Nuvastro vs TimePassages: an honest comparison

Quick verdict: who each one is for

TimePassages, from Astrograph, is for people who take chart work seriously. It has a decades-long history as desktop astrology software, a mobile app with a permanent free tier, six selectable house systems, transits, compatibility and a moon calendar. Practising astrologers and committed students are its natural audience, and its desktop editions go far beyond what any consumer app offers.

Nuvastro is for people who want to read their day rather than study their chart. It writes a daily reading from your full natal chart and the current transits, adds a numerology profile and a moon calendar, and sends the reading by email each morning. It has simple and advanced modes but no chart-drawing tools beyond your own chart, and no compatibility.

If you want control over technique, TimePassages is the better choice. If you want something you can read in two minutes with your coffee, plus numbers and moon timing, Nuvastro is the better fit.

Price-wise the two are close, so the decision comes down to how you like to use astrology rather than cost.

How the readings are made

TimePassages personalizes its daily horoscope from your own birth chart and current transits, rather than writing generic sun-sign text. Around it, the app gives you a personal dashboard, transit listings, saved profiles and learning resources, so you can drill into the chart behind any reading yourself.

Nuvastro computes positions from an astronomical ephemeris and writes a daily reading from the transits to your natal chart, naming the house and aspect behind each point. Simple mode keeps it short and plain; advanced mode shows placements and degrees. The interpretation is the product, rather than the tools.

Both are chart-based, so neither gives you a recycled sun-sign paragraph. The difference is emphasis. TimePassages puts the chart and its tools in front, and the written reading is one part of it. Nuvastro puts the written reading in front and keeps the technical layer one tap away.

Neither product offers live readers or AI chat. If you want to discuss your chart with someone, you will need a human astrologer outside both. What you can do in TimePassages is investigate on your own; what you get in Nuvastro is an interpretation you can accept, question or check against the chart in advanced mode.

Natal chart, houses and accuracy

TimePassages has the most technically complete house-system support of the apps in our comparison set. You can choose Placidus, which is its default, or Koch, Equal House, Campanus, Porphyry or Whole Sign, which was added in version 5. That flexibility matters if you follow a particular tradition or want to compare systems.

Nuvastro uses Placidus houses when your birth time is known and whole-sign houses when it is not. You cannot switch systems. Since TimePassages also defaults to Placidus, a chart in both apps should match on houses unless you change the setting or enter a different birth time.

Planetary positions should agree closely between the two, as both work from astronomical ephemeris data. What will change the result is your birth time and place, so double-check them if anything looks off.

For an experienced astrologer, TimePassages is clearly the stronger technical tool. Nuvastro does not try to compete on configurability; it trades options for a consistent daily reading.

Numerology and the moon calendar

TimePassages does not offer numerology. Nuvastro includes a full numerology profile: life path, expression, soul urge, personality and birthday numbers, plus personal year, month and day numbers that sit next to the daily astrology reading. If numerology is part of your practice, this is the clearest feature gap.

Both products have a moon calendar. TimePassages includes one as part of its toolset. Nuvastro's shows the moon sign for each day, void-of-course periods and days that suit particular kinds of tasks.

The level of detail in TimePassages' moon calendar, for example whether it marks void-of-course periods in the same way, is not stated in the sources we reviewed, so it is worth checking in the app if that matters to you.

In Nuvastro, the moon, the transits and your personal day number appear on the same daily screen, which makes it quick to see how they line up. If you are planning a week, you can scan the calendar for void-of-course periods and then open any day to read the full transit picture for your chart.

Price and trial, as of October 2026

TimePassages' free mobile account is permanent and includes current transits, a personal dashboard, one free birth chart, a daily horoscope, saved profiles, cloud storage and learning resources. Mobile Pro costs $7.99 per month or $59.99 per year, and free users can buy extra charts for $0.99 each. Desktop editions are one-time purchases from $79 for Basic to $699 for the Complete Package. No time-limited trial is stated.

Nuvastro costs $9.99 per month, $39.99 for six months or $74.99 per year, with local prices in 11 currencies. The 7-day trial gives full access and needs no card. After the trial there is no free tier beyond guides and tools on the site.

TimePassages is cheaper on both monthly and annual plans, and its free tier is more useful than Nuvastro's. Nuvastro is the more expensive of the two, and what you pay extra for is the written daily reading in nine languages, numerology and the email delivery.

Billing also differs. TimePassages' mobile subscriptions run through the app stores, and its desktop editions are one-time purchases you own. Nuvastro bills on the web, and because the trial needs no card, nothing renews unless you choose a plan. If you dislike subscriptions altogether, a TimePassages desktop edition is the only option here that avoids them.

Where each one clearly wins

TimePassages wins on house-system choice, compatibility, desktop software, a generous permanent free tier, lower subscription prices and a long track record with practising astrologers. If you want to grow into professional-level chart work, it can come with you.

Nuvastro wins on numerology, a moon calendar with void-of-course periods on the daily screen, a simple mode for people who do not want technical detail, a daily reading email and nine supported languages. TimePassages' language support is not stated publicly.

On platforms, TimePassages runs on iOS, Android, Windows and macOS. Nuvastro is a web app that works on phones and desktops but is not a native app. Some commentary suggests TimePassages' mobile interface looks dated next to newer apps, but that is unverified and you should judge it yourself. Nuvastro is newer and smaller, and as a web app it has no store ratings to compare.

Switching, using both, and the verdict

Using both works well for people learning astrology. Keep TimePassages, even on its free tier, for chart study, house comparisons and compatibility, and use Nuvastro for the daily reading, numerology and moon calendar. Both default to Placidus, so your houses should agree.

If you are moving your daily habit to Nuvastro, enter the same birth data. If you have been using a different house system in TimePassages, switch it back to Placidus before comparing, or expect some planets to change house.

The verdict: TimePassages is the better tool for studying charts and costs less. Nuvastro is the better daily reading if you want plain-language interpretation with numerology and moon timing, in your language, without learning chart software. The 7-day Nuvastro trial is the quickest way to see which habit you prefer. If you are a student of astrology, you may well end up keeping TimePassages for the work and Nuvastro for the morning read, and that is a sensible combination rather than a redundant one.

Common questions

How much is TimePassages Pro?

As of October 2026, TimePassages Mobile Pro is $7.99 per month or $59.99 per year. Desktop editions are one-time purchases from $79 to $699. Nuvastro is $9.99 per month or $74.99 per year.

What house systems does TimePassages support?

Placidus by default, plus Koch, Equal House, Campanus, Porphyry and Whole Sign. Nuvastro uses Placidus with a known birth time and whole-sign houses without one.

Does TimePassages have numerology?

No. Nuvastro includes a full numerology profile with life path, expression, soul urge, personality and birthday numbers plus personal year, month and day.

Is TimePassages free?

Its mobile app has a permanent free tier with one birth chart, transits, a dashboard and a daily horoscope. Extra charts cost $0.99 each, and Pro unlocks more.

Is there a simpler alternative to TimePassages for daily readings?

Nuvastro writes a plain-language daily reading from your full chart, with a simple mode, numerology and a moon calendar, after a 7-day trial with no card.