# Celestron SkyPortal vs Bright Comets

The clearest difference is rating: Bright Comets at 4.3 against Celestron SkyPortal's 3.6. Bright Comets also leads on review sentiment (74% vs 32%) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 3 months). Celestron SkyPortal's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On price, ratings volume, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Bright Comets sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Celestron SkyPortal asks for nothing beyond the download.

Bright Comets holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 354 and 153 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 32% of Celestron SkyPortal's written reviews are positive against 74% of Bright Comets's.

Celestron SkyPortal ships an update every 3 months, Bright Comets every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Celestron SkyPortal | Bright Comets |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.6 (354 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/celestron-skyportal/id877780544/reviews) | **[4.3 (153 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bright-comets/id1523594527/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **354** | 153 |
| Positive reviews | 31.9% of reviews | **74.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 709 MB | 23 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | **17.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Celestron, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/445142854) | [Hanno Rein](https://appshunter.io/developer/325840976) |

## What reviewers say

### Celestron SkyPortal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/celestron-skyportal/id877780544)

Explore the cosmos with a comprehensive astronomy suite. Discover stars, planets, and celestial events, and enhance your stargazing with detailed information and audio narration. Connect to compatible telescopes for automatic object location.

**Highlights:** Explore 120,000 stars and celestial objects, Simulate night sky past/future, Real-time sky synchronization, Control compatible WiFi telescopes, Animate celestial events, Audio narration and object descriptions, Night Vision mode

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app
- 🚀 Transforms stargazing
- 💡 Wonderful features
- 👍 Convenient control
- 👍 Incredible for free

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Alignment issues
- 🐛 Connectivity problems
- 🐛 Laggy controls
- 🐛 Inaccurate compass
- 🐛 Crashes and freezes

**Reported bugs**

- Fails to align telescope
- Telescope points in wrong direction
- Disconnects frequently
- Doesn't show deep sky objects
- Crashes on startup

**Requested features**

- Add red night mode
- Improve focus motor control
- Integrate weather data
- Provide RA/DEC coordinates
- Add more celestial objects


### Bright Comets

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bright-comets/id1523594527)

Discover visible comets in the night sky with this astronomy tool. Simply point your device upwards, and a red marker will guide you to the comet's location using real-time data.

**Highlights:** Locate visible comets, Real-time sky pointing, Red target marker guidance, Uses device location, NASA JPL ephemerides data

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Coffee | $1.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Celestron SkyPortal free?

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

### Is Bright Comets free?

Bright Comets is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Celestron SkyPortal or Bright Comets?

Bright Comets is rated higher. Celestron SkyPortal averages 3.6 out of 5 from 354 ratings, while Bright Comets averages 4.3 from 153 ratings.

### Do Celestron SkyPortal or Bright Comets have ads?

Neither Celestron SkyPortal nor Bright Comets shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Celestron SkyPortal or Bright Comets?

Celestron SkyPortal ships an update every 3 months, and Bright Comets every 5 days. Most recently, Celestron SkyPortal was updated on November 1, 2026 and Bright Comets on November 3, 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.*