Comparison

Stelo vs Echo + Ember

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

Head to head
About

Stelo

This ambient stargazing companion offers a private night sky that grows daily. Connect new stars to draw and name your own constellations, creating a personal gallery. Special celestial events and accidental discoveries unlock astronomical insights.

Highlights
  • Daily new stars added to personal sky
  • Draw and name custom constellations
  • Gallery of created constellations
  • Special stars for celestial events
  • Accidental discovery of IAU constellations
  • Home screen widgets
Features
Read full description

A private night sky that fills itself, one star a day. Stelo is a slow, ambient stargazing companion. Every night, one to three new stars quietly fall into your personal night sky. Connect them with your finger to draw your own constellations, give them names, and watch a gallery slowly fill over weeks and months. There is no score. No timer. Nothing to lose. Just a quiet space that asks nothing of you, and gives back a sky that is yours alone. – – – HOW IT WORKS • Open the app. New stars from last night pulse gently to greet you. • Touch a star to begin a constellation. Drag your finger between stars to draw lines. Branches are allowed; loops are allowed; whatever feels right is right. • Tap save. Name the constellation, or leave it untitled. It joins your gallery. • Tomorrow, more stars will be waiting. SPECIAL NIGHTS The sky knows what day it is. On 24절기 (Korean solar terms), full moons, meteor-shower nights, and your birthday, special stars appear with a label and a warmer color. Catch them in a constellation for keepsake meaning. THE ALMANAC Without telling you what to draw, Stelo quietly compares your shapes to all 88 IAU constellations. If you accidentally rediscover Lyra, Orion, or Cassiopeia, a small banner appears: "Looks like Cygnus." Your discoveries gradually unlock the Almanac with mythology and historical notes — no quiz, no pressure. WIDGETS Place a small or medium widget on your home screen to keep your latest constellation glowing through the day. WHAT WE DO NOT DO • No ads. Ever. • No in-app purchases in v1. • No accounts. No sign-up. • No analytics, no tracking, no SDKs that phone home. • No leaderboards. No friends. No sharing pressure. No social. • No push notifications nagging you to come back. All your stars and constellations live on your device only. We literally cannot see them. WHO IT IS FOR • People who like Universe, Alto's Odyssey, Mountain, or any app that asks nothing • People who keep a one-line journal or use bedtime apps • People who like astronomy but find sky-map apps overwhelming • People who play idle games for the slow accumulation, not the optimization LANGUAGES English, 한국어, 日本語. Time zones and 24절기 calendar honored locally. – – – Stelo. The Esperanto word for "star." A night sky you can hold.

About

Echo + Ember

Features
Read full description

Echo + Ember helps you turn sermon notes, Bible markings, screenshots, voice reflections, and daily check-ins into a private faith memory bank. For years, meaningful notes can end up scattered across notebooks, camera rolls, and forgotten screenshots. Echo + Ember gives you one place to capture them, organize them, and return to what God has already spoken in your life. Echo + Ember is free to download. Creating and using your private Memory Bank requires an active Individual monthly or annual subscription purchased in the app. With an active Individual subscription, you can: - Upload sermon notes, Bible pages, screenshots, and handwritten reflections - Capture typed notes, voice reflections, photos, and Scripture references - Build a searchable Memory Bank by theme, verse, keyword, or date - Receive daily Echoes drawn from your own saved notes - Review organized key takeaways from sermons and reflections - Keep your faith notes private and easy to return to Whether you have years of church notes or you are just beginning to build the habit, Echo + Ember helps you remember the messages, verses, and reflections that shaped you. Subscription required: Memory Bank storage, note/photo upload processing, searchable organization, key takeaways, and Daily Echoes require an active Individual subscription. Subscription options are shown before purchase and include monthly and annual plans. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://echo-ember-landing.vercel.app/privacy

Screenshots

Stelo4 screens
Echo + Ember4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Stelo at none against Echo + Ember's 2. Echo + Ember's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, ads 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

Both are free to download. Echo + Ember sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Stelo asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Stelo ships an update weekly, Echo + Ember every 10 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Stelo versus Echo + Ember: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSteloEcho + Ember
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 10 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB50 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJIYULMOMRyan Quance

In-app purchases

None

Stelo

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Echo + Ember

Subscriptions2
  • Individual Monthly14 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Individual Annual14 Days trial$99.991 Year

Questions

Is Stelo free?
Stelo is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Echo + Ember free?
Echo + Ember is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Stelo or Echo + Ember have ads?
Neither Stelo nor Echo + Ember shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Stelo or Echo + Ember?
Stelo ships an update weekly, and Echo + Ember every 10 days. Most recently, Stelo was updated on October 31, 2026 and Echo + Ember on October 31, 2026.

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