Honest comparisons
How Astrolium stacks up against the tools you already know.
Written by people who used the other programs daily before building this one. Every comparison tells you when the alternative is the right choice, and when it isn't.
Pick your situation
Read the comparison that matches what you use now.
If you're on
On Windows. Solar Fire daily, license you already paid for.
Solar Fire vs Astrolium→
If you're on
On Mac. Astro Gold or thinking about buying it.
Astro Gold vs Astrolium→
If you're on
On Mac. Still shopping — nothing chosen yet.
Astrology software for Mac→
If you're on
TimePassages, or another interpretation-heavy desktop suite.
TimePassages vs Astrolium→
If you're on
Free tools only — astro.com, Astro-Seek, Lunarium.
Free astrology software→
If you're on
Astro.com daily, but tired of the 1998 interface.
Astro.com vs Astrolium→
If you're on
Consumer phone apps — Co-Star, CHANI, The Pattern.
Consumer apps vs Astrolium→
If you're on
Celebrity-chart browsing — LUNA, astrotheme.com.
LUNA vs Astrolium→
If you're on
New to all of this. Haven't picked anything yet.
Best astrology software 2026→
Head-to-head
One-on-one against the desktop programs.
Astro.com vs Astrolium: the 2026 comparison
Astro.com leads on research-grade specialties: 20K asteroids, primary directions, AstroDatabank, Liz Greene reports. Astrolium now matches every daily chart type and adds ZR, Firdaria, electional engine, mobile UI.
Astro Gold vs Astrolium: 2026 comparison
Astro Gold is the best-loved Apple-native chart calculator. Astrolium is the practice workspace built around the client session — same Swiss Ephemeris engine, plus CRM, live scrubber, and AI.
Janus 5 vs Astrolium: the 2026 horary comparison
Janus is the desktop standard for Lilly-school practitioners who want offline tooling and a one-time licence. Astrolium runs the horary judgment itself — radicality score, significators, perfection, yes/no — on any device.
Solar Fire vs Astrolium: the 2026 comparison
Solar Fire is the desktop reference for Windows researchers. Astrolium is the browser workspace with the live scrubber, CRM, and AI assistant — same Swiss Ephemeris core, replaces 5 patched tools.
TimePassages vs Astrolium: 2026 comparison
TimePassages is the best tool for learning astrology — Henry Seltzer's text has no equal. Astrolium is the workspace for paid practice with CRM, scrubber, and AI — different problem entirely.
All seven at once
Twelve practitioner-facing features, every tool, one table.
Curated from the per-comparison matrices. The deep version (with footnotes and edge cases) lives on each comparison page. Mobile shows one competitor at a time — tap the tabs to switch.
Master feature matrix: Astrolium versus six competing astrology programs.
- Cloud / browser native
- Mac · PC · iOS · AndroidAll fourPC only
- Client CRM
- AI interpretation assistant
- Live predictive scrubberStatic reports
- Transit scanner across rosterPer-chart
- Synastry workspace
- Profections · ZR · solar arcAll threeSolar arc + ZR
- Branded PDF reportsGeneric PDF
- Solar Fire (.SFCHT) importNative
- Open API for integrations
- Free tier25 clients
| Feature | Astrolium | Solar Fire | Astro Gold | TimePassages | ZET | LUNA | Co-Star |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud / browser native | App | ||||||
| Mac · PC · iOS · Android | All four | PC only | Mac · iOS | Mac · iOS | PC only | iOS | iOS · Android |
| Client CRM | |||||||
| AI interpretation assistant | Built-in | Built-in | |||||
| Live predictive scrubber | Static reports | Partial | |||||
| Transit scanner across roster | Per-chart | Per-chart | Per-chart | Per-chart | |||
| Synastry workspace | Read-only | Read-only | |||||
| Profections · ZR · solar arc | All three | Solar arc + ZR | Solar arc | Solar arc | Solar arc + ZR | ||
| Branded PDF reports | Generic PDF | Generic PDF | Generic PDF | Print only | |||
| Solar Fire (.SFCHT) import | Native | AAF only | Partial | ||||
| Open API for integrations | Limited | ||||||
| Free tier | 25 clients | Trial | Lite version | Full | Full |
What you pay over five years
The headline number isn't the real number.
A subscription looks expensive on the receipt and cheap on the contract. Desktop licenses are the reverse. Here is what each tool actually costs over a five-year practice, with the hidden line items (Parallels, iOS siblings, paid upgrades, IAP) included.
- Astrolium Adept$290 · $1,450 5Y
$29/mo, billed annually. Full chart suite, AI (300 calls/mo), CRM, transit scanner, knowledge base, iOS/iPad sync — no add-ons. BYOK toggle saves another $5/mo.
- Solar Fire 9 (Windows)$360 · $540 5Y
$360 one-time license + ~$180 in v8→v9-style major upgrades across 5 years. Windows users only — no rental hardware cost.
- Solar Fire 9 on Mac (Parallels)$459 · $1,035 5Y
Solar Fire $360 license + Parallels Desktop ~$99/year subscription. The Mac tax most reviews skip.
- Astro Gold (Mac + iOS)$349 · $449 5Y
$299 macOS + $50 iOS sibling app, one-time. ~$100 in paid major upgrades over 5 years. Apple ecosystem only.
- TimePassages Pro$259 · $379 5Y
$199 macOS Pro license + $40 iOS Pro IAP + ~$140 in upgrades over 5 years. No client CRM included.
- ZET 9 Geo$100 · $100 5Y
$100 one-time license. Windows only, no upgrades billed for years. Manual chart-by-chart workflow.
- Co-Star Premium$40 · $200 5Y
$40/year IAP for the premium tier. Consumer audience tool — no roster, no reports, no migration path out.
Astrolium is the only line on this chart where the bar includes hosting, the AI assistant, the CRM, iOS/iPad sync, and every update. Solar Fire bills those separately or doesn't ship them.
Roundups
By platform, by budget, by what you're replacing.
Astrology software for Mac in 2026: 5 options compared
Astrology software for Mac splits 3 ways in 2026: native Cocoa (Astro Gold, TimePassages), Windows-in-emulation (Solar Fire on Parallels, Halloran), and browser-everywhere (Astrolium).
Best astrology software 2026
Astrolium ranks first for working practitioners. Solar Fire wins for Windows researchers needing primary directions. Astro Gold wins for Mac-and-iPad-only Hellenistic readers.
Consumer apps vs Astrolium: different tool, different job
Consumer apps are well-designed audience tools. Astrolium is a practitioner workspace — different products. Same sky, different jobs. You will know when you have crossed the line.
Free astrology software in 2026: a ranked roundup
Free astrology software is plentiful in 2026. Astro.com is the reference, Astro-Seek is the cleanest UI, Astrolium's free tier is the only one with a client roster and a live scrubber.
Best horary astrology software 2026
For working Lilly-school horary: Astrolium (free, web, modern UX, fertility template) or Janus 6 ($275, Windows, deep tradition). Both ship radicality + significators + perfection logic.
LUNA vs Astrolium: discovery app vs practice workspace
LUNA is the best celebrity chart browser on iOS. Astrolium is the practitioner workspace. Same sky, different jobs. You will know which one you need within 1 minute.
How we write these
Comparisons aren't marketing. They're our position on the field.
If a competitor is better at something, we say so. If we're missing a feature, we link the alternative.
Most of our team used Solar Fire, Astro Gold, TimePassages, or some combination for years before building Astrolium. The comparisons are the documents we wanted when we were evaluating.
That means they're long. They're specific. They include the failure modes. They tell you when to keep the other program, even if it costs us the sale.
- Calculation parity is checked per release. We render sample charts in both programs and compare to the arc-second.
- Pricing reflects 5-year reality license + paid upgrades + add-ons, not just the headline number.
- Workflow timings come from real sessions, not synthetic benchmarks.
- Quotes are from migrating users, with permission. No paid endorsements.
- We update when the other product ships a major version. Notes in each comparison's footer.
Migration questions
The eight things people ask before they switch.
Pulled from the FAQ section of each comparison. If you don't see your situation, open the specific comparison — each one has 8 to 12 more.
Or just try it for two weeks.
You can read every comparison in the world, or you can spend an afternoon importing your charts and running a real session. We’d suggest the second.