Comparison

Astro Locator vs QUARCS

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

Head to head
About

Astro Locator

This app assists astronomers in quickly and easily achieving polar alignment for their telescopes. It helps locate key stars like Polaris or Sigma Octantis, displaying essential astronomical data for setup and viewing. Ideal for mobile astronomers who frequently set up and pack down their equipment.

Highlights
  • Quick polar alignment
  • Locate Polaris/Sigma Octantis
  • Display elevation, latitude, longitude
  • Show moon phase
  • Sunrise/sunset times
  • Astro twilight times
  • Today Extension widget
Read full description

Spend less time setting up and more time observing. Astro Locator helps you quickly and accurately polar align your equatorial mount by showing the precise position of Polaris or Sigma Octantis. Designed for both visual astronomy and astrophotography, it makes polar alignment fast, simple and reliable wherever you observe. Whether you’re setting up in your garden or under dark skies, Astro Locator provides all the information you need on a single, easy-to-read screen. Features include: • Accurate Polaris and Sigma Octantis positioning • Compass direction and correct elevation for your location • Latitude, longitude and altitude • UTC and local time • Sunrise and sunset times • Astronomical twilight start and end times • Current moon phase • Clean, uncluttered interface designed for fast setup Astro Locator is ideal for astronomers who assemble and pack away their equipment for each observing session, helping you spend less time setting up and more time enjoying the night sky. Trusted by amateur astronomers since 2014.

About

QUARCS

This open-source software kit enables remote astrophotography capture via Wi-Fi and computer. It offers comprehensive control over telescope mounts, cameras, autoguiding, and electric focusers, integrating with Stellarium for sky mapping.

Highlights
  • Remote capture via Wi-Fi
  • Computer remote capture via LAN
  • Mount control
  • Camera control
  • Autoguiding
  • Electric focuser control
  • Stellarium skymap integration
Features
Read full description

Q.U.A.R.C.S (QHYCCD Universal Astrophotographic Remote Capture System) is an open-source software kit that supports the full function of mobile remote capture via WIFI and computer remote capture via LAN. It includes the mount control, camera control, autoguiding, electric focuser control, and Stellarium skymap function.

Screenshots

Astro Locator2 screens
QUARCS3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Astro Locator at 77% against QUARCS's 0%. Astro Locator also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.0) and ratings volume (68 vs 1). QUARCS's advantage is price (Free vs $3.99) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.0). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

QUARCS is free to download; Astro Locator costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Astro Locator holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Astro Locator has 68 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of Astro Locator's written reviews are positive against 0% of QUARCS's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Astro Locator ships an update every 3 months, QUARCS every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Astro Locator versus QUARCS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAstro LocatorQUARCS
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (68 ratings) — better3.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews77.3% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings68 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 months — betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.014.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size6 MB30 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperProgress Concepts LimitedLight Speed Vision(Beijing) Co., Ltd

Customer experience

Astro Locator

All ratings68 ratings
Positive97.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive77.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative22.7%

QUARCS

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Astro Locator

No in-app purchases

None

QUARCS

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Astro Locator free?
Astro Locator costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is QUARCS free?
QUARCS is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Astro Locator or QUARCS?
Astro Locator is rated higher. Astro Locator averages 4.8 out of 5 from 68 ratings, while QUARCS averages 3.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Astro Locator or QUARCS have ads?
Neither Astro Locator nor QUARCS shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Astro Locator or QUARCS?
Astro Locator ships an update every 3 months, and QUARCS every 6 months. Most recently, Astro Locator was updated on November 1, 2026 and QUARCS on October 6, 2026.

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