Squawk vs Airplanes.live
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Squawk
Instantly identify aircraft in the sky with real-time flight data. Track planes, set custom alerts for specific aircraft types, and view detailed flight paths. Explore airport information, log your sightings, and even use AR to label planes overhead.
- Live flight map with real-time updates
- Detailed flight information and history
- Customizable alert zones for aircraft
- Augmented Reality (AR) sky view
- Airport arrival/departure boards
- Flight logging and spotting badges
- Radio ATC transcription (external hardware)
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Ever look up and wonder what that plane is? Squawk tells you — instantly. Squawk turns your phone into a live window on the sky above you. Tap any aircraft to see where it's going, what it is, who's flying it, and the exact path it's taken. Set up an alert zone and get a push when military or widebody aircraft cross it — even with the app closed. Whether you're a serious plane spotter or just curious about the jet leaving a contrail over your house, Squawk was built for you. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Live map — Every plane in the sky, updating in real time, with altitude-colored trails • Tap to track — Flight details, route, aircraft type, operator, and full flight path • AR sky view — Point your phone at the sky and see planes labeled right where they are • Alert zones — Draw zones anywhere and get a push when military or widebody aircraft enter them, plus alerts for specific aircraft, type takeoffs, military bases and emergencies • Track your flight — Add your own flights and follow every phase from gate to landing, with live status and a boarding-pass card • Airports — Live arrival/departure boards, weather, runways, and frequencies • Logbook — Keep a record of everything you've spotted, earn badges, and climb the spotter ranks • Radio transcriber — Connect your own radio and get live ATC transcription (external hardware required) • More to explore — Rocket-launch visibility, day/night terminator, oceanic tracks, weather radar, winds aloft, and 24-hour and 30-day replay with flight history HOW SQUAWK PRO WORKS Squawk is a subscription app: everything above is part of Squawk Pro. New subscribers can start the yearly plan with a 1-week free trial — you're charged when the trial ends unless you cancel at least 24 hours before. The monthly plan is billed right away, with no trial. FOR SPOTTERS, BY SPOTTERS Squawk shows real data, real trails, and real aircraft — no filler, no fake feeds. Just an honest, beautiful look at what's actually flying. Look up. Tap. Know. SQUAWK PRO SUBSCRIPTION • Squawk Pro Monthly — $4.99 per month • Squawk Pro Yearly — $34.99 per year ($2.92 per month) Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel in Apple Account settings. Privacy Policy: https://getsquawk.app/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://getsquawk.app/terms
Airplanes.live
Track live aircraft in the sky, including airliners, general aviation, helicopters, and military traffic. View detailed flight information, weather overlays, and a radar-scope view with convergence alerts. Offers a Pro version with advanced features for a fee.
- Live aircraft tracking
- Detailed flight information
- Weather radar overlay
- ATC scope mode
- Convergence alerts
- Search by callsign/registration
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See every aircraft in the sky — unfiltered. Airplanes.live is a live flight tracker powered by the community-run airplanes.live receiver network. Unlike other trackers, it shows you everything the network sees: airliners, general aviation, helicopters, and the military and privacy-flagged traffic that other apps remove. THE MAP • Live aircraft colored by altitude, with type-specific silhouettes • Tap any aircraft for photos, route, altitude, speed, and registered owner • Flight trails, search by callsign / registration / hex • Light and dark maps, all served from our own infrastructure WEATHER • Live NOAA/NWS radar overlay, animated or latest-frame • See the weather traffic is flying around, in real time ATC SCOPE MODE • A radar-scope view with data blocks — callsign, flight level, speed, type • Convergence alerts between converging aircraft • Emergency squawk (7500/7600/7700) highlighting PRO • Weather radar, advanced filters, unlimited watchlist, and alerts • Feed data to airplanes.live? Pro is free for feeders. Aircraft positions come from publicly broadcast ADS-B signals received by a volunteer community. For informational and educational use — not for navigation, separation, or safety-of-life purposes. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Terms of Service: https://airplanes.hughesit.us/terms Privacy Policy: https://airplanes.hughesit.us/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
Squawk and Airplanes.live both sit at 4.9 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of Squawk's written reviews are positive against 50% of Airplanes.live's. Squawk also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs fortnightly) and ratings volume (18 vs 3). Airplanes.live's advantage is monetization model (freemium vs subscription). On price, rating, 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
Both are free to download. Squawk sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Airplanes.live sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Squawk against 5.0 for Airplanes.live. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Squawk has 18 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 100% of Squawk's written reviews are positive against 50% of Airplanes.live's.
Squawk ships an update every 2 days, Airplanes.live fortnightly. Both last shipped on November 13, 2026.
| Parameter | Squawk | Airplanes.live |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (18 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 50.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 18 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 days — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Subscription | Freemium — better |
| Best chart rank | #190 — better | #197 |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 8 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hunter Cochran | Blake Hughes |
Customer experience
Squawk
Airplanes.live
In-app purchases
Squawk
- Squawk Pro$4.991 Month
- Squawk Pro Annual7 Days trial$34.991 Year
Airplanes.live
- Pro Monthly$2.991 Month
- Pro Yearly$19.991 Year









