Night View vs Starry Map
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Night View
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Have you ever looked up in the sky and wondered what was staring back at you? Have you ever wanted to identify the constellations and find our planets? Then Night View is for you. Night View's fast interface makes it easy for you to navigate the night sky. Just point your iPhone or iPad anywhere in the sky and Night View will display the constellations and planets you can see. If you'd like to navigate with your fingers instead, just drag the sky, and zoom in and out naturally. *** Note that Night View needs your current location to display the sky correctly *** Night View uses a true spherical projection that astronomers are familiar with which allows you to see a full 180° view of the sky. Turn on and off constellation names, planet names, and star names. If you don't want to view the current sky, you can pick any vantage point on earth and any point in time. Now you can see what the sky looked like the day and place you were born or when you met your first love. Night View also shows you what our planets look like up close and gives you some useful information. *** Note that this app has a banner ad which you can remove with an in-app purchase ***
Starry Map
Identify stars, constellations, and satellites by pointing your phone at the night sky. Augmented reality overlays display celestial names in real-time. Receive notifications for upcoming satellite passes and meteor showers.
- AR celestial identification
- Constellation and star catalog
- Satellite tracking and alerts
- Meteor shower notifications
- Offline functionality
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Point your smartphone at the night sky to instantly identify constellations, stars, and satellites. AR overlays show celestial names on the live camera view, and you can swipe to explore any direction. Get alerts for visible ISS passes and meteor showers. Includes: ・88 constellations (with Hevelius illustrations) ・Solar system planets, dwarf planets, asteroids ・Stars up to magnitude 12 ・About 100 Messier objects (nebulae and clusters) ・Over 10,000 satellites ・More than 300 comets ・Meteor showers and asterisms (Summer/Winter Triangle, Big Dipper, etc.) ・Satellite pass alerts (ISS, Hubble) ・Meteor shower peak notifications Works offline (satellite data won't update). Terms of Service https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Night View at none against Starry Map's shown. Night View also leads on iOS requirement (8.0 vs 16.0). Starry Map's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 33 months). On price, 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
Both are free to download. Night View sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Starry Map sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Night View ships an update every 33 months, Starry Map every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 12, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Night View | Starry Map |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 4.5 (246 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 62.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 246 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 33 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | — | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 35 MB | 102 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Spherical Horizon, LLC | にゃんこソフトウェア |
Bugs and requests
Night View
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Starry Map
Reported bugs
13 issues- App crashes on launch after updates
- Date/time setting resets to 1970
- Black screen upon opening the app
- Ads not disappearing even after purchase
- App closes when selecting specific objects (e.g., Comet Neowise)
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- Location accuracy issues
- App closes after update
- App not working on older iOS versions
- Data connection not allowed error
- AR view constantly spinning
- ISS and Starlink not displaying after update
- App crashes when switching night mode
- App crashes when selecting NEOWISE comet
Requested features
8 requests- Reflect weather and light pollution in star visibility
- Include stories/episodes related to constellations
- Separate 1st to 3rd magnitude stars in display options
- Simplify solar system display for beginners
- Option to hide background stars or make them less prominent
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- Add comet Atlas to the catalog
- More user-friendly tutorials on usage
- Search functionality for star names
In-app purchases
Night View
- Remove Ads$0.99
Starry Map
- Unlock Features2 variants$0.991 Month
- Unlock Features7 Days trial2 variants$0.991 Month
- Unlock Features$3.991 Year
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- Unlock Features7 Days trial$3.991 Year
- Unlock Features (Lifetime)$9.99
Questions
Is Night View free?
Is Starry Map free?
Do Night View or Starry Map have ads?
Which is updated more often, Night View or Starry Map?
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