Comparison

History Pointer vs Walking NY

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

Head to head
About

History Pointer

Discover over 100,000 historic sites across the US with this app. Explore locations near you or plan road trips, with integrated maps and Wikipedia excerpts. An augmented reality view helps you find and navigate to these significant places.

Highlights
  • National Register of Historic Places database
  • Location-based site discovery
  • Road trip planning
  • Multiple map views (Apple, USGS, NOAA)
  • Wikipedia excerpts and links
  • Augmented Reality (AR) identification and navigation
Features
Read full description

History Pointer is your portable copy of the US National Register of Historic Places, over 100,000 sites, buildings, battlefields, vessels, and historic districts of significance in the United States and territories. Find the sites near you or along your next road trip. Don't miss a detour. Map gives you your choice of Apple maps, USGS topographic maps, or NOAA nautical charts. Wikipedia text excerpts and links are included. Augmented Reality view identifies what's nearby, and shows the way to spots far afield. Every history buff needs this app. History Pointer's data comes from the US National Register of Historic Places, which is "the official list of the nation's historic places worthy of preservation." The register is maintained by the National Park Service. For more information about the criteria for inclusion on the National Register. see https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/index.htm.

About

Walking NY

Explore historical New York City with old photographs that appear based on your current location in Brooklyn and Queens. Discover buildings and share images from your explorations.

Highlights
  • Location-based historical photos
  • Browse map of locations
  • Share photos to social media
  • Content from NYC archives
  • Future borough expansions
Features
Read full description

The Walking New York App will show you old photographs of wherever you are standing in Brooklyn or Queens. It locates the block you are on and selects old photos of buildings on that site or nearby. Created by the La Guardia and Wagner Archives, La Guardia Community College, CUNY, the app features selections from the New York City Housing Authority Photograph Collection (housed at the La Guardia and Wagner Archives), Queens Public Library, and Brooklyn Historical Society’s Photograph Collection. Users can also browse the map to find all of our provided locations, as well as share photos from their locations to Facebook and Twitter. Currently supporting the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, we will be adding Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island, so users can find themselves fully “Walking New York.”

Screenshots

History Pointer4 screens
Walking NY4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Walking NY at Free against History Pointer's $4.99. Walking NY also leads on review sentiment (33% vs 24%) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). History Pointer's advantage is rating (3.5 vs 2.3) and ratings volume (32 vs 3). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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

Walking NY is free to download; History Pointer costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

History Pointer holds the better App Store score, 3.5 against 2.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: History Pointer has 32 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 24% of History Pointer's written reviews are positive against 33% of Walking NY's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

History Pointer ships an update every 5 months, Walking NY every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on September 9, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
History Pointer versus Walking NY: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHistory PointerWalking NY
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating3.5 (32 ratings) — better2.3 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews23.5% of reviews33.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings32 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 5 months — betterEvery 8 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size168 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMobile GeographicsLaGuardia & Wagner Archives

Customer experience

History Pointer

All ratings32 ratings
Positive62.5%
Neutral3.1%
Negative34.4%
Written reviews17 reviews
Positive23.5%
Neutral11.8%
Negative64.7%

Walking NY

All ratings3 ratings
Positive33.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative66.7%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative66.7%

In-app purchases

None

History Pointer

No in-app purchases

None

Walking NY

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is History Pointer free?
History Pointer costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Walking NY free?
Walking NY is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, History Pointer or Walking NY?
History Pointer is rated higher. History Pointer averages 3.5 out of 5 from 32 ratings, while Walking NY averages 2.3 from 3 ratings.
Do History Pointer or Walking NY have ads?
Neither History Pointer nor Walking NY shows ads.
Which is updated more often, History Pointer or Walking NY?
History Pointer ships an update every 5 months, and Walking NY every 8 months. Most recently, History Pointer was updated on September 9, 2026 and Walking NY on June 1, 2026.

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