# What's Up? vs Galaxy Map

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: What's Up? at none against Galaxy Map's 13. What's Up? also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (12.5 vs 15.0). Galaxy Map's advantage is ratings volume (600 vs 8) and review sentiment (80% vs 58%). On price, rating and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Galaxy Map sells 13 one-off in-app purchases. What's Up? asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for What's Up? against 4.6 for Galaxy Map. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Galaxy Map has 600 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 58% of What's Up?'s written reviews are positive against 80% of Galaxy Map's.

What's Up? ships an update every 3 months, Galaxy Map every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 5, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | What's Up? | Galaxy Map |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/whats-up/id393023070/reviews) | [4.6 (600 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/galaxy-map/id1170905456/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 8 | **600** |
| Positive reviews | 57.9% of reviews | **80.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 5 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 49 MB | 613 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.5** | 15.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [John Kennedy](https://appshunter.io/developer/284943103) | [Andrei Nistorescu](https://appshunter.io/developer/1048905386) |

## What reviewers say

### What's Up?

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/whats-up/id393023070)

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.

**Highlights:** Simple sky grid display, Effortless navigation, Time-bar functionality, Comprehensive celestial information, Observation insights, Moon phases, Wikipedia links

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


### Galaxy Map

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/galaxy-map/id1170905456)

Explore the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies in an interactive 3D map. Discover nebulae, supernovae, and planets, with stunning visuals based on NASA data. Ideal for education and space enthusiasts.

**Highlights:** Interactive 3D galaxy map, Explore nebulae and supernovae, Fly through planetary atmospheres, Land on planets, Based on NASA data, Available in 100+ languages

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Buy ship - Alien Destroyer | $0.99 | one-time |
| Buy ship - Alien fighter | $0.99 | one-time |
| Remove ads | $1.99 | one-time |
| Buy ship - Alien Destroyer | $1.99 | one-time |
| Buy ship - Alien fighter | $1.99 | one-time |
| 3D Visualization Pack | $1.99 | one-time |
| Buy ship - Dragon Frigate | $1.99 | one-time |
| Essentials bundle - SALE | $2.99 | one-time |
| Remove ads | $3.99 | one-time |
| 3D Visualization Pack | $3.99 | one-time |
| Ultimate bundle - SALE | $4.99 | one-time |
| Essentials bundle | $4.99 | one-time |
| Ultimate bundle | $8.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🌌 Impressive 3D galaxy and nebula visualizations
- 🚀 Spaceship exploration feature with landing capability
- 📚 Educational content about space and astronomy
- 🎮 Fun and engaging gameplay mechanics
- ✨ No ads in free version

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Excessive paywall for most content
- 🐛 App crashes and fails to load
- 🎮 Poor control mechanics for flying and walking
- 🔍 Lack of zoom functionality or unclear controls
- 🌑 Black holes look too similar to each other

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on startup
- Explore button shows nothing
- Pinch-to-zoom doesn't work
- App won't load on iPad
- Text displays as boxes in language settings

**Requested features**

- Search button to find galaxies and objects
- More diverse and realistic black hole designs
- AR feature to identify stars/planets in real sky
- More free content and objects
- Exoplanet additions (TRAPPIST-1e, J1407B)


## Frequently asked questions

### Is What's Up? free?

What's Up? is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Galaxy Map free?

Galaxy Map is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, What's Up? or Galaxy Map?

What's Up? and Galaxy Map are both rated 4.6 out of 5 on the App Store, from 8 and 600 ratings respectively.

### Do What's Up? or Galaxy Map have ads?

Galaxy Map shows ads; What's Up? does not.

### Which is updated more often, What's Up? or Galaxy Map?

What's Up? ships an update every 3 months, and Galaxy Map every 5 weeks. Most recently, What's Up? was updated on September 5, 2026 and Galaxy Map on September 25, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*