Comparison

PilotBound vs ATM Academy

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

Head to head
About

PilotBound

This app provides a personalized roadmap for aspiring pilots, guiding them from the initial decision to fly through to passing their checkride. It tracks flight hours and costs against a custom plan, offering CFI guidance at each step. Users can log flights, monitor progress, and understand their real expenses.

Highlights
  • Personalized flight training roadmap
  • Cost projection and tracking
  • Flight hour logging
  • Progress monitoring against requirements
  • CFI guidance on training steps
  • Per-aircraft and per-certificate costing
Features
Read full description

Most flight training tools were built for working pilots. They assume you already know what FAR 61.109 is, and what training really costs. PilotBound was built for the years before that, when you're still figuring out the path. PilotBound gives you a personalized plan from "I want to fly" to "checkride passed," then tracks your hours and your money against it the whole way. YOUR PLAN, START TO CHECKRIDE • A step-by-step roadmap built around your goal and where you start today • Four stages: Decide, Prepare, Train, Checkride • Pick your path, estimate the cost, and plan how you'll pay • Discovery flight, choosing a school or instructor, medical, student certificate, ground school, and gear, in the right order • First solo, first cross-country, the written, and the checkride, checked off as you go • Plain CFI guidance on every step: what to do, what to skip, what to watch KNOW YOUR REAL COST • Cost projection from your aircraft, instructor rates, and region • Live total of what you've spent, what's left, and where the money went • Per-aircraft costing: a Cessna 152 and a Cirrus track separately • One projection per certificate: Private, Instrument, Commercial, CFI, CFII, ATP • Sharpens with every flight you log. Your number, not a national average KNOW WHERE YOU STAND • Every Part 61 or Part 141 requirement, completed and remaining • Hours toward Private, Instrument, Commercial, CFI, or ATP • Milestones detected automatically: first solo, first cross-country, first night • Training momentum, visible at a glance LOG EVERY FLIGHT • Every FAA field: PIC, dual, solo, cross-country, night, instrument, approaches, landings, holds • Costs pre-filled from your aircraft and instructor rates on every flight • Your training data stays private Built for student pilots learning to fly. Whether you're deciding to start, working through Instrument, or earning Commercial, your plan, your hours, and your cost live in one place. By downloading PilotBound, you agree to the Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/.

About

ATM Academy

Features
Read full description

ATM Academy is an educational aviation app designed to help students, aviation enthusiasts, and future air traffic controllers learn the fundamentals of Air Traffic Management (ATM) and Air Traffic Control (ATC). The app combines structured lessons, quizzes, radar-style simulation, and operational concepts into an interactive learning experience. Topics include: • Air traffic control basics • Flight phases and procedures • ATC phraseology • Separation and conflict awareness • Tower, approach, and en-route operations • Runway safety • Radar simulation exercises • Future ATM automation concepts Features: • Beginner to advanced ATM lessons • Interactive quiz system • Radar-style training simulation • Scenario-based learning • Clean dark aviation-inspired interface • Multilingual support This app is for educational and training purposes only. It is not connected to real-world aviation systems and must not be used for operational air traffic control.

Screenshots

PilotBound4 screens
ATM Academy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: ATM Academy at every 5 days against PilotBound's every 3 weeks. ATM Academy also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.6). 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PilotBound ships an update every 3 weeks, ATM Academy every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on September 11, 2026 and September 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
PilotBound versus ATM Academy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPilotBoundATM Academy
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.613.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size22 MB24 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperFlightXplorer LLCYANTAO ZHAO

In-app purchases

None

PilotBound

No in-app purchases

None

ATM Academy

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PilotBound free?
PilotBound is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ATM Academy free?
ATM Academy is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do PilotBound or ATM Academy have ads?
Neither PilotBound nor ATM Academy shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PilotBound or ATM Academy?
PilotBound ships an update every 3 weeks, and ATM Academy every 5 days. Most recently, PilotBound was updated on September 11, 2026 and ATM Academy on September 10, 2026.

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