Julian Clock vs Desktop Astro Clock
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Julian Clock
This utility app displays the current Julian Date, time with seconds, military date format, day of the week, and Zulu time (GMT). It's designed for quick access to essential timekeeping information.
- Julian Date display
- Real-time clock with seconds
- Military date format
- Day of the week
- ZULU time (GMT)
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It's as simple as it gets, a Julian date and clock app built for people who need the numbers fast. Julian Clock shows everything you need at a glance: • Julian date (YJJJ or YYDDD, your choice in Settings) • Local time with running seconds • Date in military format (e.g. 19JUN26) • Day of the week • Zulu time (GMT) New in version 2 • Home Screen widgets — small and medium layouts with Julian date, Zulu, and military date • Lock Screen widgets — circular, rectangular, and inline at-a-glance views • Apple Watch app — Julian date and Zulu on your wrist, plus complications • iPad support — universal layout for desk and EFB use • Historical lookup — pick any date on the calendar to get its Julian day • Eight themes — Navy, Air Force, Army, Marines, Coast Guard, Space Force, Dark, and Light Widgets and the Watch app stay in sync with your format and theme choices. This app is for military and DOD personnel who constantly need a quick look at the Julian date and/or Zulu time, on the phone, on the lock screen, on the watch, or on an iPad beside the job.
Desktop Astro Clock
This utility app displays time in various formats, including Julian, Sidereal, and GMT. It offers always-on display options, moon and meteor shower information, and customizable clock configurations. Widgets and a watchOS app are also supported for enhanced functionality.
- Multiple time formats (Julian, Sidereal, GMT)
- Always-on display with battery threshold
- Moon phase and meteor shower information
- Customizable display configurations
- Widget support
- WatchOS app with specialized displays
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Desktop Astro Clock (formally known as: yabc - Yet Another Bedside Clock). This is a clock app that is designed to be run at the desktop, bedside or near a star map. It will display the time without turning off until the battery percentage drops below a user specified value. There are ten predefined, and one user defined display configurations. A single tap of the moon and star icon will bring up a red tinted clock showing the local sidereal time. In settings, you can add a moon display, meteor showers display, change colors, and configure the user defined clock display. Widgets are now supported and can be configured via Widget editing. A watchOS app is now included that displays a red tinted Modified Julian date, GMT Sidereal time, Moon, Moon name, and moon age in days. No ads, ever. Lock screen widgets include rectangular (two clock values look good here) and circular (for the current moon) Features: - Time display in various fixed formats - Time display in a user defined format + color - Always on display until a user specified battery level is reached (iOS) - Moon display with moon transit details and full moon names *(4)* - Meteor Shower information (when visible) with star chart locator - Blue moons are known by the tag [blue moon] added to the full moon name and a blue tint to the full moon image - Super moons are known by the tag [super] added to the full moon name Clock Times: - GMT - Greenwich Mean Time - GMST - Greenwich Mean Sidereal Time - Julian Date - Seconds since noon 1st January 4713 B.C. - LMST - Local Mean Sidereal Time *(3)* - Modified Julian Date - Julian Date - 2400000.5 Predefined displays: - Desk Clock - Day, Time, Date - ISO 8901 - yyyy-mm-ssThh:mm:ss+tz - ISO 8901 GMT - yyyy-mm-ssThh:mm:ssZ - Greenwich Mean Sidereal Time - 'HH'h 'mm's 'ss' - Julian - day.time in seconds since noon 1st January 4713 B.C. - Local Mean Sidereal Time - 'HH'h 'mm'h *(3)* - System Default - based on your iOS settings - Time HH:MM:SS, Month, Day - Time HH:MM - Time HH:MM:SS, Day, Month, Year - User Defined - you pick the format! Widgets (One or more): - Meteor Showers *(1)* - Moon - Moon with details - Moon Names *(4)* - Julian Date *(2)* - Sidereal Date *(2)* - User Defined Clock *(2)* WatchOS App: - Black background, Red tint, brightness adjustable with crown, shows Mofidied Julian Date, GMT Sideral Time, Moon face, Moon name, and Moon age *(3)* *(4)* - Corner complication shows Moon, Modified Julian and Local Sidereal time Lock screen Widgets: - Rectangular for clock values (i.e.: Julian date and Sidereal time) - Circular for the current moon *(1) If no Meteor shower is in progress, just an image is shown* *(2) Widgets do not support real time non-system clocks well. Updates will typically be between 15-60 minutes* *(3) If you select Local Sidereal Mean Time display, you'll also need to enable the setting to allow access to your location information (only needs your longitude for the calculations). Default will be Greenwich England* *(4) If you select Moon names, you'll also need to enable the settings to allow access to your location information (only need to check latitude > 0 for Northeren/Southeren hemishpere). Default will be at the equator*
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Desktop Astro Clock at Free against Julian Clock's $0.99. Desktop Astro Clock also leads on update cadence (every 9 months vs every 69 months). Julian Clock's advantage is rating (4.9 vs 3.7) and chart position (#159 vs unranked). On ads, in-app purchases, 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
Desktop Astro Clock is free to download; Julian Clock costs $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Julian Clock holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Julian Clock has 15 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Julian Clock ships an update every 69 months, Desktop Astro Clock every 9 months. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and June 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Julian Clock | Desktop Astro Clock |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.9 (15 ratings) — better | 3.7 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 15 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 69 months | Every 9 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #159 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 416 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Adam Allard | BEHR Consulting International |
Customer experience
Julian Clock
Desktop Astro Clock
In-app purchases
Julian Clock
No in-app purchases
Desktop Astro Clock
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Julian Clock free?
Is Desktop Astro Clock free?
Which has better reviews, Julian Clock or Desktop Astro Clock?
Do Julian Clock or Desktop Astro Clock have ads?
Which is updated more often, Julian Clock or Desktop Astro Clock?
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