Comparison

Sunward vs Sun & Moon Position

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

Head to head
About

Sunward

Features
Read full description

Where will the sun be — and when will the light be perfect? Sunward answers that question anywhere on Earth, on any date — past or future. Point your camera at the sky and watch the sun's full-day arc appear in augmented reality. Drop a pin on a 3D map and see exactly how shadows will fall across a street, a façade, or a balcony. Know the precise minute golden hour begins — today, next month, or on the winter solstice. Built for photographers, filmmakers, real-estate scouts, architects, and outdoor creators who plan around natural light. Every solar calculation runs on device, powered by our own astronomy engine. TRY EVERYTHING FREE FOR 7 DAYS Full features require a paid subscription or one-time Lifetime purchase. Start with a 7-day free trial — full access to every feature below. SEE THE SUN BEFORE IT GETS THERE - AR Sun Path — a live camera overlay of the sun's complete arc, with time-travel scrubbing through any date, solstices, and equinoxes. Sun-align calibration gives degree-perfect framing. - Sun Dial — one beautiful screen with sunrise, sunset, solar noon, golden hour, blue hour, twilight bands, and the sun's current position. - Shadow Studio — a 3D map with physically accurate building shadows that stretch and rotate through the day. Drop a probe pin anywhere to see when that exact spot is in sun or shade. KNOW A PROPERTY'S LIGHT BEFORE YOU COMMIT - Property Sun Report — a Sun Score plus a year-round comparison for any address, exportable as a PDF or photo. Perfect for house hunting, real-estate listings, and architecture briefs. - Construction Footprint — draw a building footprint and preview its projected shadow at any time of year. Made for architects, landscape designers, and solar panel planning. PLAN THE SHOOT, NOT JUST THE DAY - Planner — save shoots by date and location with automatic weather and light forecasts, then share shoot cards with your crew. - Light Match — import a reference photo and Sunward reads its data to find when the same light — angle, color temperature, sun altitude — will happen again at any location. - Timetable & Forecast — 14-day light forecasts with cloud, rain, and temperature overlays, exportable as PDF. NEVER MISS THE LIGHT - Golden hour, blue hour, sunrise, sunset, and solar noon alerts with Live Activities and Dynamic Island countdowns. - Apple Watch app with today's light phases, a live countdown, and complications for every watch face. - Home and Lock Screen widgets: golden hour countdown, sunrise/sunset, mini dial, and sun position. MADE THE RIGHT WAY - Works fully offline once your locations are pinned. - Privacy-first: no accounts, no ads, no analytics, no tracking. Your location never leaves your device. - Liquid Glass design with full Light and Dark Mode, on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. - Available in 15 languages. Whether you're timing a portrait session, matching continuity light between shoot days, comparing apartments, positioning solar panels, or picking the sunny café terrace — Sunward shows you where the sun will be, when the light will be best, and what the shadows will do. SUNWARD PRO Every plan unlocks the complete feature set — choose how you'd like to pay: - Sunward Monthly — auto-renewing subscription - Sunward Yearly — auto-renewing subscription with a 7-day free trial for new subscribers - Sunward Lifetime — one-time purchase, yours forever Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel subscriptions in your Apple ID account settings. Any unused portion of a free trial period will be forfeited when purchasing a subscription. Privacy Policy: https://www.jyvapps.com/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Sun & Moon Position

Features
Read full description

No ads and no account. Sunrise, sunset and moon phase are free. See when and where the sun and moon will be, all in one app. Everything is calculated on your device, so you get the same results in the mountains or at sea with no signal. FREE • Sunrise, sunset and solar noon, golden hour, blue hour, and civil, nautical and astronomical twilight — each with a short “?” explanation • Moonrise, moonset, transit, moon age and illumination, plus the next full and new moon • A compass aligned to true north. When accuracy is poor it tells you to move in a figure-8 instead of hiding it, and you can nudge it by 1° at a time. North-up display is available • Map & Shadow: the direction and length of a pole’s shadow, and the sun and moon directions on the map • Enter a latitude and longitude, or press and hold on the map — works even where map data is outdated • Home Screen widget with today’s moonrise, moonset and moon age PRO • Live view (AR): the sun and moon positions and today’s paths over the camera view. Steady tracking without flicker, matched to your device’s tilt and camera field of view. Works in landscape and on iPad • Overlay the solstice and equinox paths, monthly paths, and up to 6 dates you choose • Jump to any date and time (the moon on a birthday, past or future), plus a monthly moon phase calendar • Find when it’s in this direction: search a year for when the sun or moon reaches a given azimuth (and altitude) • Address and place search, and saved places — each saved with its time zone and shown in local time • Alerts for full moon, new moon, golden hour, blue hour and moonrise — choose which ones and how early ACCURACY • Sunrise and sunset agree with the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan and NOAA’s published solar algorithm to within one minute • Moonrise and moonset follow the same definition as the Japanese almanac (the centre of the moon on the horizon) and agree within two minutes PRIVACY Your location is used only for calculations on your device and is never sent to the developer. Address search uses Apple’s map search. ■ Pricing and auto-renewal The app is free, and everything under FREE stays free. The PRO features are unlocked with any one of these: • Pro Monthly (3-day free trial) • Pro Yearly (3-day free trial) • Pro Lifetime: one payment, for the paid features available today Your local price is shown before you buy. Monthly and yearly include a 3-day free trial (once per person; not for lifetime). Family Sharing is supported. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. A subscription renews automatically unless auto-renewal is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and the renewal is charged within 24 hours before the period ends. You can turn off auto-renewal or cancel at any time in Settings > your Apple Account > Subscriptions. If you buy a paid plan during a free trial, the remaining free period is forfeited. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://sun-moon-position-mrk.web.app/privacy

Screenshots

Sunward4 screens
Sun & Moon Position4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Sun & Moon Position at weekly against Sunward's every 3 weeks. Sunward's advantage is iOS requirement (17 vs 26.0). On price, 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

Both are free to download. Sunward sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Sun & Moon Position sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sunward ships an update every 3 weeks, Sun & Moon Position weekly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
Sunward versus Sun & Moon Position: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSunwardSun & Moon Position
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size51 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFarah Aydoniryo muranaka

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Sunward

Subscriptions2
  • Sunward Monthly$5.991 Month
  • Sunward Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Sunward Lifetime$79.99
3 purchases

Sun & Moon Position

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly3 Days trial$0.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly3 Days trial$9.991 Year
One-time1
  • Pro Lifetime$24.99

Questions

Is Sunward free?
Sunward is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Sun & Moon Position free?
Sun & Moon Position is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Sunward or Sun & Moon Position have ads?
Neither Sunward nor Sun & Moon Position shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sunward or Sun & Moon Position?
Sunward ships an update every 3 weeks, and Sun & Moon Position weekly. Most recently, Sunward was updated on October 24, 2026 and Sun & Moon Position on October 24, 2026.

Other comparisons