Having an app for capturing the Milky Way simplifies astrophotography significantly. They assist you in discovering the ideal mix of weather, location, stars, and timing for breathtaking photographs of the Milky Way.
We recommend downloading the following apps. We use iOS devices, and we have listed the Android equivalent for every app that has one.
What Are the Best Apps for Astrophotography of the Milky Way?
A Milky Way shoot needs three questions answered before you leave the house. Where will the galactic core sit at the hour you plan to shoot? Will the moon be up and washing the sky out? And will it even be clear? Some apps answer one of those well and a couple answer all three, which is why many photographers end up carrying two.
10 Best Software Tools for Capturing the Milky Way in Astrophotography
Here are our top apps to locate the Milky Way and elevate your astrophotography skills.
If you want to carry one app and nothing else, we recommend PhotoPills. It plans the core, the moon and your exposure settings in a single $10.99 purchase. If you would rather spend nothing at all, pair Stellarium Mobile for finding the core with The Weather Channel for the cloud forecast. One warning before you read on: The Photographer’s Ephemeris is now iOS and web only, so Android users can skip straight past number three.
1. Deluxe Moon Pro
1. Deluxe Moon Pro
| App Store |
App Store
Apple, Google
|
| Price |
Price
Free on iOS with in-app purchases, $3.99 on Android as Deluxe Moon
|
| Extra Features |
Extra Features
Moon light visualization, moonrise and moonset times
|
| Best For |
Best For
Timing a shoot around the new or full moon
|
Download: iOS or Android
Deluxe Moon Pro is our favorite moon application. It gives you a visual representation of how much light the moon will reflect in the night sky. Once more, our goal is to capture photography of the Milky Way during the new or full moon. So we must know exactly when this is.
It also shares information about when the moon will be visible in the sky. This way, you can time your shoot exactly at moonrise or moonset if you want to. Deluxe Moon Pro is a free download on iOS with in-app purchases for the advanced features. On Android, the equivalent app is simply called Deluxe Moon and costs $3.99 up front.
2. Stellarium Mobile
The Stellarium Mobile app provides a captivating virtual planetarium experience. It enables real-time navigation through the sky at night. And it’s the top app for locating the Milky Way for photographers.
It’s particularly useful for photography of the Milky Way. It helps astrophotographers easily locate this celestial marvel. And beyond simple identification, the app enables detailed planning. It simulates the sky’s appearance at designated times and locations.
This feature assists in previewing the alignment of the Milky Way with additional components in the view. This optimizes composition and ensures the best possible shots.
Stellarium Mobile is an essential app with a user-friendly interface and powerful planning tools. It’s ideal for photographers aiming to snap breathtaking pictures of the Milky Way. The app is free with in-app purchases on both iOS and Android.
3. The Photographer’s Ephemeris (TPE)
Download: iOS or TPE Web in any browser
The Photographer’s Ephemeris (TPE) app is a powerful tool for photography of the Milky Way. It lets you visualize how the Milky Way will appear in any location.
It has a sun and moon location calculator. So, photographers can assess how natural light will interact with their chosen shooting spot at night. For instance, for a Milky Way shoot in Iceland, you can determine the optimal time and location based on moonrise and other celestial events.
TPE also provides essential data such as sunrise and sunset times. This aids in comprehensive planning for photoshoots of the Milky Way.
The iOS app costs $9.99 with optional in-app upgrades, and its features make it a worthwhile investment. For online planning convenience, you can also explore TPE for free via their website.
There is no Android version, and there has not been for years. Crookneck Consulting withdrew TPE for Android in 2021 and now builds only for iOS and the web. The closest Android match is Planit: Photo Planner. It has a dedicated Milky Way planner, an augmented reality view, and a free tier before you pay for the pro tools.
4. The Weather Channel
For astrophotographers, having accurate weather predictions is crucial for planning photography sessions. There are countless different weather apps available. So why choose the Weather Channel app? In our experience, it provides the most reliable and up-to-date weather forecasts.
Clear skies are essential for capturing celestial objects. It shows the percentage of cloud cover you can expect at night and hourly weather radar. And it also indicates when the next new or full moon occurs, aiding in scheduling the optimal moment for capturing images of the Milky Way.
The app is free with in-app purchases on both iOS and Android.
5. PhotoPills
Astrophotographers value the PhotoPills app for photography of the Milky Way. This is due to its specialized planning tools.
You can visualize the position and location of our galaxy to optimize composition. Its augmented reality feature overlays celestial objects onto live camera views. This helps with compositional adjustments.
The app provides accurate timing information for visibility of the Milky Way, including its rise and set times. This helps photographers capture it at its best. Also, it provides lunar phase and light pollution information for optimal shoot scheduling.
PhotoPills has advanced calculators for camera settings, like exposure time and ISO. This streamlines the shooting process and ensures well-exposed images of the Milky Way.
It’s a bit lower on our list because of its $10.99 price and higher learning curve. But PhotoPills is indispensable for planning and executing stunning Milky Way photography. You can read our full review of PhotoPills for more information about this app.
6. Sol: Sun Clock
Download: iOS
This pretty-looking app tells you the exact phases of light you pass through daily based on location. It shows everything from daylight and golden hour to full darkness and astronomical dusk.
It also tells you the exact time of sunrise and sunset. From our experience, it’s 100% accurate and essential for planning photography of the Milky Way. It costs $4.99 and is worth it. Sol is iOS only, so on Android an alternative called Sunclock performs the same tasks, rates well, and is a free download.
7. Sky Guide
Download: iOS
Sky Guide is a sky identification app for the moment you arrive at a dark site and need to know what you are pointing at. Hold the phone up and its augmented reality mode draws the constellation figures straight onto the live view of the sky. That turns finding Sagittarius, which is where the bright galactic core sits, into a few seconds of work instead of minutes with a chart.
For Milky Way work, the useful part is the time control. You can scrub forward through the night and watch exactly where the core will be at 1 am, so you know whether it will clear the ridgeline in your foreground before you drive out. It also runs entirely offline, with no Wi-Fi, cellular signal, or GPS needed, which matters in the kind of remote places dark skies are found.
The extras are genuinely useful rather than filler. It sends timed alerts before the International Space Station passes over you, and its calendar filters eclipses and meteor showers to your own location. It holds a 4.8 rating from over 369,000 App Store reviews, and Fifth Star Labs still ships updates, with the current version dated August 2026.
Two honest caveats. It is iOS only, so Android shooters should use Stellarium Mobile instead. And free is not quite free: the download costs nothing, but unlocking all the constellations is $1.99, the PLUS tier is $4.99 and PRO is $8.99, with $39.99 and $59.99 subscription versions of the same tiers on offer. Skip it if you already own PhotoPills, which does the sky planning and the exposure math in one app.
8. SkySafari
The SkySafari application offers comprehensive star maps to help identify celestial bodies in the sky at night, including the Milky Way. The large database lets you precisely locate its position relative to other stars and constellations.
It also has time and location settings, letting you accurately plan Milky Way photoshoots. You can predict the visibility and alignment of the Milky Way by inputting specific dates and locations. This ensures optimal shooting conditions.
This app is a valuable tool for novice and experienced astrophotographers. It helps with the planning and execution of breathtaking Milky Way images. Simulation Curriculum shipped SkySafari 8 in August 2026, so check the version number before you buy. The basic app is $0.99 on iOS. Android starts with SkySafari 8 Plus at $12.99, and Plus on iOS is $14.99.
Pro is the version that controls a telescope, and at $24.99 on both platforms it is far more app than a Milky Way landscape shot needs. Buy the basic tier unless you also own a go-to mount.
9. SkyView
Download: iOS or Android
SkyView is the app we use for identifying stars in the sky, such as Polaris (The North Star). You can quickly identify and locate stars, planets, constellations, etc. By simply pointing your camera to the sky, the app shows and tells you what you’re looking at with an overlay.
It’s handy to know what you’re taking photos of instead of finding the stars through your naked eye. It also makes you feel more connected to the sky at night above.
There is a free SkyView Lite version for iOS and Android. But we recommend getting the paid app ($2.99 on iOS and $4.99 on Android) because it functions better. Lite finds your favorite constellations and satellite fly-bys. The paid version adds all 88 constellations, every planet, thousands more objects, and it bundles in the in-app purchases you would otherwise buy separately.
10. Sun Surveyor (Sun & Moon)
The Sun Surveyor app is a fantastic tool for capturing Milky Way photos. It’s excellent for helping photographers plan their nighttime photography. It eliminates the uncertainty of predicting the rise and set times of the sun, moon, and the Milky Way.
It has helpful features like a live camera view and an interactive map with a street view. This shows you where celestial objects will be in the sky, with a rotating view. It also tells you the exact time of sunrise and sunset and predicts golden hour and blue hour.
This app for photographing the galaxy makes it easier for photographers to capture breathtaking images of the sky at night. You can try the free Sun Surveyor (Lite) version for iOS or Android first. We recommend the paid version, which is $9.99 on both platforms, for professionals.
Conclusion: The Top Apps for Capturing the Galactic Core
Start tonight rather than on your next trip. Install one planning app and one sky-identification app, then stand in your own garden and find Sagittarius. Learning to read the core’s position takes one evening, and it is the skill that makes every dark-sky trip afterwards worth the drive.
Then work backwards from the new moon. Check the moon phase first, book the date, and only look at the cloud forecast in the last 48 hours. Planning in that order is what stops a clear night going to waste.
Photography of the Milky Way can be challenging to perfect. But you don’t need expensive gear to capture the celestial beauty of our galaxy. These software tools for capturing the Milky Way will help bring the most out of your shots of the sky at night!
Check out our Milky Way Mastery course to take out-of-this-world photos!
