xSky vs Galaxy Map
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
xSky
Explore the cosmos with a virtual telescope. Point your device at the sky to identify celestial bodies. Zoom in for detailed views and use a search function to locate specific objects.
- Virtual telescope functionality
- Identify Sun, Moon, Planets, Stars, Galaxies
- Zoom up to a million times
- Screen lock to stop motion
- Object search arrow
- Soft music and sound effects
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xSky is a simple to use virtual telescope app. Just look at the sky through your device. Lock the screen and zoom in to explore in more detail. Features: • Sun, Moon, Planets, Galilean Moons, Stars, Constellations and Galaxies. • Pinch the screen to zoom up to a million times. • Use lock button to stop motions. • Search arrow will help to locate any object in the sky. • Soft music and sound effects.
Galaxy Map
Explore the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies in an interactive 3D map. Discover nebulae, supernovae, and planets, with stunning visuals based on NASA data. Ideal for education and space enthusiasts.
- Interactive 3D galaxy map
- Explore nebulae and supernovae
- Fly through planetary atmospheres
- Land on planets
- Based on NASA data
- Available in 100+ languages
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The galaxy map is an interactive map of the Milky Way galaxy, Andromeda and their satellite galaxies. Explore the Orion Arm's nebulae and supernovae from the comfort of your spaceship. Fly through the atmosphere of Mars and many other planets and you can even land on them. Discover the galaxy in a stunning three dimensional map based on NASA's artistic impression of the Milky Way galactic structure. Photos are taken by NASA spacecraft and ground based telescopes like Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-Ray, Herschel Space Observatory and the Spitzer Space Telescope. This interactive 3D map is excellent for teachers to use for instruction, and it is a great astronomy resource for students to explore the Milky Way galaxy and space as they learn more about the universe we live in. Available in over 100 languages! You can also From the outskirts of the galaxy, in the Norma-Outer spiral arm to the galactic center's supermassive black hole Sagittarius A*, discover a galaxy full of amazing facts. Notable structures included: the Pillars of Creation, Helix Nebula, the Engraved Hourglass Nebula, the Pleiades, the Orion Arm (where the solar system and the Earth are located) with its Orion belt. Check out neighboring dwarf galaxies such as Sagittarius and the Canis Major Overdensity, stellar streams as well as internal galactic components such as a variety of nebulae, star clusters or supernovae. Explore space and get a little closer to our wonderful universe with this awesome astronomy app! The Galaxy Map requires internet access to retrieve information from the wiki.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: xSky at none against Galaxy Map's 13. xSky also leads on ads (none vs shown). Galaxy Map's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 4.2) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). On price, review sentiment, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. Galaxy Map sells 13 one-off in-app purchases. xSky asks for nothing beyond the download.
Galaxy Map holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Galaxy Map has 609 ratings behind it against 75, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 79% and 80% positive.
xSky ships an update every 3 months, Galaxy Map monthly. Both last shipped on October 16, 2026.
| Parameter | xSky | Galaxy Map |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (75 ratings) | 4.6 (609 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 79.4% of reviews | 79.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 75 | 609 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 60 MB | 632 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Oleg Sur | Andrei Nistorescu |
Customer experience
xSky
Galaxy Map
User reviews
xSky
From 75 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🔭 Realistic space simulation
- ✨ Beautiful visuals and music
- 👍 Easy to use interface
- 💡 Great for learning astronomy
- 💯 Highly accurate object identification
Room to improve
- 🐛 App crashing issues
- 🧭 Location services not working
- 🔄 Inconsistent with reality (out of sync)
- 📱 Not optimized for all devices (e.g., iPhone 12)
- 🎛️ Hard to control
Galaxy Map
From 609 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🌌 Impressive 3D galaxy and nebula visualizations
- 🚀 Spaceship exploration feature with landing capability
- 📚 Educational content about space and astronomy
- 🎮 Fun and engaging gameplay mechanics
- ✨ No ads in free version
Room to improve
- 💰 Excessive paywall for most content
- 🐛 App crashes and fails to load
- 🎮 Poor control mechanics for flying and walking
- 🔍 Lack of zoom functionality or unclear controls
- 🌑 Black holes look too similar to each other
Bugs and requests
xSky
Reported bugs
9 issues- App keeps crashing
- Location services not working/picking a country
- App closes immediately upon opening
- App is glitchy and moves by itself
- Search button not working in horizontal position
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- App not working on iPhone 12
- App out of sync with reality
- Sun located incorrectly at noon
- Mercury in retrograde causing app to not open
Requested features
9 requests- Camera feature for high-quality photos
- Ability to turn down exposure for photos
- Facts read aloud about celestial objects
- Traditional constellation names (e.g., Virgo, Taurus)
- Show International Space Station or other satellites
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- Option to turn off constellation lines
- Improve search button size and usability
- Fix search button in horizontal mode
- More mythological graphics and information about stars
Galaxy Map
Reported bugs
9 issues- App crashes on startup
- Explore button shows nothing
- Pinch-to-zoom doesn't work
- App won't load on iPad
- Text displays as boxes in language settings
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- Mars moon orbital speed incorrect
- App kicks users out during exploration
- Loading issues and incomplete functionality
- Inconsistent performance across platforms
Requested features
18 requests- Search button to find galaxies and objects
- More diverse and realistic black hole designs
- AR feature to identify stars/planets in real sky
- More free content and objects
- Exoplanet additions (TRAPPIST-1e, J1407B)
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- Ability to click on stars within galaxies for details
- Generated planets around stars
- Sandbox/creation mode for user-generated content
- Animation for Milky Way and Andromeda
- More galaxy variety in the app
- Coordinates filter for objects
- Space-Engine style gameplay
- Flying through galaxies feature
- More female character customization options
- VIP version option
- Brown dwarfs addition
- Photosphere viewing mode
- More detailed star information
In-app purchases
xSky
No in-app purchases
Galaxy Map
- Buy ship - Alien Destroyer$0.99
- Buy ship - Alien fighter$0.99
- Remove ads$1.99
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- Buy ship - Alien Destroyer$1.99
- Buy ship - Alien fighter$1.99
- 3D Visualization Pack$1.99
- Buy ship - Dragon Frigate$1.99
- Essentials bundle - SALE$2.99
- Remove ads$3.99
- 3D Visualization Pack$3.99
- Ultimate bundle - SALE$4.99
- Essentials bundle$4.99
- Ultimate bundle$8.99








