# Countdown Star vs Santa Tracker

The clearest difference is update cadence: Countdown Star at fortnightly against Santa Tracker's every 3 months. Countdown Star also leads on monetization model (ad-supported vs free with in-app purchases). Santa Tracker's advantage is review sentiment (71% vs 59%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Countdown Star sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Santa Tracker sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Countdown Star holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 217K and 106K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 59% of Countdown Star's written reviews are positive against 71% of Santa Tracker's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Countdown Star ships an update fortnightly, Santa Tracker every 3 months. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Countdown Star | Santa Tracker |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (217K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/countdown-star/id576177593/reviews)** | [4.6 (106K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/santa-tracker-track-santa/id1059325444/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **217K** | 106K |
| Positive reviews | 59.2% of reviews | **71.1% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | **Ad-supported** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 55 MB | 373 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Joseph Merrill](https://appshunter.io/developer/1099488988) | [Dualverse, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1145696722) |

## What reviewers say

### Countdown Star

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/countdown-star/id576177593)

Track time until or since important life events. Set custom timers for birthdays, holidays, anniversaries, and more. Personalize with your own photos and share progress with friends.

**Highlights:** Add custom events, Customize event visuals, Apple Watch display, Today Widget integration, Set exact event times, Adjust time units, Share event progress

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $1.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 💡 Customizable backgrounds
- 👍 Helpful for tracking events
- 👍 Useful for long-distance relationships

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Widget not working
- 🐛 Wallpaper feature not working
- 🐛 Countdown inaccuracies
- 🐛 Notifications not working
- 🐛 Crashes and bugs

**Reported bugs**

- Widget not displaying events
- Wallpaper not saving
- Countdown off by one day
- Notifications not working as expected
- Crashes and glitches after updates

**Requested features**

- Add weeks option
- Allow multiple countdowns on one screen
- Provide Apple Watch complications
- Add ability to export/backup data
- Improve wallpaper customization


### Santa Tracker

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/santa-tracker-track-santa/id1059325444)

Follow Santa's journey on Christmas Eve with real-time updates on his location and activities. Discover what Santa is doing, see your house on the map, and count down the minutes until he arrives.

**Highlights:** Track Santa's current location, See Santa's current activities, Locate your house on the map, Countdown to Santa's arrival, View Santa's journey progress

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

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Credit 50 | $3.99 | one-time |
| Advent Calendar Package | $3.99 | one-time |
| Personalization Pack | $3.99 | one-time |
| North Pole Peek Package | $3.99 | one-time |
| Santa's Mailbox Package | $3.99 | one-time |
| Santa in Action Package | $3.99 | one-time |
| All-in-One Package | $4.99 | one-time |
| All-in-One Package | $8.99 | one-time |
| Credit 500 | $9.99 | one-time |
| All-in-One Package | $12.99 | one-time |
| All-in-One Package | $14.99 | one-time |
| Credit 5000 | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎅 Tracks Santa's location
- ⏱️ Countdown to Christmas
- 🎥 Fun animations and videos
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🎄 Captures Christmas spirit

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤔 Accuracy concerns with Santa's location
- 🙅‍♀️ Privacy issues with requesting personal information
- 💤 Lack of updates/movement in Santa's location
- 🛑 Excessive ads and paywalls
- 🤯 Confusing or misleading information

**Reported bugs**

- Santa's location jumping between random places
- App crashes or freezes frequently
- Countdown timer not updating correctly
- Animations and videos not loading properly

**Requested features**

- Add more interactive games and activities
- Improve accuracy of Santa's location tracking
- Provide option to disable location sharing
- Enhance customization options for user profiles
- Introduce a pause/play feature for animations


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Countdown Star free?

Countdown Star is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Santa Tracker free?

Santa Tracker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Countdown Star or Santa Tracker?

Countdown Star is rated higher. Countdown Star averages 4.8 out of 5 from 217K ratings, while Santa Tracker averages 4.6 from 106K ratings.

### Do Countdown Star or Santa Tracker have ads?

Both Countdown Star and Santa Tracker show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Countdown Star or Santa Tracker?

Countdown Star ships an update fortnightly, and Santa Tracker every 3 months. Most recently, Countdown Star was updated on October 31, 2026 and Santa Tracker on October 31, 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.*