Holdshort vs PartFive
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Holdshort
Manage aircraft reservations and schedules from your mobile device. Syncs instantly with the desktop version, allowing you to view your flying agenda, check resource availability, and update flight logs on the go.
- Real-time sync with desktop app
- Event notifications
- Personal flying agenda view
- Multi-organization calendar access
- Resource and instructor availability
- Reservation management
- Aircraft dispatch and log updates
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The Holdshort App is a mobile version of the desktop aircraft scheduling app that allows you to add and manage your aircraft reservations on-the-go. App features include: - Immediate sync with the site - Event notifications - View personal flying agenda - Calendar access across multiple organizations, locations, and resources - Resource and instructor availability - Reservation adding, editing, and cancellation/removal - Aircraft dispatch & Hobbs/tach update (check-out/in) - Edit personal information and preferences Download the App to start scheduling & managing your aircraft today.
PartFive
This app helps independent flight instructors manage their entire business, from student progress tracking and lesson planning to scheduling, payments, and communication. It offers tools for logging flights, issuing endorsements, and conducting preflight risk assessments, all in a user-friendly interface designed for aviation professionals.
- Student progress tracking
- Digital logbook
- Endorsement management
- Lesson plan creation
- Preflight risk assessment (PAVE)
- Scheduling and payment processing
- In-app messaging and document sharing
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PartFive is built for the independent flight instructor — the CFI who runs their own training business, keeps their own records, and answers to their own standards. Everything you need to take a student from first lesson to checkride, on the ramp and in your pocket. STUDENT PROGRESS Every student's journey toward their certificate or rating, at a glance. Progress rings show where they actually stand against the syllabus, what's next, and who's overdue for a lesson. No spreadsheets. LOGBOOK Log a flight or ground session in seconds — dual, solo, PIC, landings, conditions. Your own flying counts too. Import an existing logbook, or export it to ForeFlight or a spreadsheet whenever you want. Your records stay yours. ENDORSEMENTS Issue and track endorsements with expiry dates, so nothing lapses quietly before a checkride. LESSON PLANS & SYLLABI Build a syllabus, plan a lesson, and share it with your student before they get to the airport. PREFLIGHT RISK PAVE assessments before the flight, and safety reporting when something needs writing down. SCHEDULE See what's on today, log a flight the moment it happens, and keep the calendar honest. GET PAID Send a payment request and collect the fee for a lesson right from the app. No invoices to chase. MESSAGES & DOCUMENTS Message your students directly. Share a syllabus, an ACS extract, or a photo of a whiteboard — with one student, or the whole roster. TOOLS & WEATHER Weight and balance, crosswind, fuel, and current conditions where you fly. BUILT FOR THE JOB Dense, readable, glare-friendly screens designed like avionics, not a toy. Dark and light. iPhone and iPad. SUBSCRIPTION New instructors get 30 days with everything unlocked. After that, keep a free tier for your own logbook, schedule, weather and PAVE preflight risk assessment — or subscribe for students, messaging, shared documents, Weight & Balance tools and AI assist. Your data is always yours to export. PartFive works alongside the PartFive web app — the same account and the same records, wherever you are. Questions? hello@partfive.app SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS PartFive Premium — $4.99 per month, or $49.99 per year. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. Manage your subscription or turn off auto-renew in your Apple Account settings after purchase. Terms of Use (EULA): https://partfive.app/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://partfive.app/privacy.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: PartFive at 5.0 against Holdshort's 2.5. PartFive also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 6 weeks). Holdshort's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ratings volume (6 vs 1). On price, 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
Both are free to download. PartFive sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Holdshort asks for nothing beyond the download.
PartFive holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Holdshort has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Holdshort ships an update every 6 weeks, PartFive every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Holdshort | PartFive |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.5 (6 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 15.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 6 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 39 MB | 30 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Holdshort Aviation Systems, LLC | PartFive LLC |
Customer experience
Holdshort
PartFive
In-app purchases
Holdshort
No in-app purchases
PartFive
- PartFive Premium Monthly$4.991 Month
- PartFive Premium Annual$49.991 Year









