Comparison

AirEFB vs VatView

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

Head to head
About

AirEFB

This app centralizes flight charts, technical manuals, and checklists for pilots. It integrates with a flight simulator to provide real-time airport maps, traffic data, and weather information for easier navigation and ground operations.

Highlights
  • Centralized chart and manual storage
  • Interactive flight checklists
  • Airport data and ground taxi maps
  • Real-time traffic and weather display
  • X-Plane flight simulator integration
  • Document manager for PDF files
Features
Read full description

Whether you want to keep all your charts and technical manuals in one single place, have a concise way of performing flight checklists or want to know your way around the airport while on the ground and taxiing, AirEFB allows you to do just that in one single iPad app. Designed to integrate with the X-Plane flight simulator, AirEFB provides an interface layer to all the documents you need to carry onboard and an absolute must have to find your way to holding point X or runway Y while on the ground. Using our next generation communications protocol you can connect AirEFB to X-Plane seamlessly and effortlessly. Install a simple plugin and it all happens automatically, on the fly and over the Air; no need to configure anything. AirEFB is compatible with iPad devices running iOS 9 or later, in all its screen sizes, and connects to X-Plane versions 9, 10 and 11. CHARTS allows you to access your own synched PFD approach plates, your Air Account uploaded charts, and over 4GB of US airport charts as published by the FAA. A DOCUMENTS manager allows you to load and query your own aircraft specifications and technical documents in PDF format. With CHEKLISTS you can create your own aircraft checklists and go through them, as well as load any lists in XChecklist (clist.txt) format or beam them down from X-Plane automatically. Plus the PLANE INTERFACE feature allows items to be preemptively marked completed by looking at their corresponding datarefs before you set them as done. And last (for now) but certainly not least, the AIRPORT DATA & MAP section allows you lookup your favourite airport and display it, together with your plane and all surrounding traffic with beautiful graphics and animations. Know where you are in an airport, its ATC frequencies in use, the current weather and real-time, wind and altimeter settings as well as seeing all surrounding traffic moving as they do. Taxing will never be the same again. AirEFB currently supports X-Plane native ATC traffic as well as JAR design's X-Life traffic.

About

VatView

Track air traffic controllers and flight information on the VATSIM network. View active ATC stations, frequencies, and ATIS messages. Explore an interactive map showing pilots and controllers, or search for airport-specific flight data.

Highlights
  • Interactive VATSIM map
  • Live METAR weather data
  • Filterable pilot and ATC lists
  • Airport-specific flight information
  • Enroute and FSS control areas
  • ATC bookings
Features
Read full description

VatView is a mobile app that allows flight simulation enthusiasts to track ATC presence and flight information on the VATSIM network. VatView aims to be your ultimate VATSIM companion! It provides easy access to active VATSIM terminal area ATC stations and frequencies and exposes the ATIS message easily. It also shows enroute ATC, including marking land, oceanic, UIR and FSS VATSIM controlled areas on the map. VatView features three main views: - a map displaying all pilots and air traffic controllers currently connected to the VATSIM network. - A filterable and searchable list page - displaying a detailed list of all connected pilots and ATC. - An airport search page - which concentrates all connected ATC, active flights and prefiled flight plans for a specific airport. VATSIM (short for the Virtual Air Traffic Simulation Network) is a completely free online platform that allows Flight simulator enthusiasts connect and fly virtually on one shared virtual aviation eco system. It simulates Air Traffic Control (ATC) with full voice and network connection between virtual pilots flight on flight simulator software and virtual air traffic controllers using software for providing ATC services. It is as real as it gets. It supports Microsoft's Flight simulator (MSFS, FSX and FS9), P3D and X-Plane. For more information visit https://www.vatsim.net. Features: - An Interactive map displaying VATSIM pilots and ATC - Detailed aircraft and terminal ATC station Icons - Enroute and FSS control areas - Live METAR (weather) data for any airport - ATC Bookings - Always up to date FIR boundaries synced with VATSpy's data project - Detailed flight information - Filterable and searchable list screen - An easy way to get all relevant terminal area stations with the relevant ATIS message * The app uses the storage permission to cache large airspace data it needs to display on the map. Disclaimer: The author is not affiliated with the VATSIM Organization in any way (other than being an enthusiastic user and member of the community)

Screenshots

AirEFB4 screens
VatView4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: VatView at Free against AirEFB's $17.99. VatView also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 4 months) and review sentiment (25% vs 0%). AirEFB's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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

VatView is free to download; AirEFB costs $17.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

AirEFB ships an update every 4 months, VatView weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
AirEFB versus VatView: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAirEFBVatView
Price$17.99Free — better
Rating4.5 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews25.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidAd-supported — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size354 MB54 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJoao CabralOren Geva

Customer experience

AirEFB

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

VatView

Written reviews4 reviews
Positive25.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative25.0%

In-app purchases

None

AirEFB

No in-app purchases

None

VatView

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is AirEFB free?
AirEFB costs $17.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is VatView free?
VatView is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do AirEFB or VatView have ads?
VatView shows ads; AirEFB does not.
Which is updated more often, AirEFB or VatView?
AirEFB ships an update every 4 months, and VatView weekly. Most recently, AirEFB was updated on October 6, 2026 and VatView on October 4, 2026.

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