Comparison

Pilot vs SDVFR Next

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

Head to head
About

Pilot

This app decodes aviation weather reports and NOTAMs into plain language, reading them aloud in English or French. It displays a synchronized map showing airfields and NOTAMs as they are spoken, aiding pilots in pre-flight briefings.

Highlights
  • Spoken METAR, TAF, and NOTAM briefings
  • Plain language aviation terminology
  • Synchronized map with airfield and NOTAM display
  • Bilingual (English/French) support
  • Animated VFR charts and wind data
  • Route planning and nearest airfield finder
Features
Read full description

Weather and NOTAMs, read aloud. Decoding METAR, TAF and NOTAMs before every flight is slow and error-prone. Pilot Briefer turns them into plain language and reads them aloud, in English or French, with proper aviation terminology. A map follows the audio and shows each airfield and each NOTAM as it is spoken. Trusted by over 4,000 pilots. HOW IT WORKS 1. Choose Local Flight or Navigation 2. Pick your airfield (or departure and destination), or tap My Position to find the nearest one 3. Choose what you want: Weather, NOTAMs, or both 4. Tap Get Briefing and listen while you walk to the aircraft NEW: NOTAMS IN YOUR BRIEFING - NOTAMs for your airfield, or for your route from departure to destination - Read aloud in plain language, after the weather or on their own - Every NOTAM on the map with its own icon and, for an area, its outline - The map shows the NOTAM being spoken and opens its card: altitudes, radius, schedule, validity, full text - Choose what matters to you: VFR, IFR, en route, wide area - Set the altitude band and the corridor width along your route - The coded NOTAM is always one tap away WEATHER, THE WAY YOU WANT IT - Animated VFR charts, colour-coded by flight category (VFR, MVFR, IFR, LIFR) - Animated wind, ceiling and visibility, in sync with the audio - TAF forecast clock: see how conditions change across the forecast period - Weather cards: a clear summary of each airfield - Stale METARs and expired TAFs are flagged or left out, so you know how fresh the data is SUMMARY OR ITEM BY ITEM - Summary: one briefing for the whole route or area - Item by item: each airfield and each NOTAM in turn, on the map, in the text and in the audio NO COMPROMISE ON ACCURACY Every interpretation comes with the original coded report. Tap the Raw tab to read the METAR, TAF or NOTAM it was made from. WHY PILOTS USE IT - Spoken briefings: listen instead of reading - Bilingual English and French, with proper phraseology (QNH in hPa, feet, Zulu time) - Your route drawn on the map, from departure to destination - Nearest airfield from your GPS position - Keeps playing when the screen locks, with lock-screen controls - Thousands of airports, heliports and microlight fields, including French ULM strips - On iPhone and iPad PERFECT FOR - VFR pilots planning a local flight or a cross-country - Flight instructors walking students through the weather and NOTAMs - Student pilots learning to read METAR, TAF and NOTAMs - Microlight, glider and ULM pilots who need a fast briefing on the field IMPORTANT Pilot Briefer is a decision-support tool. It does NOT replace the official pre-flight briefing from your national aeronautical information service. Always check the weather and every NOTAM in full in official sources before flight. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

SDVFR Next

This app provides pilots with advanced navigation tools, including detailed European maps, weather forecasts, and flight planning capabilities. It supports custom waypoints, GPS tracking, and the ability to display multiple map layers simultaneously for comprehensive situational awareness.

Highlights
  • European vector maps
  • Day/night map styles
  • Customizable waypoints
  • GPS tracking and alerts
  • Weather forecasts (METAR, TAF, Wintems)
  • Flight planning and logging
  • Multi-device synchronization
Read full description

This application is designed for pilots of aircraft operating under visual flight rules (VFR). Coverage: Artic, France, British Isles, Eastern Europe, Iberia, Balkans, Italia, Scandinavia, Central Europe Features: - Application in English or French - Home made Europe vector map - Day and night styles - Remove upper airspaces with a ceiling filter - Traditional SDICAO map still available - Free ICAO additional maps (14 countries) - Chargeable maps available (see shop at https://skydreamsoft.fr) - Online maps (plan, terrain, satellite, hybrid) - Use your maps in MBTiles format - Use your map layers (KML, GeoJSON, SHP) - Display several maps simultaneously - Change maps according to zoom - Manage your custom waypoints - Georeferenced VAC maps (automatic zoom mode) - GPS tracking (speed vector & time bubbles) - Be alerted in the event of loss of GPS or traffic stream (GDL90) - Estimation of wind aloft - Height estimation (accurate terrain model) - Magnetic declination - Map options (auto-center, orientation) - Direct function (including localities search) - Live track - Replay tracks - Customisable black box - Export of tracks in KML and GPX formats - 2D and 3D track display - Stopwatches - VFR & IFR Notams - Zones from SUPAIP - RTBA (very low altitude network) activations - Double-tap airspace details - Flight profile - Navigation profile - Create your navigations in just a few clicks - Configurable flight log - Take into account climb/descent times - Drift and effective wind taken into account - Overlaps (radio navigation) - Help with choosing frequencies - Export and import of GPX, KML, PLN (Flight Simulator) and FPL (Garmin) navigations - METAR & TAF & SIGMET (raw and decoded) - Wintems (18 levels and 24-hour forecasts) - WINTEM and TEMSI weather maps from Météo-France - Weather radar - Data sheets for your aircraft - Weight and balance screen - Fuel estimates - Narrow route briefing (weather, airfields and notams on your route) - Generation of complete flight report - French documentation (VAC, AIP, ULM, SUP AIP, FFA ICARUS) - Load your personal documents and associate them with custom waypoints - Library of VFR & weather guides, map supplements, legends, etc. - Replace GPS with your flight simulator (FS2020/4, FSX, P3D, X-Plane, FlightGear, AeroFly) - Use SafeSky or your traffic detection unit with GDL90 - Synchronise navigations, aircraft, custom points and tracks between your devices - Numerous customisation options!

Screenshots

Pilot4 screens
SDVFR Next4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: SDVFR Next at none against Pilot's 4. SDVFR Next also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 9 days vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, device support and iOS requirement 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. Pilot sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. SDVFR Next asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pilot ships an update every 2 months, SDVFR Next every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Pilot versus SDVFR Next: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPilotSDVFR Next
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews72.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better16.5
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB71 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developeramenai technologiesSKYDREAMSOFT OOD

Customer experience

Pilot

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

SDVFR Next

Written reviews29 reviews
Positive72.4%
Neutral20.7%
Negative6.9%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Pilot

Subscriptions4
  • Premium · 30 briefings a month$0.991 Month
  • Premium+ · Unlimited briefings$1.991 Month
  • Premium · 30 briefings a month$9.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Premium+ · Unlimited briefings$19.991 Year
None

SDVFR Next

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pilot free?
Pilot is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SDVFR Next free?
SDVFR Next is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Pilot or SDVFR Next have ads?
Pilot shows ads; SDVFR Next does not.
Which is updated more often, Pilot or SDVFR Next?
Pilot ships an update every 2 months, and SDVFR Next every 9 days. Most recently, Pilot was updated on November 4, 2026 and SDVFR Next on November 8, 2026.

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