New York Times   Available in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese. Explorer is automatically set to the language of your device.   Map and Turn-by-Turn Directions Get directions to exhibits and amenities, including shortest and accessible routes.   Get Recommendations for What to See Explorer recommends exhibits based on interests you select—and sorts them by how close they are to your location.   Learn More About the Museum’s Exhibits Go behind the scenes and dive deeper with videos, fun quizzes, and more.   Find the Nearest Restroom Explorer provides you the shortest route to restrooms, shops, exits, and more. How does Explorer know where you are? The Museum has placed more than 700 Bluetooth beacons throughout its 45 permanent halls. These tiny beacons give off signals that your phone can detect (when Bluetooth is enabled). Your phone calculates your position based on detecting three of these beacons simultaneously. This triangulation is not always perfect, especially in certain areas like large, multi-level halls, meandering walkways, or stairwells. Your phone should be able to detect the hall that you are in and provide turn-by-turn directions, but sometimes the “blue dot” is not exactly in the right place. In some rare cases it will even be missing. Moving to another area and waiting a few moments will usually fix the issue. The Museum’s free AMNH-GUEST Wi-Fi also varies in strength throughout the complex. Certain materials and large exhibits (i.e. the Blue Whale) either absorb or reflect the radio signals used by Wi-Fi, further complicating this technology. If you experience difficulty connecting to Wi-Fi in a particular part of the Museum, you can usually fix the issue by moving a short distance away.   We’d Love to Hear From You! Your feedback is important and will help us improve your Museum experience. Email explorer@amnh.org.   Supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies

About

Visit Harvard

Explore Harvard University's historic campus with a self-guided walking tour. Discover iconic locations, learn their stories through facts, images, and videos, and gain insight into the university's rich legacy.

Highlights
  • Self-guided walking tour
  • Iconic campus locations
  • Historical facts
  • Immersive videos
  • Never-before-seen images
  • University legacy insights
Features
Read full description

You’ve heard of Harvard University, but do you know its nearly 400-year history? On this self-guided walking tour, you'll be taken to some of the most iconic places across Harvard's campus and learn the stories behind them. Tour stops features facts, some never-before-seen images, and immersive videos! Follow along for an inside look into the University's historical and modern legacy.

Screenshots

Explorer3 screens
Visit Harvard4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Visit Harvard at 4.1 against Explorer's 3.8. Visit Harvard also leads on device support (3 vs 1). Explorer's advantage is ratings volume (115 vs 17). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads 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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Visit Harvard holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Explorer has 115 ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Explorer's written reviews are positive against 60% of Visit Harvard's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Explorer ships an update every 2 months, Visit Harvard every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Explorer versus Visit Harvard: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterExplorerVisit Harvard
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (115 ratings)4.1 (17 ratings) — better
Positive reviews58.1% of reviews60.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings115 — better17
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size88 MB133 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAmerican Museum of Natural HistoryHarvard University

Customer experience

Explorer

All ratings115 ratings
Positive67.8%
Neutral6.1%
Negative26.1%
Written reviews117 reviews
Positive58.1%
Neutral9.4%
Negative32.5%

Visit Harvard

All ratings16 ratings
Positive81.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative18.8%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative40.0%

Bugs and requests

Explorer

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • App crashes when accessing membership/ticket linking
  • Location services fail to detect user position
  • Bluetooth continues tracking after app closes
  • Payment confirmation button unresponsive
  • Duplicate charges on payment attempts
Show 7 more
  • App freezes on food page navigation
  • Crashes when changing map levels
  • Swiping on image galleries doesn't work
  • App won't open or closes immediately
  • GPS shows incorrect floor levels
  • Directions loop back on themselves
  • Maps don't match physical museum layout

Requested features

10 requests
  • Digital membership card storage
  • Apple Pay support for payments
  • Search function for exhibits
  • Swipe functionality for image galleries
  • To-do list based on interests and time
Show 5 more
  • Planetarium and show times integration
  • Ability to highlight halls on map
  • Improved battery optimization
  • Current exhibition listings
  • Ticket pricing and hours information

Visit Harvard

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Explorer

No in-app purchases

None

Visit Harvard

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Explorer free?
Explorer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Visit Harvard free?
Visit Harvard is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Explorer or Visit Harvard?
Visit Harvard is rated higher. Explorer averages 3.8 out of 5 from 115 ratings, while Visit Harvard averages 4.1 from 17 ratings.
Do Explorer or Visit Harvard have ads?
Neither Explorer nor Visit Harvard shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Explorer or Visit Harvard?
Explorer ships an update every 2 months, and Visit Harvard every 4 months. Most recently, Explorer was updated on October 29, 2026 and Visit Harvard on October 22, 2026.

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