Comparison

OptiFlight vs The Airline Simulator

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

Head to head
About

OptiFlight

Design intricate flight networks to connect cities and guide passengers efficiently. Adapt your routes to dynamic events like airport rushes and closures across over 350 themed levels. Test your strategic planning skills in historical, present-day, and weather-simulated scenarios.

Highlights
  • Design flight networks
  • Create historical flight maps
  • Simulate inclement weather
  • Use real-world cities
  • 350+ levels
  • Analyze in-game statistics
  • Compete on leaderboards
Features
Read full description

Step into the world of airline route planning, where your goal is to create a flight network to guide passengers to their destinations in a limited amount of time. You get to call the shots on which routes to draw and which cities to designate as hubs that best serve each scenario. The flight maps you design will also need to be efficient and flexible to accommodate for events that may occur, like airport rushes and closures, as its effects ripple throughout your network. With over 350 geographically and historically themed levels to play, each map you make will be put to the test. MAIN FEATURES - Take a step back in time and create flight maps for past historical scenarios, like the 1849 California Gold Rush and the 2012 London Olympic Games - Prepare for the future and create flight maps in realistic inclement weather simulation, including Hurricanes and Blizzards - Understand the present and create flight maps using actual cities, like New York City and Tokyo, to reflect real flight patterns FAN-FAVORITE LEVELS Vote for your favorite level in the Preferences page ① Big Game (Level 36, Contiguous US) ② Silk Road (Level 17, Asia) ③ Big Apple (Level 18, Contiguous US) ④ Sustain (Level 38, Contiguous US) ⑤ Sustain (Level 38, Europe) ⑥ Tourism Capital (Level 20, Oceania) OTHER FEATURES - Play 350+ levels across multiple maps like America, Europe, and Asia - Analyze in-game statistics to help fine-tune your flight map - Speed up or slow down the game to your comfort - Compete for the top spot on worldwide leaderboards - Simplistic interface and experience - No ads FUTURE FEATURES - More maps! - More levels! - More cities!

About

The Airline Simulator

Design your own airline, from aircraft liveries and logos to cabin configurations. Fly over 70 aircraft to more than 2,230 airports globally, with real-world data influencing flight demands. Track flights live on an interactive map.

Highlights
  • Design custom aircraft liveries and logos
  • Choose from 70+ modern airliners
  • Fly to 2,230+ global airports
  • Design unique cabin configurations
  • Interactive live flight tracking
  • Real-world data based flight demands
Features
Read full description

Build your dream airline with The Airline Simulator! Design your aircraft liveries and airline logos. Choose from 70+ planes and fly to 2,230+ airports worldwide. FLY FROM 2,230+ GLOBAL AIRPORTS 2,230+ Airports worldwide are supported! Each airport has its own operations and aircraft limits based on actual airports. Popular airports also come with unique illustrations. CUSTOM LOGO & LIVERY White or default liveries are boring! Create your airline's unique logo and livery that applies to all your aircraft. Choose from 20+ livery types and 40+ logo types. 70+ MODERN AIRLINERS Choose from 70+ aircraft from Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier and Embraer! Our aircraft data is up-to-date, including the Airbus A321LR, Airbus A321XLR, Boeing 737 MAX 10, Airbus A350-900ULR… and more. DESIGN UNIQUE CABIN CONFIGURATION Not all economy class seats are the same, and every aircraft has different configurations! Create unique seat configurations for every aircraft you own by choosing the seat product, layout and pitch for each class! Build anything from a dense 3-4-3 Airbus A350 to an all business Boeing 787. INTERACTIVE LIVE FLIGHT TRACKING We know you don't want to just look at screens with a bunch of lists. View how your flights are operating and even others' flights on the interactive map in real-time! REAL-WORLD DATA BASED DEMAND Already know which routes are busy in the real world? Our flight demands are based on real-world data. Operate 10+ daily flights on popular routes like JFK-LAX and HND-CTS! Start your aviation journey today and take to the skies!

Screenshots

OptiFlight4 screens
The Airline Simulator4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: The Airline Simulator at every 4 days against OptiFlight's every 6 weeks. The Airline Simulator also leads on review sentiment (90% vs 80%). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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

Both are free to download. OptiFlight sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and The Airline Simulator sells 14 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for OptiFlight against 4.7 for The Airline Simulator. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.3K and 963 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 80% of OptiFlight's written reviews are positive against 90% of The Airline Simulator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OptiFlight ships an update every 6 weeks, The Airline Simulator every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
OptiFlight versus The Airline Simulator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOptiFlightThe Airline Simulator
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (1.3K ratings)4.7 (963 ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews90.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.3K — better963
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size131 MB180 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKrish SuchdevHyungMoon Ko

Customer experience

OptiFlight

All ratings1,280 ratings
Positive92.2%
Neutral3.8%
Negative4.1%
Written reviews120 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral13.3%
Negative6.7%

The Airline Simulator

All ratings963 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral2.5%
Negative3.5%
Written reviews1,325 reviews
Positive90.3%
Neutral4.2%
Negative5.6%

Bugs and requests

OptiFlight

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

The Airline Simulator

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Game crashes when trying to buy planes
  • Profit claiming issue where only $743 is added instead of $743K

Requested features

7 requests
  • Competitive airline market and alliances
  • Airport and terminal upgrades
  • Realistic airline operations and challenges
  • Advanced aircraft customization and fleet management
  • Improved route scheduling and revenue optimization
Show 2 more
  • Enhanced branding and customization options
  • Realistic aircraft unlocking system

In-app purchases

3 purchases

OptiFlight

One-time3
  • Small Tip$1.00
  • OptiFlight Expansion$1.99
  • Large Tip$5.00
14 purchases

The Airline Simulator

One-time14
  • Small Diamonds$0.99
  • Welcome Pack II$2.99
  • Narrowbody Pack$4.99
Show 11 more
  • Small Pile of Diamonds$4.99
  • Welcome Pack$4.99
  • Ultra Long Range Pack$9.99
  • Flagship Aircraft Pack$9.99
  • Customization Points Pack$9.99
  • Daily Operations Pack$9.99
  • Acceleration Potion Package$9.99
  • Large Pile of Diamonds$9.99
  • Subsidiary Slot Pack$10.99
  • Small Chest of Diamonds$19.99
  • Large Chest of Diamonds$49.99

Questions

Is OptiFlight free?
OptiFlight is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is The Airline Simulator free?
The Airline Simulator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, OptiFlight or The Airline Simulator?
The Airline Simulator is rated higher. OptiFlight averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while The Airline Simulator averages 4.7 from 963 ratings.
Do OptiFlight or The Airline Simulator have ads?
Neither OptiFlight nor The Airline Simulator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OptiFlight or The Airline Simulator?
OptiFlight ships an update every 6 weeks, and The Airline Simulator every 4 days. Most recently, OptiFlight was updated on October 19, 2026 and The Airline Simulator on October 20, 2026.

Other comparisons