Comparison

PhotoPills vs LocationWise

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

Head to head
About

PhotoPills

Plan and capture stunning photos of the sun, moon, and Milky Way. This app helps you visualize celestial events and landscape compositions with advanced planning tools and augmented reality.

Highlights
  • 2D Map-Centric Planner (Sun, Moon, Milky Way)
  • 3D Augmented Reality Views
  • Celestial Event Finder
  • Photo Plans Manager
  • Location Scouting Tool
  • Calculators (Long Exposure, Timelapse, etc.)
Features
Read full description

Unlock your creative potential! Discover how to easily turn any Sun, Moon and Milky Way scene you imagine into a real picture… and start shooting truly legendary photos every time you pick up the camera! Whether your passion is to capture beautiful landscapes, immortalize the infinite night sky, surprise the bride and the groom in their happiest day... or to travel the world, PhotoPills will make you love exploring new artistic possibilities to tell visual stories in a way it wasn’t possible before. * All in one app PhotoPills is your iPhone and iPad personal assistant in all photographic matters. It provides tasty remedies to answer most of the questions when planning and shooting your creative ideas: - The First 2D Map-Centric Planner: Sun, Moon, Milky Way - Sun, Moon Alignments Fast Finder - 3D Augmented Reality: Sun, Moon, Milky Way, Celestial Equator, Polaris, DoF, FoV - Photo Plans Manager - Location Scouting Tool - Key information: Sunrise/set, Twilights, Golden Hour, Blue Hour, Moonrise/set, Supermoon dates, Moon Calendar - Calculators: Long Exposure, Timelapse, Spot Stars, Star Trails, Hyperfocal Table, DoF, FoV - Widgets: Sun, Moon, Milky Way - PhotoPills Awards… and much more! * Endorsed by Masters “PhotoPills is an invaluable tool which I use every time I plan a shoot.” – Mark Gee, Astronomy Photographer of the Year. “A tool every photographer should have.” – Kevin Raber, Luminous-landscape.com. “It pays off! Using such a tool ensures that we are repeatedly capable of quickly planning powerful shots; leaving maximum opportunity for more creative ruminations.” – José B. Ruiz, Innovation Award, Wildlife Photographer of the Year. * How it works Have you ever walked around a place and thought: "What a pity the Moon isn't EXACTLY right there... I would have captured a great photo!"? What about the Sun? And the Milky Way? Well, now you can let your imagination fly and calculate when this specific magic moment happens in just a few seconds: - IMAGINE: the Milky Way arching over a powerful landscape, a giant full Moon appearing from behind a nearby hill or a sunset between two rocks on a magic beach... The only limit is your imagination! - PLAN: easily calculate the exact date and time the scene you’ve imagined happens. Work smarter, not harder! - SHOOT: just get out there, immerse yourself in the great outdoors, and enjoy living and capturing unique moments. * Become a Legend Because we know the huge amount of time, energy and love you put in your photos. We want to HONOR them, SHOW them to the World, and REWARD you with up to $6,600 in cash prizes. It's easy and FREE! Just submit your creative photos from PhotoPills and join the Legacy! * Never waste an unmissable scene again Create a To-Do list of planned photos and get to the location on time. * Get it right Adjust your frame for the best composition before you shoot. Use the 3D Augmented Reality Views to see whether Sun, Moon and Milky Way will be at the desired position when pressing the shutter. * Explore, discover great places and create your own database of locations If you come across a location you’d like to remember, save it as a Point of Interest. * Enjoy all daily information in just one swipe with the Widgets Just swipe down from the top of the screen to get all the Sun, Moon and Milky Way events for your current location and date, in addition to your upcoming photo plans. * Get more than an app Our goal is not only to help you plan your shots, but also to help you nail them. Whenever you need help, take a look at our How-To articles and videos, join our free online courses or just contact us! “This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill – the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take PhotoPills – you stay in Wonderland and we show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes. Remember: all we’re offering are Legendary Photos and Goosebumps in your skin, nothing more.”

About

LocationWise

Features
Read full description

Through LocationWise, get time, date, and GPS stamps on your photos, clicked directly through the app or present in the repository of your phone gallery. Hence, get tamper-proof evidence in no time! Use the ‘Watermark’ feature to add a logo or text as a watermark on photos and videos and protect them from getting misused. This is how LocationWise brings in more accuracy to field reporting. Get evidence in any of the four ways: 1. Tap the ‘Take Photo’ section to capture photos through the app itself. Once clicked, you will find the photo footer containing GPS coordinates, street address, and time/date stamps. 2. Choose ‘Shoot Video’ to record evidence in the form of videos having date, time, and GPS stamps. 3. Click on ‘Multiple Shots’ to take several shots of any place or object in one go, so that every minute detail is precisely captured. 4. You can also ‘Browse’ through the photo gallery in your device and get date, time, and GPS coordinates attached to the image, for you to keep it as a proof. Still not sure how to use the app? Simply click on Settings >> Guided tour, be informed, and get going. Learn More - https://hashbrown.com/services/location-intelligence

Screenshots

PhotoPills4 screens
LocationWise3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: LocationWise at $0.99 against PhotoPills's $10.99. LocationWise also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). PhotoPills's advantage is chart position (#11 vs unranked). 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

PhotoPills costs $10.99 and LocationWise $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PhotoPills ships an update every 2 months, LocationWise every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
PhotoPills versus LocationWise: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhotoPillsLocationWise
Price$10.99$0.99 — better
Rating4.7 (1.5K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews84.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.5K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank#11 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size41 MB27 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperPhotoPills S.L.Hashbrown Systems Pvt. Ltd.

Bugs and requests

PhotoPills

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when using depth of field calculator
  • Location settings not persisting between sessions
  • Milky Way position not aligning correctly

Requested features

5 requests
  • User guide in multiple languages
  • Improved integration with other apps
  • More customization options
  • Weather forecast integration
  • Apple Watch companion app

LocationWise

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

PhotoPills

No in-app purchases

None

LocationWise

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PhotoPills free?
PhotoPills costs $10.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is LocationWise free?
LocationWise costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do PhotoPills or LocationWise have ads?
Neither PhotoPills nor LocationWise shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PhotoPills or LocationWise?
PhotoPills ships an update every 2 months, and LocationWise every 3 months. Most recently, PhotoPills was updated on November 1, 2026 and LocationWise on October 26, 2026.

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