Best Premium Stargazing Apps

There are some excellent free stargazing apps that already offer surprisingly powerful features, and for many people they will be all that’s needed. Premium apps become more interesting when you want to go further — perhaps with much larger astronomical databases, more advanced observing and planning tools, telescope control, astrophotography features or specialist capabilities that free alternatives don’t provide.

That doesn’t mean every paid astronomy app is worth buying. We’ve selected the premium stargazing apps that offer a compelling reason to pay, with choices for beginners, serious observers, telescope users, astrophotographers and anyone who simply wants to explore the night sky in greater depth.

Best Premium Stargazing Apps at a Glance

Stellarium Mobile Plus — Best All-Round Premium Stargazing App

Stellarium Mobile Plus takes the familiar planetarium experience of the free Stellarium app and expands it for observers who want to explore much deeper into the night sky. The free version already does an excellent job of identifying stars, planets, constellations and other objects, so the reason to pay is less about basic sky identification and more about depth, observing tools and telescope use.

The most dramatic upgrade is the astronomical database. Plus displays objects as faint as magnitude 22 and provides access to more than a billion stars, alongside millions of nebulae and galaxies. It can also work offline in the field with millions of stars and deep-sky objects available without an internet connection.

Plus becomes more useful again when you move from exploring the sky to planning actual observations. It can predict when an object will be observable and when it crosses the meridian, while compatible GoTo telescopes can be controlled using systems including NexStar, SynScan and LX200. These are communication systems that allow astronomy apps to work with compatible computerized telescope mounts.

Beginners who mainly want to learn the constellations and identify bright objects may find the free version is all they need. Stellarium Plus becomes easier to justify once you want to explore much fainter objects, plan observing sessions in greater detail or use the app alongside a telescope.

Available for: iPhone/iPad and Android
Payment: One-time purchase or subscription options
Best for: Stargazers wanting a powerful all-round astronomy app with substantially more depth than the free version

SkySafari 8 Pro — Best for Serious Observers and Telescope Control

SkySafari 8 Pro is the top version of an astronomy app built increasingly around serious observing, telescope use and astrophotography. Less expensive Basic and Plus editions are also available, so the real question is whether you need enough of Pro’s additional depth and equipment integration to justify stepping up to it.

For ordinary sky exploration, you probably don’t. SkySafari 8 Basic already identifies stars, constellations, planets and satellites, shows what’s worth observing tonight and includes features such as night vision and 3D exploration. Plus goes considerably further, adding telescope control, observing lists and much deeper astronomical databases.

Pro is where SkySafari becomes much more compelling for demanding telescope users. Its database extends to more than 100 million stars, around 780,000 deep-sky objects and more than 3 million galaxies — vastly deeper than the less expensive editions. That extra depth matters most when you’re using a telescope to work beyond familiar naked-eye and Messier objects rather than simply exploring the brighter night sky.

It also lets you model your own observing equipment. Field-of-view overlays can show how a target should fit through a particular telescope and eyepiece or across a camera sensor before you actually point the equipment at it. Telescope-control support includes ASCOM Alpaca, INDI and StarSense Explorer, while Pro also adds direct control of compatible Alpaca astronomy cameras.

For astrophotography, images can be imported and plate-solved — automatically matching their star patterns to determine exactly where they belong in the sky — and then placed over the star chart. Pro also provides extensive tools for planning, filtering and logging observations.

If you mainly want to identify objects or casually explore the night sky, SkySafari 8 Pro is probably more app than you need. Its strengths become much more useful when a telescope is a regular part of your observing and you want one app to help plan targets, control equipment, frame views and keep records of what you’ve observed.

Available for: iPhone/iPad and Android
Payment: Paid app; optional Premium subscription adds services including observing-condition forecasts and additional online features
Best for: Serious amateur astronomers and telescope users

Star Walk 2 Premium — Best for Beginners

Star Walk 2 is an accessible, highly visual astronomy app that lets you point your phone toward the sky to identify stars, planets, constellations and other objects. The standard version already provides this core sky-map experience, making Premium most appealing to beginners who enjoy Star Walk 2’s approach and want the complete experience.

Depending on the version available for your device, premium access removes advertising and unlocks additional astronomical content, including expanded collections of deep-sky objects, satellites, comets and asteroids.

One of Star Walk 2’s strengths is the way it presents astronomy visually. Constellation artwork can be overlaid on the stars, objects can be explored in 3D, and the time controls let you move backward or forward to see how the sky changes. There’s also an augmented-reality mode that combines the sky map with the view through your phone’s camera.

Those features make Star Walk 2 enjoyable for learning your way around the sky, but more advanced observers should be realistic about what they’re buying. It doesn’t offer the depth of observing, equipment and telescope-control tools found in more specialist apps. For beginners who value an attractive, easy-to-use guide to the night sky more than advanced observing tools, Star Walk 2 Premium is a particularly good fit.

Available for: iPhone/iPad and Android
Payment: Paid/premium editions and in-app upgrade options vary by platform
Best for: Beginners who want an accessible, highly visual way to explore the night sky

Sky Guide — Best for iPhone and iPad Users

Sky Guide is an Apple-only astronomy app that combines an easy-to-use sky map with particularly polished graphics and augmented reality. The free version covers basic sky identification, while Plus and Pro add progressively deeper catalogs and more advanced observing tools.

Plus expands the astronomical content and adds features including a dark-sky finder and more detailed meteor-shower forecasts. Pro goes considerably further, with much larger star and deep-sky catalogs, greater zoom depth and advanced field-of-view tools that can help you visualize how objects will appear through different observing or imaging setups.

The app also fits particularly well into the Apple ecosystem, with support for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Vision Pro. It can operate without Wi-Fi, cellular service or GPS, which is useful when observing from remote dark-sky locations. Recent updates have also added features such as deep-sky chart symbols, astrophotography field-of-view rotation previews and fields of view for some smart telescopes.

The main limitation is straightforward: there is no Android version. Serious telescope users looking primarily for equipment control and extensive observing-management tools may also prefer an app designed more specifically around those tasks. Sky Guide is a strong fit for Apple users who want an attractive, intuitive stargazing app with room to move into deeper observing and planning as their interest develops.

Available for: iPhone/iPad and other supported Apple devices
Payment: Free app with optional Plus and Pro upgrades; subscription and Pro lifetime options are available
Best for: Apple users wanting an intuitive stargazing app with more advanced observing options

PhotoPills — Best for Astrophotography Planning

Most stargazing apps help answer “What am I looking at?” PhotoPills is designed to answer a different question: “Where and when should I be to photograph it?” There is no free version — it’s a one-time paid app built primarily for photographers rather than a conventional planetarium or sky-identification app.

Choose a location and PhotoPills can help determine when the Milky Way will be in the position you want, where the Moon will rise relative to a building or mountain, or where a meteor shower will appear to radiate from in the sky. Its Planner combines this information with maps, dates and times, while Night AR lets you preview features such as the Milky Way, Moon and star-trail patterns from your intended shooting location.

It also provides specialist tools for actually taking night-sky photographs. For example, its Spot Stars tool can calculate how long you can expose an image before the stars begin to trail. Other features help plan star trails and calculate field of view, depth of field, long exposures and time-lapse sequences.

PhotoPills won’t make much sense if you simply want to identify stars or learn the constellations. But if you want to plan exactly where to set up your camera, when to be there and how to capture the night sky you have in mind, it offers something quite different from the other premium astronomy apps on this list.

Available for: iPhone/iPad and Android
Payment: One-time purchase; no free version
Best for: Planning Milky Way, Moon, meteor-shower and other night-sky photography

Mobile Observatory Pro — Best for Location-Based Observing and Planning

Mobile Observatory is an Android astronomy app built around a particularly practical question: what can I realistically observe from where I am? Its topographic-horizon feature uses real elevation data to account for surrounding terrain, so a mountain or ridge can be factored into when an object should actually become visible.

The free version provides the basic sky view, rise and set times, visibility information and basic star and planet data. Paying unlocks the much more capable observing toolkit, including expanded star and deep-sky catalogs, satellite and ISS tracking, telescope control and the Observing Plan Generator.

That planner can suggest targets based on your location, date, equipment, light-pollution level and how high an object needs to be above the horizon. Instead of simply showing everything that’s theoretically in the sky, it can therefore help answer “What should I observe tonight with the equipment I have?”

Premium features also include astronomical-event alerts, observing lists and logs, field-of-view tools and control of compatible computerized telescopes using systems including LX200, NexStar and INDI. Eclipses, meteor showers, conjunctions and other events can also be explored and added to your calendar.

There are two ways to unlock the full feature set. The regular Mobile Observatory app is free to download and can be upgraded through either a subscription or one-time purchase. Alternatively, the separate Mobile Observatory Pro app unlocks the complete feature set with a single upfront purchase and no subscription.

There’s no iPhone version, and it offers far more detail than someone looking for a simple introduction to the constellations is likely to need. Its real strength is giving Android users observing plans tailored to their actual location, equipment and viewing conditions rather than simply presenting a map of the sky.

Available for: Android only
Payment: One-time purchase for Mobile Observatory Pro; the free Mobile Observatory app also offers Premium through subscription or a one-time upgrade
Best for: Observing plans tailored to your location, equipment and conditions

Observer Pro — Best for Planning Around Local Obstructions

Observer Pro tackles a problem that ordinary sky maps largely ignore: an object can be above the astronomical horizon but still hidden behind the trees, buildings or hills around your observing site. There is no free version — Observer Pro is a one-time paid app designed primarily for planning visual observing and astrophotography.

Using your iPhone, you can measure the horizon around an observing location and create a profile of the obstructions surrounding you. Observer Pro then incorporates that profile into its visibility charts, helping you determine not just whether an object will rise, but when it should actually clear the obstacles at your particular site.

That becomes especially useful if you have several possible places to set up. Each observing site can have its own horizon profile, allowing you to compare where a particular target will remain unobstructed longest. Astrophotographers can also sort targets by hours of unobstructed visibility, while field-of-view indicators help show how an object should fit through a chosen camera or eyepiece setup.

Observer Pro includes more than 14,000 deep-sky objects with reference images, along with observing and favorites lists. Its Featured list can suggest suitable objects using your location, local horizon and current lunar phase, and astronomical weather forecasts provide information including cloud cover, seeing and transparency.

It’s a specialist planning tool rather than an all-purpose planetarium, and Android users aren’t supported. Consider Observer Pro if trees, buildings or hills regularly interfere with your observing, or you need to know exactly how much unobstructed observing or imaging time a target should have.

Available for: iPhone
Payment: One-time purchase; no free version
Best for: Planning observations around trees, buildings, hills and other local obstructions

The Sky Pro by Redshift — Best for Exploring the Universe in 3D

The Sky Pro by Redshift combines a conventional sky map with something rather different: the ability to leave your observing location and explore the universe in three dimensions. You can fly to planets, moons, stars and deep-sky objects, land on other worlds and even view the sky from their perspective.

A free version of The Sky is available for basic sky identification and exploration, with thousands of stars and 200 deep-sky objects. Pro expands this to more than 100,000 stars and 10,000 deep-sky objects while adding much greater depth for exploring and simulating the universe.

The 3D features are the main reason to consider paying. You can examine models of planets, moons and other objects, travel through the Solar System and farther into space, or move backward and forward through time to watch planetary orbits and simulate events such as eclipses and conjunctions. The app also includes 25 educational chapters for users who want to learn more about the astronomy behind what they’re exploring.

It’s still a capable observing app, with rise and set times, visibility information, satellite tracking, night-sky suggestions, favorites and an astronomical-event calendar. More advanced telescope control and substantially larger catalogs are available through a separate Ultimate subscription, but those aren’t the strongest reasons to choose Redshift over the more observing-focused apps in this list.

Choose The Sky Pro primarily if exploring and learning about the universe interests you as much as identifying what’s overhead. Serious telescope users looking mainly for equipment control and detailed observing management are likely to get more from an app built around those tasks.

Available for: iPhone/iPad and Android
Payment: One-time purchase for Pro; optional Ultimate subscription adds further professional observing features
Best for: Interactive 3D exploration of the Solar System and wider universe

Free vs. Premium Stargazing Apps

You don’t need to pay for an app simply to start exploring the night sky. A good free stargazing app can identify stars and planets, help you learn the constellations and show what’s visible from your location. Premium apps become more worthwhile when you have a particular need that goes beyond those everyday tasks.

The important distinction isn’t simply how many features an app has, but whether you’ll actually use the features you’re paying for. If a premium feature solves a specific problem — whether that’s controlling a telescope, planning an observing session or working out where to photograph the Milky Way — paying for the right app can make sense. If it doesn’t, there’s little reason to upgrade.

If you’re not yet sure you need those additional tools, start with our Best Free Stargazing Apps guide. You can always move to a premium app later as your observing interests develop.