Comparison

Explorer vs MEWSA YMCA

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

MEWSA YMCA

Features
Read full description

YMCA of MEWSA is the latest in technology and communication . YMCA of MEWSA enables Teachers and Kids to document and share photos, messages, videos, newsletters and much more to tell the story of your attendance at the academy. *Access from your computer/Smartphone or tablet/iPad. *Private and secure. *Easy to use, saves time. *Upload messages, newsletters, videos, photos, files, daily sheets . *Excellent organization of materials. *24/7 support.

Screenshots

Explorer3 screens
MEWSA YMCA3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Explorer at every 2 months against MEWSA YMCA's every 6 months. MEWSA YMCA's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 16.0). On price, 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

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

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Explorer ships an update every 2 months, MEWSA YMCA every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Explorer versus MEWSA YMCA: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterExplorerMEWSA YMCA
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (115 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews58.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings115 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.010.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size88 MB95 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAmerican Museum of Natural HistoryRaz Wasserstein

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

MEWSA YMCA

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Explorer

No in-app purchases

None

MEWSA YMCA

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Explorer free?
Explorer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MEWSA YMCA free?
MEWSA YMCA is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Explorer or MEWSA YMCA have ads?
Neither Explorer nor MEWSA YMCA shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Explorer or MEWSA YMCA?
Explorer ships an update every 2 months, and MEWSA YMCA every 6 months. Most recently, Explorer was updated on November 1, 2026 and MEWSA YMCA on October 25, 2026.

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