Yes. The most reliable way to make stars appear brighter without simply amplifying noise is to improve the source image first: stack multiple exposures. In astrophotography, more total integration time improves signal-to-noise ratio, so the stars can be enhanced more cleanly with less need for aggressive edits.

For editing, avoid broad global brightening. A few approaches mentioned were:

• Add a small amount of clarity/contrast to help stars pop.
• Use luminosity/color controls selectively rather than lifting the whole frame.
• In Photoshop, duplicate the star layer, set the copy to Lighten, then nudge it slightly. Repeating this in a few directions can make stars look stronger and rounder. If this softens the foreground, mask the effect so it applies only to the sky, then restore the original foreground underneath.

Masking the sky is important because it prevents sharpening/brightening from worsening foreground noise or edge artifacts. If vignetting is already visible, correct that separately before or during processing rather than trying to overcome it by brightening the whole image.