# Airplane! vs Flight Simulator 2d

The clearest difference is ads: Airplane! at none against Flight Simulator 2d's shown. Airplane! also leads on review sentiment (76% vs 61%) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 12.0). Flight Simulator 2d's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.3) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months). On price, ratings volume, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Airplane! sells 21 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Flight Simulator 2d sells 16 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Flight Simulator 2d holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5.4K and 3.7K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 76% of Airplane!'s written reviews are positive against 61% of Flight Simulator 2d's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Airplane! ships an update every 3 months, Flight Simulator 2d every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Airplane! | Flight Simulator 2d |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (5.4K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/airplane/id692594090/reviews) | **[4.7 (3.7K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/flight-simulator-2d/id1540648589/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **5.4K** | 3.7K |
| Positive reviews | **75.9% of reviews** | 61.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 380 MB | 323 MB |
| Requires iOS | **8.0** | 12.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 9+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Quantum Design Group](https://appshunter.io/developer/419048022) | [Spark Games UG haftungsbeschrankt](https://appshunter.io/developer/1641520453) |

## What reviewers say

### Airplane!

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/airplane/id692594090)

Pilot your own aircraft, delivering cargo and passengers between airports. Experience the thrill of flight without extensive training. Unlock all game content with a premium subscription.

**Highlights:** Pilot your own plane, Deliver cargo and passengers, Fly between airports, Unlock full game content, Multiple languages supported

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (21)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium Membership | $4.99 | per month |
| 737 Passenger | $0.99 | one-time |
| B2 Spirit | $0.99 | one-time |
| X45 UAV | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Aircraft 53 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Aircraft 93 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Aircraft 84 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Aircraft 90 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Aircraft | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Aircraft 27 | $0.99 | one-time |
| C17 Cargo | $1.99 | one-time |
| F18 Hornet | $1.99 | one-time |
| Harrier | $1.99 | one-time |
| Mig29 | $1.99 | one-time |
| 747 Passenger | $3.99 | one-time |
| Storm level | $4.99 | one-time |
| Unlock San Francisco | $4.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Frankfurt | $4.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Seattle | $4.99 | one-time |
| Military Pack | $9.99 | one-time |
| Unlock All Aircraft | $21.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and addictive gameplay
- 👍 Variety of aircraft to fly
- ✨ Nostalgic and fun experience

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
- 💰 Excessive in-app purchases required
- 🛫 Unrealistic flight mechanics and physics

**Reported bugs**

- Airports disappearing from the map
- Planes exploding on landing
- Restore purchases not working

**Requested features**

- More free or unlockable aircraft
- Improved graphics and visual effects
- Realistic landing and takeoff mechanics
- Ability to fly between different locations


### Flight Simulator 2d

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/flight-simulator-2d/id1540648589)

Experience the thrill of flight in this 2D simulator. Choose from a variety of aircraft, explore randomly generated environments, and master different game modes like transport and landing challenges. Earn rewards to unlock new planes and improve your pilot rating.

**Highlights:** Realistic cockpit controls, Diverse selection of 8 aircraft, Randomly generated, detailed environments, Day and night cycles, Free flight, transport, and landing challenge modes, Daily tasks and gifts for rewards

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (16)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 50 TOKENS | $0.99 | one-time |
| 120 TOKENS | $1.99 | one-time |
| 160 Tokens | $1.99 | one-time |
| BUY USA MAP | $2.99 | one-time |
| Starter Pack | $3.99 | one-time |
| INSTANT AIRCRAFT REPAIR | $4.99 | one-time |
| BUY HEAVYAIR 5 | $4.99 | one-time |
| BUY FIGHTAIR 6 | $4.99 | one-time |
| B2 Stealth Bomber | $4.99 | one-time |
| An-225 Mriya | $4.99 | one-time |
| BUY SPEEDAIR 8 | $9.99 | one-time |
| BUY COMBATAIR 7 | $9.99 | one-time |
| Concorde | $9.99 | one-time |
| Gold Pass | $9.99 | one-time |
| BUY MEGA BUNDLE | $19.99 | one-time |
| BUY GIGA BUNDLE | $28.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fun and entertaining
- 👍 Cozy and relaxing gameplay
- 👍 Good flight physics
- 👍 Decent graphics
- 👍 Offline playable

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Glitchy controls and responsiveness
- 🐛 Unrealistic flight physics
- 💰 Heavily monetized with in-app purchases
- 💰 Difficult to progress without paying
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs

**Reported bugs**

- Inability to unlock planes in tutorial
- Planes falling out of sky when out of fuel
- Unresponsive controls and delayed inputs
- Frequent crashes on certain devices
- Graphical glitches and visual bugs

**Requested features**

- More free planes and maps
- Permanent upgrades instead of single-use
- Improved flight dynamics and realism
- Expanded gameplay content and modes
- Better optimization and stability


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Airplane! free?

Airplane! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Flight Simulator 2d free?

Flight Simulator 2d is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Airplane! or Flight Simulator 2d?

Flight Simulator 2d is rated higher. Airplane! averages 4.3 out of 5 from 5.4K ratings, while Flight Simulator 2d averages 4.7 from 3.7K ratings.

### Do Airplane! or Flight Simulator 2d have ads?

Flight Simulator 2d shows ads; Airplane! does not.

### Which is updated more often, Airplane! or Flight Simulator 2d?

Airplane! ships an update every 3 months, and Flight Simulator 2d every 2 weeks. Most recently, Airplane! was updated on September 30, 2026 and Flight Simulator 2d on October 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*