Comparison

Private Pilot Test Prep vs ATSAPro

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

Head to head
About

Private Pilot Test Prep

Prepare for your FAA Private Pilot knowledge test with study questions, flashcards, and practice tests. Features explanations from experienced instructors and offline access to all figures. Designed for iPhone and iPad.

Highlights
  • Study questions by topic
  • Flashcard review mode
  • Randomized practice tests
  • Offline figure access
  • Progress saving and history
  • Explanations for answers
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Sporty's Study Buddy prepares you for the FAA Private Pilot 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 Private Pilot certificate. • 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, 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.

About

ATSAPro

Practice aptitude tests designed to mimic parts of the FAA's Air Traffic Controller exam. Improve your skills with interactive games that simulate the test's components. This app serves as a practice tool to enhance your readiness for the official assessment.

Highlights
  • Practice individual test parts
  • Improve aptitude skills
  • Simulates exam components
  • Interactive practice games
Features
Read full description

The Air Traffic Skills Assessment (ATSA) Exam is the FAA's current version of the aptitude test required to become an Air Traffic Controller. The FAA uses the ATSA to prescreen potential Air Traffic Controllers. The test includes several parts that evaluate the candidates aptitude. ATSAPro is designed to help improve ATSA Exam scores by allowing candidates to practice the individual parts of the test.* *Disclaimer: ATSAPro is in no way affiliated with the FAA or the ATSA exam. It makes no guarantee of passing the ATSA exam nor does it guarantee employment of any kind. ATSAPro is to be used as an aid to improve aptitude with games that may be similar to parts of the actual ATSA exam. Use ATSAPro at your own risk.

Screenshots

Private Pilot Test Prep4 screens
ATSAPro4 screens

Verdict

The call

Private Pilot Test Prep and ATSAPro both sit at 4.3 stars, but that hides the real split: 82% of Private Pilot Test Prep's written reviews are positive against 50% of ATSAPro's. Private Pilot Test Prep also leads on ratings volume (116 vs 9) and chart position (#26 vs unranked). ATSAPro's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 5 months) and price ($9.99 vs $14.99). On rating, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Private Pilot Test Prep costs $14.99 and ATSAPro $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.3 for Private Pilot Test Prep against 4.3 for ATSAPro. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Private Pilot Test Prep has 116 ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 82% of Private Pilot Test Prep's written reviews are positive against 50% of ATSAPro's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Private Pilot Test Prep ships an update every 5 months, ATSAPro weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Private Pilot Test Prep versus ATSAPro: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPrivate Pilot Test PrepATSAPro
Price$14.99$9.99 — better
Rating4.3 (116 ratings)4.3 (9 ratings) — better
Positive reviews81.8% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings116 — better9
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#26 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size62 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSporty's Pilot ShopType1Aviation LLC

Customer experience

Private Pilot Test Prep

All ratings116 ratings
Positive82.8%
Neutral4.3%
Negative12.9%
Written reviews66 reviews
Positive81.8%
Neutral6.1%
Negative12.1%

ATSAPro

All ratings8 ratings
Positive87.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative12.5%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

Private Pilot Test Prep

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • App crashes in test mode
  • Progress not saved on phone
  • Blackout bug when viewing figures or rotating screen
  • Crashes after deleting test sessions
  • Not updated for iPhone X
Show 1 more
  • Save function issues

Requested features

9 requests
  • Ability to save flagged questions across sessions
  • Randomized questions in test mode
  • Improved cross-device progress syncing (iCloud)
  • Interactive map features for practice
  • Search functionality for specific questions
Show 4 more
  • Dark mode option
  • Compatibility with iPhone X
  • More sample test questions from FAA
  • Bundle option for instrument written prep

ATSAPro

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Private Pilot Test Prep

No in-app purchases

None

ATSAPro

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Private Pilot Test Prep free?
Private Pilot Test Prep costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ATSAPro free?
ATSAPro costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Private Pilot Test Prep or ATSAPro?
ATSAPro is rated higher. Private Pilot Test Prep averages 4.3 out of 5 from 116 ratings, while ATSAPro averages 4.3 from 9 ratings.
Do Private Pilot Test Prep or ATSAPro have ads?
Neither Private Pilot Test Prep nor ATSAPro shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Private Pilot Test Prep or ATSAPro?
Private Pilot Test Prep ships an update every 5 months, and ATSAPro weekly. Most recently, Private Pilot Test Prep was updated on November 10, 2026 and ATSAPro on November 11, 2026.

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