FlightSpan vs Tachbase
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
FlightSpan
This app offers comprehensive flight operations tools for remote aviation. It includes flight planning, logging, performance calculations, and real-time tracking with communication capabilities. Users can access company charts, weather information, and hazard tracking for enhanced safety and efficiency.
- Flight planning tools
- Daily flight logs
- Weight and balance calculations
- Takeoff and landing performance
- Flight tracking and communication
- Moving map with custom charts
- NOTAM and hazard tracking
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A complete flight operations software solution specifically designed for remote contexts. FlightSpan provides flight crews with tools for flight planning, daily flight logs/journey logs, weight and balance, takeoff and landing performance, departure and arrival briefings with company runway charts, flight tracking and two way communications (when paired with a v2 Tracker), moving map with capability to use custom/company navigation charts, Notam and hazard identification tracking and more.
Tachbase
This app provides pilots with essential tools for flight planning, in-cockpit navigation, and flight logging. It offers offline access to charts, weather data, and airport information, enhancing situational awareness and simplifying post-flight record-keeping.
- Offline moving map with VFR/IFR charts
- Georeferenced approach plates and procedures
- Airport information and weather data
- Live traffic and weather with ADS-B receiver
- IFR/VFR flight plan filing and management
- Smart logbook with auto-logging and currency tracking
- Customizable checklists
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Tachbase is an electronic flight bag (EFB) for general aviation pilots — preflight planning, in-cockpit awareness, and logging in one fast, offline-first app for iPhone, iPad, and the web. FREE — EVERYTHING INCLUDED No subscription, nothing to buy. The moving map, charts and georeferenced plates, in-flight tools, and offline downloads all work without an account. Create a free account and nothing lives on one device: your logbook, flights, plans, aircraft, and checklists sync across iPhone, iPad, and the web — a lost iPad loses nothing. MOVING MAP Airports, airspace, navaids, fixes, airways, and military training routes — tap any feature for details. Airport diagrams draw on the map as you zoom in. Overlay VFR/IFR charts, live weather (radar, satellite, winds aloft, PIREPs, AIRMETs/SIGMETs), TFRs, and your route. Add range rings, centerlines, glide ring, and track breadcrumb. Download states & territories offline. CHARTS & PLATES FAA approach plates, departure/arrival procedures, airport diagrams, and takeoff/alternate minimums with pan/zoom — plus taxi diagrams where the FAA has none. Plates are georeferenced (your aircraft draws on the chart), drop any chart onto the map, and see NOTAMs for the current plate. AIRPORTS Frequencies, runway wind analysis, METARs/TAFs, NOTAMs, fuel & services, sunrise/sunset, and the chart supplement — all offline-ready. WEATHER Decoded METARs and TAFs, 270+ imagery products cached offline, live FAA weather cameras, and FIS-B weather with an ADS-B receiver. TRAFFIC & FLIGHT INSTRUMENTS Connect any GDL90 ADS-B receiver — Stratux, Stratus 3, SkyEcho — for live traffic and weather. A Primary Flight Display pairs an AHRS attitude indicator with an HSI that tracks your active leg or Direct-To. A customizable data bar adds terrain, obstacle, and traffic alerts with spoken callouts. FLIGHT PLANNING The route finder suggests routes ATC recently assigned — SIDs and STARs load with published legs on the map. Add approaches and airways, and check a vertical terrain profile with recommended MEA. Wind-corrected nav log with fuel planning, weight & balance, and PDF export. File, activate, amend, and close flight plans with Leidos Flight Services and official FAA/FSS briefings. Push alerts when your plan is accepted, amended, or closed, or en-route weather crosses your route. Direct-To with holds and track lines. CHECKLISTS Tap-to-run normal and emergency checklists — start from templates for popular GA aircraft or build your own. SMART LOGBOOK Log flights with approaches, passengers, and cost-splitting; auto-log with a GPS track; track FAA currency; and generate experience and 8710 reports. Import from ForeFlight or MyFlightbook, export ForeFlight-compatible CSV, with 30-day undelete. Sign entries inline or via QR for instructor endorsements. PLUS: Home Screen widgets (METARs, currency) and a live Lock Screen flight activity; an aircraft hangar with weight & balance and maintenance tracking; an E6B; an offline FAA library (FAR/AIM, handbooks, ACs); your own POHs and PDFs; iCloud backup; contacts; 8 themes. Tachbase supplements, not replaces, certified avionics and official sources. All data — aeronautical, weather, own-ship position — is for situational awareness only, not for primary or IFR navigation. Per FAA AC 91-78 and AC 120-76, the pilot in command must verify all information against official sources.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: FlightSpan at none against Tachbase's 2. FlightSpan also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. Tachbase sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. FlightSpan asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for FlightSpan against 5.0 for Tachbase. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5 and 2 respectively.
FlightSpan ships an update every 9 days, Tachbase every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | FlightSpan | Tachbase |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (5 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 5 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 68 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | JAARS, Inc. | 808 Heavy Industries LLC |
Customer experience
FlightSpan
Tachbase
In-app purchases
FlightSpan
No in-app purchases
Tachbase
- Tachbase Pro Monthly$5.991 Month
- Tachbase Pro Annual$59.991 Year









