Comparison

Surveyor vs FlightDeck

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

Head to head
About

Surveyor

This app transforms your real-world journeys into a collectible map. As you move, new map tiles are revealed, showcasing your explored areas and inspiring future adventures. It's designed for anyone who loves to explore, from daily commuters to long-distance travelers.

Highlights
  • Collectible map creation
  • Real-world travel tracking
  • Location/tile data privacy
  • Friend leaderboards
  • Background tracking
  • Manual backup and export
  • Multiple tile sizes
Features
Read full description

Explore the world. Unlock your map. Surveyor-64 turns your real-world travels into a living, collectible map. The whole planet starts hidden tiles. Each step, drive, or trip you take uncovers new tiles, revealing where you've been and inspiring where to go next. Rediscover your city through fresh eyes. Watch your personal atlas grow tile by tile, at three scales at once: macro tiles for regions, minor tiles for neighborhoods, micro tiles for streets. Light up a country's flag the first time you set foot in it. Compete with friends to see who's explored the most, or wander solo and enjoy the quiet satisfaction of unlocking the unknown. Built for explorers, travelers, and wanderers of every kind. Whether you're on a cross-country road trip or just taking a different route home, Surveyor-64 makes every movement meaningful. FEATURES - Obscured map at three tile sizes (regional, neighborhood, street-level), ready to be revealed - Country passport: 195 flags, each lit by your first visit - City detection with a live percentage for the city you're in - Statistics: global, per-city, discovery timeline, projected finish - Reveal tour: replay your travels as a cinematic fly-through, record it, share it - Friend leaderboards at every tile size, joined by invite code - Background tracking (with permission) and optimized battery performance - Cinematic and zen modes for a distraction-free map - Manual backup: export and import your save file at any time - Your location data stays on your device; only aggregate tile counts are shared with friends if you choose - Water Mode: lift the fog from the ocean so your map ends at the coast, at all 3 resolutions - Unreachable Cells: mark fenced-off sites and private land so your 100% is a 100% you can actually reach - Region focus: isolate a single city and see its progress alone https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

FlightDeck

This app provides real-time flight tracking with AI-generated insights, offering context beyond raw data. It highlights notable aircraft, weather conditions, and airport details, with customizable alerts and emergency detection.

Highlights
  • Real-time flight tracking map
  • AI-generated flight briefs
  • Notable aircraft spotting
  • Weather intelligence overlays
  • Detailed airport information
  • Customizable flight alerts
  • Emergency squawk detection
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Every plane in the sky. Every cockpit message. Every emergency, the second it happens. FlightDeck plugs into the same live feeds airlines and ATC run on and turns them into plain English. PILOT MESSAGES (ACARS) The digital messages pilots and dispatchers send worldwide, decoded live the moment they go out. Diversions, emergencies, mechanical issues, and the occasional cockpit humor. No other app shows you this. TRACK YOUR FLIGHT Follow any flight on your Lock Screen with real ATC-grade detail: IFR clearance, pushback, the exact runways it uses, even the inbound jet that becomes your flight. EVERYTHING ELSE Live weather radar, turbulence and pilot reports, D-ATIS, METARs, and plain-English NOTAMs. FAA ground stops and delays, active runways, gates, TSA waits, and approach charts. Emergency squawks are for military and government aircraft, and custom alerts you write in plain English. SUBSCRIPTION FlightDeck requires a subscription to use. We offer a weekly or yearly subscribtion. Privacy Policy: https://www.tryflightdeck.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://www.tryflightdeck.com/terms

Screenshots

Surveyor4 screens
FlightDeck4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Surveyor at 86% against FlightDeck's 18%. Surveyor also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). FlightDeck's advantage is ratings volume (1.5K vs 20) and chart position (#37 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Surveyor sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and FlightDeck sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Surveyor holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: FlightDeck has 1.5K ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 86% of Surveyor's written reviews are positive against 18% of FlightDeck's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Surveyor ships an update weekly, FlightDeck every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Surveyor versus FlightDeck: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSurveyorFlightDeck
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (20 ratings) — better4.5 (1.5K ratings)
Positive reviews85.7% of reviews — better18.3% of reviews
Number of ratings201.5K — better
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 4 days — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
Best chart rank—#37 — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS17.5 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size169 MB139 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperShrub Software LLCAttracts

Customer experience

Surveyor

All ratings20 ratings
Positive95.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive85.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative14.3%

FlightDeck

All ratings1,462 ratings
Positive86.6%
Neutral1.7%
Negative11.7%
Written reviews279 reviews
Positive18.3%
Neutral10.8%
Negative71.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Surveyor

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly Subscription$0.991 Month
One-time1
  • Lifetime$19.99
6 purchases

FlightDeck

Subscriptions6
  • FlightDeck Pro$6.997 Days
  • FlightDeck Pro$12.997 Days
  • FlightDeck Pro$19.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • FlightDeck Pro$49.991 Year
  • FlightDeck Pro3 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • FlightDeck Pro3 Days trial$69.991 Year

Questions

Is Surveyor free?
Surveyor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is FlightDeck free?
FlightDeck is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Surveyor or FlightDeck?
Surveyor is rated higher. Surveyor averages 4.8 out of 5 from 20 ratings, while FlightDeck averages 4.5 from 1.5K ratings.
Do Surveyor or FlightDeck have ads?
Both Surveyor and FlightDeck show ads.
Which is updated more often, Surveyor or FlightDeck?
Surveyor ships an update weekly, and FlightDeck every 4 days. Most recently, Surveyor was updated on October 24, 2026 and FlightDeck on October 26, 2026.

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