Private Pilot Checkride vs Instrument Pilot Test Prep
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Private Pilot Checkride
Prepare for your private pilot practical exam with over 900 questions and answers based on FAA standards. This app helps identify knowledge gaps and build confidence for your checkride, covering all essential aviation topics.
- Over 900 exam-style questions and answers
- Aligned with FAA Airman Certification Standards (ACS)
- Answers with FAA references and ACS codes
- Flag questions for custom study sets
- Includes Applicant Practical Test Checklist
- Covers all essential private pilot topics
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Using a question-and-answer format, Private Pilot Checkride lists the questions most likely to be asked by examiners during the last step in the pilot certification process – the Practical Exam – and provides succinct, ready responses. Pilots will find this App an indispensable tool in both planning for what to expect during the airplane checkride and mastering the subject matter. Instructors rate them as excellent preparation for students, as well as preps for Flight Reviews, aircraft transitions, and as general refresher material. This Private Pilot Checkride app is based on the popular Private Oral Exam Guide book by Jason Blair and aligns with the FAA Airman Certification Standards (ACS). It is designed for student pilots training for the Private Pilot Certificate with an airplane rating. More than 900 questions and responses ensure all the subjects a Private Pilot candidate will be tested on during a checkride and review flight are covered. Topics include: pilot qualifications and limitations, aircraft airworthiness requirements, preflight procedures, postflight procedures, human factors, performance and limitations, airport operations, national airspace system, weather information, cross-country flight planning, night operations, emergency equipment and survival gear, and scenario-based training. Answers and explanations were researched using FAA documents (which are identified so pilots know where to go for further study) as well as interviewing FAA examiners and include the corresponding ACS code. Questions can be marked for further study from any subject to build your own collection of flashcards. An Applicant Practical Test Checklist and quick-reference to the Private Pilot maneuvers and tolerances (as defined in the Airman Certification Standards) are also included. Compatible with iOS phones and tablets, this app teaches applicants not only what to expect, but also how to exhibit subject mastery and confidence when under the examiner’s scrutiny. It identifies candidates’ strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in their aeronautical knowledge, which increases study efficiency. App features: • More than 800 questions are included with succinct, ready responses. • Questions from any subject can be flagged for further study into a separate group. • Includes all the questions and answers from the popular book, Private Pilot Oral Exam Guide by Jason Blair. • Answers supported with FAA references and ACS codes. • Brought to you by a trusted resource in aviation training and publishing, Aviation Supplies & Academics (ASA).
Instrument Pilot Test Prep
Prepare for your FAA Instrument Rating knowledge test with study questions, flashcards, and practice tests. Access all figures offline and track your progress by topic. Designed for iPhone and iPad.
- Study questions by topic
- Flashcard review
- Randomized practice tests
- Offline figure access
- Progress tracking
- Resume study sessions
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Sporty's Study Buddy prepares you for the FAA Instrument Rating knowledge test (the "written") with three ways to study: Study Questions, Flashcards and Practice Tests. Questions are organized by knowledge area, with explanations of the right and wrong answers developed by Sporty's team of Master CFIs, based on their experience preparing students for the Instrument Rating. • STUDY QUESTIONS BY TOPIC • Choose whole knowledge areas or individual topics to build your own study session. As soon as you answer, you'll see the correct answer, why it's right, and where to read more. Change your answer anytime, bookmark questions as you go, and jump to any question from the question list. Every study session is shuffled. • REVIEW WITH FLASHCARDS • Flashcards show just the question, so you answer from memory before revealing the correct answer and its explanation. Mark each card Know It or Still Learning, then start a new session from the cards you're still learning. On iPhone Duo, study a card with the phone open and close it to check the answer. • TAKE PRACTICE TESTS • Each Practice Test draws 60 questions at random from the full question bank, gives you 2 hours, and is graded at the FAA's 70% passing score. Afterward, see your score by topic, review every question or only the ones you missed, and turn your misses into a new study session. • PICK UP WHERE YOU LEFT OFF • Sessions save as you go. The History tab lets you resume any session in progress and review past results, including your scores by topic. • EVERY FIGURE, OFFLINE • The Figures tab includes the complete FAA Airman Knowledge Testing Supplement for Instrument Rating, with every figure and legend listed by name and page. Swipe through the pages or open any one full screen. Questions show their figures right alongside, and you can study without a connection. Designed for iPhone, iPhone Duo and iPad, with Dark Mode and support for larger text sizes. The FAA does not publish its knowledge test questions, so the questions on your test won't necessarily appear in this app. Study Buddy is meant to complement your training, not to replace flight and ground instruction.
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Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Private Pilot Checkride at $9.99 against Instrument Pilot Test Prep's $14.99. Private Pilot Checkride also leads on rating (3.3 vs 3.1) and review sentiment (52% vs 39%). Instrument Pilot Test Prep's advantage is update cadence (every 5 months vs every 14 months) and chart position (#191 vs unranked). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Private Pilot Checkride costs $9.99 and Instrument Pilot Test Prep $14.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Private Pilot Checkride holds the better App Store score, 3.3 against 3.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 20 and 16 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 52% of Private Pilot Checkride's written reviews are positive against 39% of Instrument Pilot Test Prep's.
Private Pilot Checkride ships an update every 14 months, Instrument Pilot Test Prep every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 14, 2026 and November 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Private Pilot Checkride | Instrument Pilot Test Prep |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $9.99 — better | $14.99 |
| Rating | 3.3 (20 ratings) — better | 3.1 (16 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 52.2% of reviews — better | 39.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 20 — better | 16 |
| Update frequency | Every 14 months | Every 5 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #191 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 12 MB | 92 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | ASA | Sporty's Pilot Shop |
Customer experience
Private Pilot Checkride
Instrument Pilot Test Prep
In-app purchases
Private Pilot Checkride
No in-app purchases
Instrument Pilot Test Prep
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Private Pilot Checkride free?
Is Instrument Pilot Test Prep free?
Which has better reviews, Private Pilot Checkride or Instrument Pilot Test Prep?
Do Private Pilot Checkride or Instrument Pilot Test Prep have ads?
Which is updated more often, Private Pilot Checkride or Instrument Pilot Test Prep?
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