Comparison

Earth vs GLOBE Observer

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

Head to head
About

Earth

Visualize global climate data from NASA satellites, including temperature, CO2, and sea level. Explore 3D Earth models with interactive controls and color-coded maps to understand environmental conditions.

Highlights
  • Global climate data visualization
  • Satellite data from Earth Science
  • Surface air temperature maps
  • CO2 and CO levels
  • Ozone and water vapor data
  • Gravity and sea level variations
  • Interactive 3D Earth model
Read full description

NASA's Earth Now is an application that visualizes recent global climate data from Earth Science satellites, including surface air temperature, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, and water vapor as well as gravity and sea level variations. Data sets are visually described using "false color" maps. Color-coded legends are provided to indicate relative strength or weakness of an environmental condition. The resulting 3D model of the Earth may be rotated by a single finger stroke, and may also be zoomed in or out by pinching 2 fingers. It was developed by the Earth Science Communications and Visualization Technology Applications and Development Teams at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with support from NASA Headquarters.

About

GLOBE Observer

Contribute to real scientific research by making environmental observations. Document clouds, mosquito habitats, land cover, and trees using your mobile device. Your data supports scientists worldwide, including NASA and NOAA.

Highlights
  • Make environmental observations
  • Document clouds
  • Map mosquito habitats
  • Record land cover
  • Measure tree height
  • Contribute to scientific research
Features
Read full description

The GLOBE Observer app enables you to make observations of your environment. GLOBE Observer is the app of the Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program. The GLOBE Program is an international science and education program that provides students and people of all ages worldwide with the opportunity to participate in data collection and the scientific process, and contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the Earth system and global environment. By using the GLOBE Observer app, you contribute scientific data to your community, students and scientists worldwide, including researchers at NASA, NOAA, and other science research institutions. GLOBE Observer allows all users to contribute observations of clouds, mosquito habitats, land cover, and trees. Trained and certified users can also use the app to submit additional environmental measurements from all GLOBE protocols. GLOBE Clouds allows observers to make regular observations of Earth’s cloud cover and compare them to satellite observations. With GLOBE Mosquito Habitat Mapper, users locate mosquito habitats, observe and identify mosquito larvae, and reduce the potential threat of mosquito borne disease. GLOBE Land Cover is designed to allow users to document what is on the land (trees, grass, buildings, etc.). GLOBE Trees asks users to estimate a tree’s height by taking pictures of trees with their device and answering a few questions. Additional capabilities may be added. Visit us at https://www.globe.gov and https://observer.globe.gov.

Screenshots

Earth4 screens
GLOBE Observer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Earth at 4.6 against GLOBE Observer's 3.1. Earth also leads on review sentiment (74% vs 34%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Earth holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 42 and 86 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Earth's written reviews are positive against 34% of GLOBE Observer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Earth ships an update every 4 months, GLOBE Observer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Earth versus GLOBE Observer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEarthGLOBE Observer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (42 ratings) — better3.1 (86 ratings)
Positive reviews73.7% of reviews — better33.9% of reviews
Number of ratings4286 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.013.0
Further details — not scored
Size181 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJet Propulsion LaboratoryNASA

Customer experience

Earth

All ratings42 ratings
Positive90.5%
Neutral4.8%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews114 reviews
Positive73.7%
Neutral6.1%
Negative20.2%

GLOBE Observer

All ratings86 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral7.0%
Negative43.0%
Written reviews59 reviews
Positive33.9%
Neutral18.6%
Negative47.5%

User reviews

Earth

From 42 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🌍 Real-time Earth data visualization
  • 👍 User-friendly interface and easy navigation
  • 🎨 Beautiful and mesmerizing graphics
  • 📊 Comprehensive satellite data from NASA/JPL
  • 🆓 Free access to scientific information

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes on older devices
  • ⏳ Slow loading times on poor internet
  • 🔍 Difficult to understand without scientific background
  • 🗺️ Antarctica and polar regions blacked out/missing
  • 📐 Zooming and scrolling too sensitive

GLOBE Observer

From 86 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great for citizen science
  • 💡 Educational and informative
  • 👍 Easy to use (for some)
  • 👍 Meaningful environmental measurements
  • 👍 Fun and engaging

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Login/update issues
  • 🐛 Account creation problems
  • 🐛 Observations not submitting
  • 🐛 Poor UI/UX design

Bugs and requests

Earth

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • App crashes on startup or during use
  • Endless 'Loading model' message
  • Crashes on iPhone 4 and older devices
  • Pixel doubler requirement on iPad
  • No landscape orientation support
Show 7 more
  • Doesn't fill iPhone 5 screen properly
  • Extremely slow data loading
  • Menu navigation issues
  • Equator display shows slashes of emptiness
  • Zoom sensitivity causes twitchy behavior
  • Text readability issues against Earth background
  • Geographic data coverage gaps

Requested features

17 requests
  • Celsius/Kelvin temperature unit options
  • Satellite information (height, launch date)
  • ISS tracking capability
  • Ocean current visualization
  • Ice sheet data layers
Show 12 more
  • Methane concentration data
  • Snapshot/screenshot capability
  • Adjustable animation playback speed
  • Manual timeline scrolling for animations
  • Higher resolution maps for Retina displays
  • Landscape orientation support
  • iPad version
  • Google Earth integration
  • More detailed explanations of data
  • Selectable date ranges for animations
  • Atmospheric CO2 levels (previously removed)
  • Surface temperature data (previously removed)

GLOBE Observer

Reported bugs

39 issues
  • Checking for updates loop
  • 504 error on account creation
  • Fails after step 5 in account creation
  • Robot verification loop
  • App crashes on opening
Show 34 more
  • Observations not submitting (error exclamation mark)
  • Interminable in-app required update
  • Errors in data entry, observations not sending/deleting
  • Invalid password errors
  • Cloud observation chart images disappear
  • No reply from support
  • App doesn't open on iPhone
  • Won't update
  • Logged out, wrong password, account locked
  • Data lost after system crash
  • Cloud ID chart not loading properly
  • Observations keep loading forever
  • iPhone stuck on installing updates
  • App crashes and never fully loads
  • Can't get photos to upload
  • User interface poorly designed
  • No observations shown when there are
  • No way to export data
  • App is forever 'installing updates'
  • Camera portion of data collection quit working
  • No way to submit a report from 'Pictures'
  • Compass won't calibrate
  • Photo feature locks screen
  • No button to take photo
  • App crashes if location is not set
  • Updates take too long
  • Photo submission portal hopeless
  • Native camera app has no prompts to submit photos
  • 'Done' button does nothing
  • 401 unknown error when sending reports
  • App goes bonkers when attaching photo
  • Screen flickers rapidly when attaching photo
  • Cannot get out of camera within app
  • Whirring wheel for update in progress for hours

Requested features

8 requests
  • Improve UI/UX design
  • Add dark mode
  • Better translation
  • Notifications for satellite flyovers
  • Integrate with WorldView or Google Earth
Show 3 more
  • More explanation/examples for cloud types
  • Export data in spreadsheet/GPS format
  • Allow users to contribute design improvements

In-app purchases

None

Earth

No in-app purchases

None

GLOBE Observer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Earth free?
Earth is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is GLOBE Observer free?
GLOBE Observer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Earth or GLOBE Observer?
Earth is rated higher. Earth averages 4.6 out of 5 from 42 ratings, while GLOBE Observer averages 3.1 from 86 ratings.
Do Earth or GLOBE Observer have ads?
Neither Earth nor GLOBE Observer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Earth or GLOBE Observer?
Earth ships an update every 4 months, and GLOBE Observer every 2 months. Most recently, Earth was updated on October 1, 2026 and GLOBE Observer on October 2, 2026.

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