# PhotoPills vs Light Planner

The clearest difference is price: Light Planner at Free against PhotoPills's $10.99. PhotoPills's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 15 months) and chart position (#7 vs unranked). On ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Light Planner is free to download; PhotoPills costs $10.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

PhotoPills ships an update every 2 months, Light Planner every 15 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | PhotoPills | Light Planner |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $10.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.7 (1.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/photopills/id596026805/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1.5K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 84.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 15 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Best chart rank | **#7** | — |
| Size | 41 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [PhotoPills S.L.](https://appshunter.io/developer/596026808) | [Carlos Morgado Alarcon](https://appshunter.io/developer/1739332671) |

## What reviewers say

### PhotoPills

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/photopills/id596026805)

**Currently charting:** #7 Top Paid · Photo & Video, #81 Top Paid (US App Store)

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:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Comprehensive planning tools
- 🚀 Powerful features for astrophotography
- 💡 Excellent tutorials and support
- 🌟 Indispensable for photographers
- ⭐ Incredible value for money

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤔 Steep learning curve
- 🤯 Overwhelming complexity
- 🤖 Confusing user interface
- 🔋 Battery drain issues
- 🗺️ Inaccurate location tracking

**Reported bugs**

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

**Requested features**

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


### Light Planner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/light-planner/id6480509659)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is PhotoPills free?

PhotoPills costs $10.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Light Planner free?

Light Planner is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do PhotoPills or Light Planner have ads?

Neither PhotoPills nor Light Planner shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, PhotoPills or Light Planner?

PhotoPills ships an update every 2 months, and Light Planner every 15 months. Most recently, PhotoPills was updated on October 29, 2026 and Light Planner on October 24, 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.*