AllApps

Stargazing apps you buy once.

Buy GoSkyWatch Planetarium. Hold it up, and it names what you are pointing at — no setup, no account, no menus to learn. Star Walk 2 Pro is prettier and cheaper still if you want the experience rather than the answer. SkySafari is the one to get if you own a telescope, though read its catch first. Solar Walk 2 is a different thing entirely: a model of the solar system, not a map of tonight's sky.

The filter. Every app here is a single purchase. None of them can start charging you monthly for what you already bought. See every app under this rule ›
Top pick

GoSkyWatch Planetarium

GoSoftWorks
View on the App Store ›
$3.99 once4.8★ (10,249)Updated Aug 9, 2020
Verdict
Point it at the sky and it tells you what you are looking at. That is the whole app, and no other one here does it with so little in the way.
Best for
Someone standing in a garden who wants to know what that bright thing is, tonight, without a tutorial.
The catch
Identifying is all it does. There is no observing planner, no telescope control and nothing like the depth of catalogue the bigger apps carry — outgrow it and you are buying twice.
One-time purchasePoint to identifyNo subscription

Star Walk 2 Pro: Sky Map Live

Vito Technology Inc.
View on the App Store ›
$2.99 once4.7★ (67,163)Updated Aug 10, 2026
Verdict
The prettiest of these by some distance, and the one most people already own. Costs less than a coffee and looks like a planetarium.
Best for
Anyone who wants stargazing to feel like an occasion rather than a lookup.
The catch
Five of the last two hundred reviews call it hard to find your way around, and others say the notifications cannot be turned off once they start.
One-time purchasePoint to identifySky events

SkySafari

Simulation Curriculum Corp.
View on the App Store ›
$6.99 once4.7★ (17,869)Updated Sep 1, 2026
Verdict
The serious one. A real catalogue, proper observing tools, and the app amateur astronomers actually point their telescopes with.
Best for
Someone who owns a telescope and plans a night before going outside.
The catch
Buying it once is not the end of it — twelve of the last two hundred reviews are from people who found a newer version waiting behind another payment, and several say the one they bought stopped being supported.
One-time purchaseTelescope controlDeep catalogue

Solar Walk 2 - View Planets 3D

Vito Technology Inc.
View on the App Store ›
$2.99 once4.7★ (7,296)Updated Dec 28, 2023
Verdict
Not a sky map at all — a three-dimensional model of the solar system you can fly around and wind forwards through time.
Best for
Explaining orbits to a child, or to yourself, rather than finding anything overhead.
The catch
It will not help you identify what is above you tonight, and reviewers report parts of it sitting behind a further subscription despite the purchase.
One-time purchaseSolar system modelNot a sky map

Side by side.

AppPriceIdentifies starsSolar system 3DEvent alertsUpdated
GoSkyWatch Planetarium$3.99YesNoSun and moonAug 9, 2020
Star Walk 2 Pro: Sky Map Live$2.99YesSomeYesAug 10, 2026
SkySafari$6.99YesYesYesSep 1, 2026
Solar Walk 2 - View Planets 3D$2.99NoYesYesDec 28, 2023

Who should skip this entirely.

There are good free sky maps, and if you only look up two or three times a year one of those is plenty. Skip all of these if what you actually want is to see more rather than to name more — no app improves the view, and the money is better spent on a cheap pair of binoculars, which will do more for you on a dark night than any of this.

Questions.

Do these work without a signal?Mostly yes — the star catalogue is on the device and the position comes from the compass and GPS. Live satellite passes and event data need a connection.
Will one of these control my telescope?SkySafari does, at its higher tiers. The others identify and plan only.