What's Up? vs Classic Sky Map 2
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
What's Up?
Discover celestial bodies visible in the night sky with this intuitive app. Easily track planets, the Sun, and Moon, and forecast their appearance. Access detailed information and moon phases, with support for the Southern Hemisphere.
- Simple sky grid display
- Effortless navigation
- Time-bar functionality
- Comprehensive celestial information
- Observation insights
- Moon phases
- Wikipedia links
Read full descriptionHide full description
Whether you're deciding if it's worth setting up your telescope or simply curious about that bright 'star,' What's Up? is the perfect companion for sky enthusiasts. Key Features: • Simple Sky Grid Display: View the positions of the Sun, Moon, and planets on an intuitive grid representing the night sky. • Effortless Navigation: No augmented reality or motion tracking needed—just a straightforward display to see what's up. • Time-Bar Functionality: Slide the time-bar to forecast the appearance of your favorite planets and their directions. • Comprehensive Information: Displays the location of the Sun, Moon, planets, and even Pluto. • Observation Insights: Instantly identify which celestial objects are prime for observation. • Moon Phases: Stay updated with the current moon phase. • Wikipedia Links: Dive deeper with quick access to Wikipedia pages for detailed information. • Southern Hemisphere Support: Sky-watchers down south are covered too. • Minimal Network Usage: Only needed for Wikipedia access. • Note: Localizations are limited to planet names. For a full 3D rendered experience with motion tracking, check out our award-winning companion app, Pocket Universe. If you already own Pocket Universe, you'll find What's Up? familiar yet even more user-friendly, with a sleeker design and quicker access to the "Currently Visible" mode, and basic Apple Watch support.
Classic Sky Map 2
Explore the cosmos with an intuitive and beautiful sky map. Easily identify stars, planets, and constellations by simply pointing your device at the sky. Track celestial events and understand astronomical movements with time-lapse features.
- Live sky tracking
- Interactive earth map
- Time-lapse sky simulation
- Beautiful constellation art
- Celestial object search
- Night vision mode
Read full descriptionHide full description
Ever wonder why so many astronomy apps are so hard to use? We do. So we made Classic Sky Map simple and intuitive enough for anyone to enjoy. The user interface is beautiful and straightforward, the controls are easy to use and most settings are just a tap or two away. Classic Sky Map shows you thousands of the brightest stars, the Moon, planets, constellations, meteor showers and more. And it's painless. Free Features: - Live Tracking. Simply point your device toward the stars and the sky map aligns itself automatically, showing you the portion of the sky at which you are looking. If your device has a compass, Classic Sky Map uses it automatically. If not, you can tell Classic Sky Map where the North is, and it aligns the sky map accordingly. - Live Earth Map. Quickly jump from one city to another by tapping on a map that shows the Earth's day and night boundary in real-time. If you allow it, Classic Sky Map can detect your current location automatically. You can also create custom viewing locations in seconds. - Fast Forward and Rewind. Accelerate or reverse time to understand how stars and planets appear to move in the sky over a longer period of time. - Beautiful Constellation Images. We put a tremendous amount of work into creating beautiful constellation images inspired by antique engravings and aligning them precisely with the stars. - Sharing. Share snapshots of the sky map with your friends at the tap of a button. - Quick Help. Should you have any questions while using Classic Sky Map, a concise, illustrated user guide will help answer them quickly. Full Version Features (In-App Purchase): - Interactive Search. Simply type in a search field, pick an object from a list of matches, then point your device toward the sky. An arrow appears and guides you until you are pointing your device toward the object you selected. If the object is not yet visible in the sky, its next rise time is displayed. - Sky Events. Classic Sky Map shows a list of current sky events such as meteor showers, eclipses and more and helps you quickly locate them in the sky. - Night Vision. Classic Sky Map's night vision mode helps minimize loss of dark adaptation. And we went the extra mile to make it look great in cyan, orange or red. - Extra Information. Tooltips and an information panel show details about stars, planets, the Moon, meteor showers and more. - Personalization Options. Personalize your sky map by turning various guides and display options on or off. Have fun!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Classic Sky Map 2 at 4.7 against What's Up?'s 4.2. Classic Sky Map 2 also leads on ratings volume (9.8K vs 9) and review sentiment (76% vs 58%). What's Up?'s advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (every 3 months vs every 16 months). On price 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
Both are free to download. Classic Sky Map 2 sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. What's Up? asks for nothing beyond the download.
Classic Sky Map 2 holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Classic Sky Map 2 has 9.8K ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of What's Up?'s written reviews are positive against 76% of Classic Sky Map 2's.
What's Up? ships an update every 3 months, Classic Sky Map 2 every 16 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | What's Up? | Classic Sky Map 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (9 ratings) | 4.7 (9.8K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 57.9% of reviews | 75.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 9 | 9.8K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 16 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 12.5 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 49 MB | 69 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | John Kennedy | X04 Studios Inc. |
Customer experience
What's Up?
Classic Sky Map 2
Bugs and requests
What's Up?
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Classic Sky Map 2
Reported bugs
3 issues- Compass bearing is inaccurate
- Active tracking no longer works
- App becomes unusable after certain updates
Requested features
4 requests- Add information on comets, meteor showers, and other space events
- Provide an option to only show visible stars
- Improve search functionality to find planets, moons, and other objects not currently in the sky
- Offer a live tracking mode that updates in real-time
In-app purchases
What's Up?
No in-app purchases
Classic Sky Map 2
- Full Version$2.99
Questions
Is What's Up? free?
Is Classic Sky Map 2 free?
Which has better reviews, What's Up? or Classic Sky Map 2?
Do What's Up? or Classic Sky Map 2 have ads?
Which is updated more often, What's Up? or Classic Sky Map 2?
Other comparisons















