Software & Apps > Apps The 6 Best Stargazing Apps of 2024 A night sky app can help you identify stars, constellations, and even star trajectories By Jerri Ledford Jerri Ledford Senior News Editor, Fact Checker Western Kentucky University Gulf Coast Community College Jerri L. Ledford has been writing, editing, and fact-checking tech stories since 1994. Her work has appeared in Computerworld, PC Magazine, Information Today, and many others. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on January 24, 2024 Reviewed by Ryan Perian Reviewed by Ryan Perian Western Governors University Ryan Perian is a certified IT specialist who holds numerous IT certifications and has 12+ years' experience working in the IT industry support and management positions. lifewire's editorial guidelines Apps Best Apps Payment Services Trending Videos Close this video player Nothing beats a quiet night gazing at the stars. Well, nothing except knowing which stars and constellations you're seeing. These apps can map out exactly which celestial objects you're looking at, but they're not all created equal; we've pulled together our absolute favorites for you. 01 of 06 Best for a Labeled View of What You're Looking at: Star Tracker What We Like Clearly labeled stars, constellations, and deep space bodies. Easily change your location to anywhere in the world. View sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset times. What We Don't Like Can be a little cluttered. Limited features. Ad supported. This app delivers a visual display of the sky. All you have to do is point your device in whatever direction you want to know about in the sky. Since StarTracker doesn't use your camera, you can point it in any direction or at any object for a clear view of what the sky in that direction contains. You can also view a list of sunrise and sunset or moonrise and moonset times and get related notifications. Plus, you can easily change your location to anywhere in the world to get a view of how the sky might look in another country. Download for: iOS Android 02 of 06 Best for AR Views of the Night Sky: SkyView Lite What We Like Includes augmented reality to show star trajectories and constellations. Dates can be set to any time including present and past. Works during the day or night. What We Don't Like Some features hidden behind paywall. Limited functionality. SkyView Lite is a simple to use app that lets you point your camera at the sky and see which constellations and planets are there (whether you can see them or not). A neat thing you can do is point down to see what stars are showing on the other side of the world (you might even find a satellite here and there). You'll also find a center circle that you can place over a star or planet to learn its name and see its trajectory. You can also snap and share pictures from right within the app. though it's basic, this one will help you quickly identify what you're seeing in the sky tonight or from years in the past. Download for: iOS Android 03 of 06 Best for Detailed Info About the Sky: Night Sky What We Like Can use AR to blend the night sky with the star map overlay. Also has apps available for WatchOS and macOS. Allows you to drill down and learn more about a star, planet, or other finding. What We Don't Like No Android app available. Not a free app. AR blending is very touchy to movement. Night Sky is not a free app, but you get many additional features for the nominal monthly fee, like the ability to drill down onto a celestial body and learn more about it. You can also use the app on your iPhone, Apple Watch, and macOS. View the sky with or without the AR overlay. The AR overlay is a little touchy, and you need to hold your device still to get a good view of what you're seeing, but otherwise, it works nicely. Some users may find the number of stars and other objects the app detects (down to satellites and rocket bodies) less than helpful. Download for: iOS 04 of 06 Best for Choosing How You Want to View: Star Walk 2 What We Like Offers detailed views and information. Nice illustrations when AR camera not in use. Planetary timing and information available. What We Don't Like AR Camera can be glitchy. Ads can be invasive. There's more to the sky than stars, and Star Walk 2 Free will help you find it. You can use an AR camera to view the sky without the camera and flip through what's Visible Tonight to see the planets that are in the sky. Change your location or the date and time (down to hours and minutes) to get a clear view of the sky at any time in history. The only frustration you might encounter is that the AR camera doesn't always show full images, and the occasional ads can be somewhat intrusive. Fortunately, they aren't completely overwhelming. Download for: iOS Android 05 of 06 Best for the Astronomy Nerd: SkySafari What We Like Lots of information and the ability to dig deeper on celestial findings. Detailed lists and explanations of what you can expect to see. Ability to zoom in close to planet or star surface for additional detail. What We Don't Like Not free for iOS users. Free to download for Android users with in-app purchases. Even after paying for it, the app sometimes opens to an advertisement. No AR option. If you love the details, then SkySafari is worth the money you'll pay for it. At less than $5, this app gives you tons of information about what you'll see in the sky, including the ability to drill down into articles by clicking on a celestial body. The only frustrations we encountered were that there's no augmented reality option to work with your camera, and on iOS, you can't try the app before you buy it (even so, it's worth what you pay for it). Download for: iOS Android 06 of 06 Best for Learning About Astral Bodies: Astronomy Now Magazine What We Like Easy to use interface. Beautifully detailed articles. Edition previews. What We Don't Like Individual edition prices are a little high. While this isn't technically a stargazing app, anyone who wants to learn more about the stars and other celestial bodies should consider it. The Astronomy Now Magazine is UK-based but contains loads of information for anyone curious. And the app is a pleasure to look at on both iOS and Android devices. So, you can't track stars with this app, but if stargazing is your interest, you can learn a whole lot about what you're seeing. Download for: iOS Android Can You Use Google Sky Map on iPhone? Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! 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