# The Sun vs Day & Night Map

The clearest difference is update cadence: The Sun at every 3 months against Day & Night Map's every 7 months. The Sun also leads on review sentiment (85% vs 76%) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.6). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

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

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for The Sun against 4.8 for Day & Night Map. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.5K and 1.4K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 85% of The Sun's written reviews are positive against 76% of Day & Night Map's.

The Sun ships an update every 3 months, Day & Night Map every 7 months. Both last shipped on November 6, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | The Sun | Day & Night Map |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (1.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-sun-rise-and-fall/id463577395/reviews) | **[4.8 (1.4K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/day-and-night-map/id741375889/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.5K** | 1.4K |
| Positive reviews | **85.5% of reviews** | 76.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 months** | Every 7 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 31 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 17.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Team Lundsgård](https://appshunter.io/developer/451202806) | [Volker Voecking Software Engineering](https://appshunter.io/developer/390175341) |

## What reviewers say

### The Sun

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-sun-rise-and-fall/id463577395)

This app provides precise sunrise and sunset times for your current location. You can also plan ahead by checking future sun times for any date and location.

**Highlights:** Current sunrise and sunset times, Future sun time lookup, Location-based data, Data from MET Norway, Free to use

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

**In-app purchases:** none


### Day & Night Map

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/day-and-night-map/id741375889)

Visualize the Earth's day and night cycles on an interactive world map. Select any date and time to see current illumination, or create animated GIFs of changing light patterns.

**Highlights:** Real-time day/night map, Selectable date and time, Animated GIF creation, Minute-by-minute updates, Global illumination visualization

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app
- 🚀 Useful for radio hams
- 👍 Interesting to see sun/moon movement
- 👍 Excellent for travelers

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Widget issues (doesn't update, resizing)
- 🐛 Crashes on some devices

**Reported bugs**

- Moon position not displayed on iPad
- Daylight savings time not working properly

**Requested features**

- Option to keep noon at center and have map move
- Show analemma and sun position on it
- 24-hour clock setting for widget
- Improve moon position display on iPad


## Frequently asked questions

### Is The Sun free?

The Sun is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Day & Night Map free?

Day & Night Map is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, The Sun or Day & Night Map?

Day & Night Map is rated higher. The Sun averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.5K ratings, while Day & Night Map averages 4.8 from 1.4K ratings.

### Do The Sun or Day & Night Map have ads?

Neither The Sun nor Day & Night Map shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, The Sun or Day & Night Map?

The Sun ships an update every 3 months, and Day & Night Map every 7 months. Most recently, The Sun was updated on November 6, 2026 and Day & Night Map on November 6, 2026.

---

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