Using a compass in today’s times might sound close to an outdated idea, but trust us! a compass is still pretty much relevant and required.
Also, you don’t actually need to buy a compass from the market. Your smartphone can pretty decently perform the job of a compass. We often get confused about the directions in our own homes regarding north-south-east-west. Moreover, during outdoor activities like boating, hiking, or even camping, we need a compass.
In such situations, you can always take the help of a convenient compass app for free. We have shortlisted these 7 “state-of-the-art” best compass apps which you can select from based on your preferences.
List of 7 Best Compass Apps for iPhone and Android
1) Compass 360 Pro
The design of this app is very professional and you can choose the compass-design format from among 3 options as per your liking. At the center of the compass, the strength of the magnetic field is displayed. You can even lock the direction if you wish to save the accurate details of any place’s direction. This compass offers only this much basic functionality. It is definitely appropriate for users who are looking for a basic compass experience and nothing more than that. In our opinion, it is just suited for the fundamental compass experience.
Link: Android
2) Speaking Compass
This is a speaking compass that literally speaks the compass direction in a loud voice. Hence, the name “Speaking Compass”. It also displays the compass direction in bold letters covering the screen completely. It offers a very different experience from the other compasses many of which are not offering this talking feature. It is quite easy to use and doesn’t require any permission to operate. One thing more, you can also select whether you want to listen to the directions in UK accent or USA accent.
This compass does not provide values in decimal-system but in integer-system only. We guess it just rounds up the decimal values to the closest integer range. This can definitely lead to less accuracy, but we think in the real world we hardly need the directions to be in decimals.
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3) GPS Compass Explorer
GPS Explorer is one of the best compass apps for Android users. With an elegant interface and multiple features available, this app, for sure, is a head-turner. Apart from the compass ( which we found very fast, quick, and accurate), there are loads of other useful options too. This app offers you to share your coordinates via many platforms like Whatsapp, Messaging etc. It shows you your current coordinates both in degrees and decimal. You can save your position so that you can navigate back to your saved positions without much hassle. This feature makes this app a “show-stealer”. The ease of use is on a different level altogether. To present such features in a highly simplified manner is what this app performs dexterously!
It also has a flashlight feature which you might find useful. To add more to that, by pressing the sunlight icon, you can also get to know about the approximate sunrise/sunset times in your area. You just can’t ignore this one really.
4) Compass by Gabenative
This is another useful compass app available in the Play Store. The compass worked swiftly and accurately. This app gives you the choice to switch between the magnetic north and the true north. Also, you can also use this app in landscape mode easily.
It also shows your coordinates in written form. You can copy coordinates, view coordinates, and even share them. Along with that, it displays the magnetic field strength at the center of the compass. It is a nice app that performs the job quite decently and provides a modest number of features, if not many.
5) Compass by Gamma Play
This is a very basic yet super-accurate and easy-to-use compass app. The interface is very basic and fine. It feels as if you are using a real compass. We must tell you that this is a very elemental compass app that just shows the directions. It is not having any GPS support too. Also, this app shows directions in pure integer form and not in decimal notation. This makes it very convenient to use for unofficial works. On top of that, this compass is really very stable and is not very sensitive to magnetic interferences. This is undoubtedly a very desired quality of this app because magnetic interferences can hamper the accuracy of any magnetic compass.
Overall it is a fine app that is just a compass, but positively a highly accurate and stable one. Nothing more, or nothing less.
6) Compass° (iOS devices)
This user-friendly app is only available for iOS users. It is a very simple and basic app. It shows the directions in a huge size almost covering the entire screen. It weighs 22.7 MB with multi-language support.
For using this app you need iOS 8.0 or higher. It is compatible with both your iPhone and iPad. The best thing which we liked about this app is the convenience while use, and of course the accuracy. This will serve as a basic and accurate compass in your pockets.
Link: iOS
7) Commander Compass Lite (iOS devices)
This app is surely for those who need a way more enriched experience than just a basic compass app. Equipped with GPS support, this app offers much more features and functionalities than a simple compass. You can save your locations and then can open them in your maps. It operates in 3-D to give you a real-life experience.
You can even share your locations. Multiple targets can be tracked at the same time with the use of this app. That is why we told you at the very beginning that this is more than just a compass!
The app is 23.1 MB in size and requires iOS 8.2 or higher. It is compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch as well.
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Final Words
So, which one have you chosen? We know that is pretty confusing, we must assure you that we have compiled the list of best compass apps for you.
More or less, each one of them performs a highly accurate job. For an easy and uncomplicated experience, Android users can choose “Compass by Gamma Play”. Still, if you think you need more features in addition to the basic compass, you must go for “GPS Compass Explorer” in the Android section.
iPhone users can undoubtedly go for any of the two above-mentioned apps according to their device compatibility.
If you have kids, it could be useful for them to have a smartphone with a compass app installed. They can use it for school projects or during hikes.
However, remember that if you give a smartphone to your child, you should also install an app for parental control. it does not have to be expensive; in fact, you can get one for free.
Got any questions? Let us know in the comments!
