Comparison

Remote Pilot Study Buddy vs PlaneEnglish

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

Prepare for your FAA Remote Pilot Certificate exam with comprehensive study materials and practice tests. Master drone regulations and knowledge areas through various study modes, including flashcards and simulated exams. Track your progress and review detailed explanations to ensure readiness for the official test.

Highlights
  • Study questions by topic
  • Review question flashcards
  • Take practice tests
  • Progress reports
  • Included study resources
Features
Read full description

Operating a drone for non-hobby operations requires a Remote Pilot Certificate. You must successfully complete the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Knowledge Exam to earn a Remote Pilot Certificate with a Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) rating. Bundled with an wealth of resources including the Small UAS Study Guide and the Remote Pilot Knowledge test Guide, Sporty's Drone Study Buddy will prepare you for the Remote Pilot FAA written test like no other study tool available. After reviewing the study material you can then study the test questions with three modes of operation. Test material is expertly organized into categories based on subject matter and includes, questions, answers, correct answers, and detailed explanations. • STUDY QUESTIONS BY TOPIC • Learning Mode allows you to create custom review sessions by selecting exactly which categories you want to review. Each session randomly generates the question order, and provides instant feedback based on your answer selection. Each question also provides a detailed description as to why each answer is right. These explanations were developed by Sporty’s team of Master Instructor’s, based on their experience preparing for the Remote Pilot certificate. • REVIEW QUESTION FLASHCARDS • Flashcard mode tests your knowledge by allowing you to only see the question without the answer choices. After answering the question mentally, you can then select to show the correct answer, and self-grade your progress along the way. This is a great feature that keeps you from being distracted by incorrect answers. • TAKE PRACTICE TESTS • Test mode randomly generates a 60-question session from the entire database of published FAA test questions, simulating the real Remote Pilot test. After answering all the questions, you’ll be given instant results, and have the option to review either all the questions, or just missed questions. Included in the review session are the same detailed explanations for why each answer is correct. • PROGRESS REPORTS • After completing each test your results are saved in the app's Progress Report section, where you can review previous scores and and a detailed history of each question and answer selection. You can also pause a partially-completed session, and resume it at a later time here. • REMOTE PILOT STUDY RESOURCES • To help you prepare for the knowledge areas covered on the Remote Pilot knowledge test we've included the following resources in the app: - Remote Pilot - Small UAS Study Guide - Remote Pilot - Smal UAS Airman Certification Standards - FAR Part 107 Advisory Circular

About

PlaneEnglish

Master aviation radio communication with an AI-powered simulator. Practice procedures, phraseology, and gain confidence talking to air traffic control through realistic scenarios and instant feedback. Earn FAA WINGS Credits while learning.

Highlights
  • AI-powered air traffic controllers
  • Voice recognition and speech analysis
  • Realistic training scenarios
  • Step-by-step phraseology lessons
  • Airport, pattern, and hold training
  • FAA WINGS Credits
  • VFR and IFR flight training
Features
Read full description

**No subscription required to find out what ARSim can do for you.** Practice aviation radio communication with interactive ATC scenarios, AI-powered controllers, voice recognition, and instant feedback. Build confidence, improve phraseology, and prepare for real-world communication before stepping into the cockpit.....and earn FAA WINGS Credits along the way. The PlaneEnglish Aviation Radio Simulator, or ARSim, helps pilots learn, practice, and improve aviation radio communication through realistic, interactive ATC scenarios. Whether you are a student pilot learning to talk on the radio for the first time, an instrument student preparing for IFR communications, or an experienced pilot refreshing your skills, ARSim gives you a practical way to build confidence outside the cockpit. With AI-powered air traffic controllers, voice recognition, speech analysis, and immediate feedback, ARSim helps you practice aviation phraseology, radio procedures, and real-world communication flows across VFR and IFR flight operations. ARSim includes structured training units designed to build your skills step by step: TRAINER helps you practice full ATC communication scenarios with guided lessons, randomized situations, and feedback on your radio calls. AIRPORT helps you learn airport signs, markings, lighting, and surface operations. PATTERN helps you understand and practice communications in the traffic pattern or circuit. HOLD helps you learn and practice instrument holding procedures. BASICS, GLOSSARY, and RESOURCES provide foundational knowledge, references, and supporting material to help you understand the language and structure of aviation communication. Across the app, you can access hundreds of airports, work through more than 200 lessons, and practice thousands of randomized ATC interactions covering many phases of VFR and IFR flight. Selected training units also allow eligible users to earn FAA WINGS credits...you won't find another communication tool that will do this for you! ARSim training content is guided by FAA and ICAO phraseology, standards, and radiotelephony procedures, helping pilots become more familiar with the communication practices used throughout aviation. For student pilots, ARSim provides an accessible way to build radio confidence before and between lessons. For experienced or non-current pilots, it offers a convenient way to refresh communication skills before returning to training, preparing for a flight review, or getting ready for a checkride. For flight schools and training organizations, ARSim can support more consistent communications practice across students and instructors. Download ARSim to explore the free content available in BASICS, AIRPORT, PATTERN, GLOSSARY, and RESOURCES, and use the free trial period to experience the full functionality of the app. You can also customize your experience in Settings, including phraseology standards, display options, and primary flight display preferences. Terms of Use: https://planeenglishsim.com/terms-and-conditions/ Privacy Policy: https://planeenglishsim.com/privacy/

Screenshots

Remote Pilot Study Buddy4 screens
PlaneEnglish4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PlaneEnglish at Free against Remote Pilot Study Buddy's $19.99. PlaneEnglish also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (326 vs 12). Remote Pilot Study Buddy's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 12) and rating (4.5 vs 4.1). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

PlaneEnglish is free to download; Remote Pilot Study Buddy costs $19.99 up front. PlaneEnglish sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Remote Pilot Study Buddy asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Remote Pilot Study Buddy holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PlaneEnglish has 326 ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of Remote Pilot Study Buddy's written reviews are positive against 63% of PlaneEnglish's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Remote Pilot Study Buddy ships an update every 4 months, PlaneEnglish every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Remote Pilot Study Buddy versus PlaneEnglish: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRemote Pilot Study BuddyPlaneEnglish
Price$19.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (12 ratings) — better4.1 (326 ratings)
Positive reviews90.9% of reviews — better63.4% of reviews
Number of ratings12326 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 5 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size62 MB381 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSporty's Pilot ShopPlaneEnglish

Customer experience

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

All ratings12 ratings
Positive91.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive90.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative9.1%

PlaneEnglish

All ratings326 ratings
Positive74.8%
Neutral9.2%
Negative16.0%
Written reviews142 reviews
Positive63.4%
Neutral15.5%
Negative21.1%

Bugs and requests

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

PlaneEnglish

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashing on startup
  • Voice recognition not working properly
  • Progress not saving between sessions
  • Incorrect callsign/aircraft type displayed in scenarios

Requested features

5 requests
  • More realistic ATC communication scenarios
  • Better feedback on pronunciation and pacing
  • Ability to add custom airports and scenarios
  • Offline mode for practicing without internet
  • Integration with flight simulators

In-app purchases

None

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

PlaneEnglish

Subscriptions9
  • VFR Monthly3 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • IFR Monthly3 Days trial$13.991 Month
  • VFR+IFR Monthly3 Days trial2 variants$15.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • VFR 6 Months3 Days trial$39.996 Months
  • IFR 6 Months3 Days trial$49.996 Months
  • VFR Annual3 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • VFR+IFR 6 Months3 Days trial2 variants$64.996 Months
  • IFR Annual3 Days trial$79.991 Year
  • VFR+IFR Annual3 Days trial2 variants$95.991 Year

Questions

Is Remote Pilot Study Buddy free?
Remote Pilot Study Buddy costs $19.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is PlaneEnglish free?
PlaneEnglish is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Remote Pilot Study Buddy or PlaneEnglish?
Remote Pilot Study Buddy is rated higher. Remote Pilot Study Buddy averages 4.5 out of 5 from 12 ratings, while PlaneEnglish averages 4.1 from 326 ratings.
Do Remote Pilot Study Buddy or PlaneEnglish have ads?
Neither Remote Pilot Study Buddy nor PlaneEnglish shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Remote Pilot Study Buddy or PlaneEnglish?
Remote Pilot Study Buddy ships an update every 4 months, and PlaneEnglish every 5 weeks. Most recently, Remote Pilot Study Buddy was updated on October 24, 2026 and PlaneEnglish on October 26, 2026.

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