Comparison

PlaneWatcher vs FlightDeck

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

Head to head
About

PlaneWatcher

Visualize aircraft around you in real-time, worldwide, without needing your phone. Explore detailed flight information and customize your view with various filters and complications. Designed specifically for the Apple Watch.

Highlights
  • Real-time worldwide flight data
  • Visualize aircraft on watch
  • Detailed aircraft information
  • Aircraft following
  • Multiple filter options
  • Customizable view
  • Watch face complications
Features
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Flight Tracking for the Apple Watch • Visualize aircraft around you, without having to reach for your phone • Worldwide, real-time, unfiltered flight data by ADSBExchange • Explore all the aircraft details like flight name, registration, type, operator, altitude, speeds and more (depending on data availability) • Aircraft following • Filter by multiple criteria • Customizable view options • Complications to match your watch faces Requires WatchOS 10.0 or higher. Built for the Apple Watch PlaneWatcher was designed specifically for the Apple Watch, providing the best possible experience on this small device. The map rotates to align with the direction you're facing, so you can easily identify aircraft that you see around you. Use the digital crown to zoom in/out and touch & drag on the screen to move around the map. Unfiltered Flight Data PlaneWatcher shows you all aircraft, unfiltered, unlike most major flight tracking apps. Made possible by ADSBExchange, the world's largest source of unfiltered flight data. If you're a frequent user, please support them (adsbexchange.com/donate) or become a volunteer feeder to help expand the service. Local & Worldwide View aircraft around your current location or jump to any airport in the world. Use the digital crown to zoom in on a busy LAX or watch aircraft taking off and landing at JFK. Aircraft Details Simply tap on an aircraft to see all its details: flight name, registration, type, category, operator, altitude, speeds and more (depending on data availability). Aircraft Following Interested in a single aircraft? Follow it as it proceeds among the other traffic. Just tap the small blue dot to exit follow mode and return to the main map. Multiple Filters Just want to see aircraft below 10'000 feet, Boeing 747s or only planes from a certain airline? You can filter by altitude, type, callsign or registration. Filters can be combined, too. Customizability Customize the display using many options. You only want to see helicopters and hide all small airports? You can do that and much more... Complications Support With many different complications available, designed to fit into all color schemes, PlaneWatcher is always just a tap away. Privacy Policy: https://www.planewatcher.app/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.planewatcher.app/terms.html

About

FlightDeck

This app provides real-time flight tracking with AI-generated insights, offering context beyond raw data. It highlights notable aircraft, weather conditions, and airport details, with customizable alerts and emergency detection.

Highlights
  • Real-time flight tracking map
  • AI-generated flight briefs
  • Notable aircraft spotting
  • Weather intelligence overlays
  • Detailed airport information
  • Customizable flight alerts
  • Emergency squawk detection
Features
Currently charting
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Every plane in the sky. Every cockpit message. Every emergency, the second it happens. FlightDeck plugs into the same live feeds airlines and ATC run on and turns them into plain English. PILOT MESSAGES (ACARS) The digital messages pilots and dispatchers send worldwide, decoded live the moment they go out. Diversions, emergencies, mechanical issues, and the occasional cockpit humor. No other app shows you this. TRACK YOUR FLIGHT Follow any flight on your Lock Screen with real ATC-grade detail: IFR clearance, pushback, the exact runways it uses, even the inbound jet that becomes your flight. EVERYTHING ELSE Live weather radar, turbulence and pilot reports, D-ATIS, METARs, and plain-English NOTAMs. FAA ground stops and delays, active runways, gates, TSA waits, and approach charts. Emergency squawks are for military and government aircraft, and custom alerts you write in plain English. SUBSCRIPTION FlightDeck requires a subscription to use. We offer a weekly or yearly subscribtion. Privacy Policy: https://www.tryflightdeck.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://www.tryflightdeck.com/terms

Screenshots

FlightDeck4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: PlaneWatcher at 78% against FlightDeck's 19%. PlaneWatcher also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 6) and ads (none vs shown). FlightDeck's advantage is price (Free vs $9.99) and rating (4.6 vs 3.8).

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

FlightDeck is free to download; PlaneWatcher costs $9.99 up front. FlightDeck sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per 7 days. PlaneWatcher asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

FlightDeck holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: FlightDeck has 1.1K ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 78% of PlaneWatcher's written reviews are positive against 19% of FlightDeck's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PlaneWatcher ships an update every 6 weeks, FlightDeck every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard11 real differences · 0 level
PlaneWatcher versus FlightDeck: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPlaneWatcherFlightDeck
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating3.8 (22 ratings)4.6 (1.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.8% of reviews — better18.9% of reviews
Number of ratings221.1K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 4 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaid — betterSubscription
Best chart rank—#37 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size39 MB139 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGround Effect GmbHJAC LLC

Customer experience

PlaneWatcher

All ratings22 ratings
Positive68.2%
Neutral4.5%
Negative27.3%
Written reviews27 reviews
Positive77.8%
Neutral7.4%
Negative14.8%

FlightDeck

All ratings1,093 ratings
Positive88.7%
Neutral1.6%
Negative9.6%
Written reviews227 reviews
Positive18.9%
Neutral11.0%
Negative70.0%

In-app purchases

None

PlaneWatcher

No in-app purchases

6 purchases

FlightDeck

Subscriptions6
  • FlightDeck Pro$6.997 Days
  • FlightDeck Pro$12.997 Days
  • FlightDeck Pro$19.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • FlightDeck Pro$49.991 Year
  • FlightDeck Pro3 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • FlightDeck Pro3 Days trial$69.991 Year

Questions

Is PlaneWatcher free?
PlaneWatcher costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is FlightDeck free?
FlightDeck is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, PlaneWatcher or FlightDeck?
FlightDeck is rated higher. PlaneWatcher averages 3.8 out of 5 from 22 ratings, while FlightDeck averages 4.6 from 1.1K ratings.
Do PlaneWatcher or FlightDeck have ads?
FlightDeck shows ads; PlaneWatcher does not.
Which is updated more often, PlaneWatcher or FlightDeck?
PlaneWatcher ships an update every 6 weeks, and FlightDeck every 4 days. Most recently, PlaneWatcher was updated on September 25, 2026 and FlightDeck on September 24, 2026.

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