# Smart Telescope Planner vs MessierMate

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: MessierMate at none against Smart Telescope Planner's 2. Smart Telescope Planner's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs monthly). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Smart Telescope Planner sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. MessierMate asks for nothing beyond the download.

Smart Telescope Planner ships an update every 2 weeks, MessierMate monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Smart Telescope Planner | MessierMate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/messiermate-night-sky-tracker/id6782169332/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | — | **3** |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Monthly |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Size | 72 MB | 70 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **16.4** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Richard Derry](https://appshunter.io/developer/1895668428) | [CosmicFlow Labs LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1882544353) |

## What reviewers say

### Smart Telescope Planner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smart-telescope-planner/id6768153445)

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 20-day Trial | Free | one-time |
| Full Access | $9.99 | one-time |


### MessierMate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/messiermate-night-sky-tracker/id6782169332)

This free astronomy app helps deep-sky observers track celestial objects. It shows what's visible in your sky tonight, sorted by urgency, and allows you to plan future observing sessions and log your observations. It features a dark theme and red night mode for preserving night vision.

**Highlights:** Track 110 Messier objects, Real-time altitude and azimuth, Urgency-based object sorting, Monthly planning calendar, Session logging with notes and photos, Offline functionality, Red Night mode

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Smart Telescope Planner free?

Smart Telescope Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is MessierMate free?

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

### Do Smart Telescope Planner or MessierMate have ads?

Neither Smart Telescope Planner nor MessierMate shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Smart Telescope Planner or MessierMate?

Smart Telescope Planner ships an update every 2 weeks, and MessierMate monthly. Most recently, Smart Telescope Planner was updated on October 29, 2026 and MessierMate on October 28, 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.*