Comparison

X vs Flight Deck AR

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

Head to head
About

X

Experience realistic flight with a detailed physics engine and interactive 3D cockpits. Explore thousands of airports and engage in various missions. It's designed for aspiring pilots and aviation enthusiasts.

Highlights
  • Realistic flight physics engine
  • Interactive 3D cockpits
  • Detailed terrain and 3D airports
  • Full startup procedures
  • Emergency scenarios and combat missions
  • Massive multiplayer mode
Features
Read full description

The most realistic aircraft. The world at your fingertips. It’s not a game, it’s a flight simulator. ▶ "Highly recommended." — Mel Martin, Engadget ◀ ▶ Featured by Apple in "Best New Games" ◀ ▶ Over 1 million downloads! ◀ Come experience why real pilots fly X-Plane. It starts with the flight model—the same flight model used in our FAA-certified desktop simulator—that’s complete enough to model the flex in your wings & the tilt in your landing gear. Add to that our desktop-quality aircraft with multiple liveries and interactive 3-D cockpits—so detailed you can do a full startup procedure using the hundreds of buttons, knobs, & switches in the cockpit. With working gauges, flight displays, & more, these cockpits are as realistic as those in our full desktop sim. But aircraft are no good without a place to fly them. That's why each of our 5 ▸free◂ regions features detailed terrain, lifelike city buildings, & 3D airports—complete with terminal buildings, jetways, hangars, & more. Want more? Subscribe to unlock global scenery, and get access to over 37,000 airports, with more than 11,500 airports featuring 3D terminals, hangars, & more. ▶ FEATURES √ 9 ▸free◂ tutorials, teaching the basics of takeoffs & landings, traffic patterns, helicopters, & more √ Massive multiplayer with thousands of other pilots and controllers in a single shared world (Professional subscribers only; non-subscribers can get free trial flights for a limited time) √ Fully interactive cockpits on many aircraft, wired to real systems models, with working gauges, displays, buttons, & switches √ Full startup procedures supported on many aircraft (optionally start any aircraft from cold & dark) √ More than 50 systems modeled, each of which can be failed on command √ Emergency scenarios √ Combat missions ▶ AIRCRAFT The app includes 2 aircraft (plus 5 scenery regions) for free. In addition, the following aircraft are available as in-app purchases: • ▸Free!◂ Cessna 172SP w/ 4 liveries • ▸Free!◂ Cirrus Vision SF50 w/ 5 liveries • Cirrus SR22 w/ 3 liveries • Cessna Citation X w/ 3 liveries • Airbus A320 Airliner w/ 3 liveries • Airbus A330-300 Airliner w/ 3 liveries • Boeing B737-800 Airliner w/ 3 liveries • Boeing B777-200ER Airliner w/ 3 liveries • Boeing B747-400 Jumbo Jet w/ 3 liveries • Bombardier CRJ200 Regional Jet w/ 3 liveries • Douglas DC-3 Airliner w/ 3 liveries • McDonnell Douglas MD-80 w/ 3 liveries • A-10 Thunderbolt II (“Warthog”) Fighter • F-22 Raptor Fighter • F-4 Phantom II Fighter • Beechcraft Baron B58 • Beechcraft King Air C90B • Piper PA-18 Super Cub • Piaggio P.180 Avanti • Sikorsky S76 Helicopter ▶ SCENERY 5 scenery regions are ▸free◂ for everyone! • Oahu, Hawaii • Grand Canyon • Seattle/Tacoma, Washington • Juneau, Alaska • Innsbruck, Austria Global scenery is available by purchasing a monthly or yearly subscription. ▶ MULTIPLAYER Join tens of thousands of pilots and controllers in a single, shared world! Take part in the Fly-In of the Day to meet up with hundreds of other pilots, or explore the MMO world for spontaneous encounters with fellow aviators. X-Plane Mobile's massive multiplayer experience continues to grow, with ongoing updates bringing new features, refinements, and improvements to make flying together even better. Terms of Service available at: https://www.x-plane.com/x-plane-mobile-terms-of-service/ Download X-Plane now to experience aviation like never before.

About

Flight Deck AR

Transform your mobile device into a head tracker for X-Plane. Experience natural cockpit views that follow your head movements without any extra hardware or complex setup. Enjoy enhanced immersion in your flight simulations.

Highlights
  • Real-time head tracking with device camera
  • Native X-Plane integration
  • Zero-setup, plug-and-fly functionality
  • Supports all X-Plane aircraft
  • Cross-platform compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux)
  • Auto-pause when face is not detected
  • Per-aircraft settings
Read full description

Turn your iPad or iPhone into a powerful head tracker and fly more naturally. No clips, no sensors, no plugins, no IP configurations. Just launch the app and your cockpit view follows your head instantly. Why Flight Deck AR? • Native integration: built directly on X-Plane’s official UDP/Datarefs. • Cross-platform: works with X-Plane on Windows, macOS, and Linux. • Zero setup: no IP config, no DLLs, no drivers, no emulation, no calibration. Plug & fly. • All aircraft supported: from Laminar defaults to complex add-ons. • Simple hardware: just your iPad or iPhone camera. • Lightweight & smooth: optimized for performance and stability. Features: • Real-time head tracking with your device’s camera • Native X-Plane integration (UDP & datarefs) • Full integration, zero-config, with X-Camera plugin • Camera controls, with custom head-tracked cameras for each Aircraft • Auto-Pause: pause the sim if face is not detected for a prolonged period. • Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux • Zero setup: launch, connect, and fly • Supports all aircraft (default + add-ons) • Uses only your iPad or iPhone camera • Smooth, lightweight, and responsive head tracking • Ready-to-use presets for common scenarios • Advanced settings for fine-tweaking • Per Aircraft settings. Each configuration of the tracker is linked automatically and independently to the currently loaded Aircraft. • No extra hardware required • Control the App from your X-Plane joystick • Eye Tracking (BETA) Fly naturally Move your head, look around. Lean forward to read instruments. Glance left and right on final. With Flight Deck AR, your cockpit becomes as alive as the real thing, without extra gear. Compatibility • Requires X-Plane 11 or 12 on Windows, macOS, or Linux. • No additional plugins or configuration needed. • Compatible devices: iPhone X and later (all models) iPhone SE (3rd generation and later) iPad Pro 11-inch (all models) iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation and later) iPad Air (4th generation and later) iPad mini (6th generation and later) The future of head tracking Unlike TrackIR or FreeTrack, Flight Deck AR is built for X-Plane, not hacked around it. It’s the first head tracker that works wherever X-Plane does, and it just works. Flight Deck AR. Plug & fly. Flight Deck AR transforms your iPad or iPhone into a powerful head tracker for X-Plane. Using just your device’s camera, you can move your head naturally and watch the cockpit view respond instantly. Enjoy a more immersive flying experience without wires, sensors, or complicated setups. Made for X-Plane pilots who want immersion, simplicity, and performance. Terms of use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

X4 screens
Flight Deck AR4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Flight Deck AR at 5.0 against X's 4.0. Flight Deck AR also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 58%) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). X's advantage is ratings volume (25K vs 3) and update cadence (every 6 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. X sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Flight Deck AR sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Flight Deck AR holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: X has 25K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of X's written reviews are positive against 100% of Flight Deck AR's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

X ships an update every 6 days, Flight Deck AR every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
X versus Flight Deck AR: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterXFlight Deck AR
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (25K ratings)5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews58.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings25K — better3
Update frequencyEvery 6 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.6
Further details — not scored
Size1.0 GB65 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperLaminar ResearchVisuality srl

Customer experience

X

All ratings24,677 ratings
Positive74.6%
Neutral7.2%
Negative18.2%
Written reviews2,677 reviews
Positive58.0%
Neutral14.5%
Negative27.6%

Flight Deck AR

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

X

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Altitude hold issues in the MD-80
  • Inconsistent cockpit quality across different planes
  • Unexpected plane behavior during takeoff and landing

Requested features

5 requests
  • More free planes, especially commercial airliners
  • Larger free flight area and more airports
  • Improved autopilot and flight planning features
  • Addition of ground services like pushback and jetways
  • More realistic weather, lighting, and environmental effects

Flight Deck AR

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

X

Subscriptions2
  • X-Plane Mobile Basic$4.991 Month
  • X-Plane Mobile Professional$5.991 Month
One-time8
  • Piper SuperCub$0.99
  • Baron B58$1.99
  • Sikorsky S76$2.99
Show 5 more
  • Airbus A320$4.99
  • F-22 Raptor$4.99
  • Boeing 777-200ER$4.99
  • Boeing 747-400$4.99
  • Boeing B737-800$4.99
1 purchases

Flight Deck AR

One-time1
  • Flight Deck AR PRO$11.99

Questions

Is X free?
X is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Flight Deck AR free?
Flight Deck AR is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, X or Flight Deck AR?
Flight Deck AR is rated higher. X averages 4.0 out of 5 from 25K ratings, while Flight Deck AR averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.
Do X or Flight Deck AR have ads?
Neither X nor Flight Deck AR shows ads.
Which is updated more often, X or Flight Deck AR?
X ships an update every 6 days, and Flight Deck AR every 2 weeks. Most recently, X was updated on November 10, 2026 and Flight Deck AR on November 8, 2026.

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