Comparison

Flight Instructor Checkride vs SAFE Toolkit

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

Head to head
About

Flight Instructor Checkride

Prepare for your flight instructor certification practical exam with this comprehensive Q&A tool. It covers over 1000 likely examiner questions and provides succinct answers, drawing from FAA documents and examiner interviews. Identify knowledge gaps and build confidence for your checkride.

Highlights
  • Over 1000 Q&A for practical exams
  • Succinct, ready responses
  • Based on popular oral exam guide
  • Covers all CFI certificate subjects
  • Flag questions for further study
  • Includes applicant practical test checklist
Features
Currently charting
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Using a question-and-answer format, Flight Instructor Checkride lists the questions most likely to be asked by examiners during the last step in the flight instructor certification process – the Practical Exam – and provides succinct, ready responses. Instructor applicants will find this App an indispensable tool in both planning for what to expect during the airplane checkride, and mastering the subject matter. Instructors rate them as excellent preparation for students, as well as general refresher material. This Flight Instructor Checkride app is based on the popular Flight Instructor Oral Exam Guide book by Michael Hayes. It is designed for instructor applicants training for the Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) Certificate. More than 1000 questions and responses ensure all the subjects a Flight Instructor candidate will be tested on during checkrides and review flights are covered. Topics include: fundamentals of instructing, technical subject areas (such as runway incursion avoidance, scanning, navigation, logbook entries and certificate endorsements, etc.), preflight preparation, preflight procedures, airport operations, takeoffs, landings and go-arounds, fundamentals of flight, performance and ground reference maneuvers, slow flight, stalls and spins, basic instrument maneuvers, emergency operations, postflight procedures. Answers and explanations were researched using FAA documents (which are identified so pilots know where to go for further study) as well as interviewing FAA examiners. Questions can be marked for further study from any subject to build your own collection of flashcards. An Applicant Practical Test Checklist and the Safety of Flight appendix from the Airman Certification Standards (FAA-S-ACS-25) are also included. Compatible with iOS phones and tablets, this app teaches applicants not only what to expect, but also how to exhibit subject mastery and confidence when under the examiner’s scrutiny. It identifies candidates’ strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in their aeronautical knowledge, which increases study efficiency. App features: • More than 1000 questions are included with succinct, ready responses. • Questions from any subject can be flagged for further study into a separate group. • Includes all the questions and answers from the popular book, Flight Instructor Oral Exam Guide by Michael Hayes. • Brought to you by a trusted resource in aviation training and publishing, Aviation Supplies & Academics (ASA).

About

SAFE Toolkit

This app offers essential news and resources for Certified Flight Instructors (CFIs), including endorsement details, experience requirements, and test codes. It also provides flight test applicants with insights from Designated Pilot Examiners and features a weekly blog and industry news notifications for all pilots.

Highlights
  • CFI endorsements, experience requirements, test codes
  • Flight test insights from DPEs
  • Weekly SAFE blog
  • Industry news push notifications
  • Pilot resources
Features
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SAFE Toolkit provides "go-to" news and resources for CFIs: (endorsements, experience requirements, and test codes), but also "Checkride Ready™ for flight test applicants (the inside story from DPEs). Pilots enjoy the SAFE blog every week and push notifications of industry news. Download and stay up to date; "We are here to help! ALl we "sell" is safety!"

Screenshots

Flight Instructor Checkride4 screens
SAFE Toolkit2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SAFE Toolkit at Free against Flight Instructor Checkride's $9.99. SAFE Toolkit also leads on rating (4.2 vs 3.5) and update cadence (every 7 months vs every 19 months). Flight Instructor Checkride's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (50% vs 38%). On 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

SAFE Toolkit is free to download; Flight Instructor Checkride costs $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SAFE Toolkit holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SAFE Toolkit has 18 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 50% of Flight Instructor Checkride's written reviews are positive against 38% of SAFE Toolkit's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Flight Instructor Checkride ships an update every 19 months, SAFE Toolkit every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
Flight Instructor Checkride versus SAFE Toolkit: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFlight Instructor CheckrideSAFE Toolkit
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating3.5 (2 ratings)4.2 (18 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews — better37.5% of reviews
Number of ratings218 — better
Update frequencyEvery 19 monthsEvery 7 months — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidAd-supported — better
Best chart rank#187 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB33 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperASADavid St. George

Customer experience

Flight Instructor Checkride

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative0.0%

SAFE Toolkit

All ratings18 ratings
Positive77.8%
Neutral11.1%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive37.5%
Neutral25.0%
Negative37.5%

In-app purchases

None

Flight Instructor Checkride

No in-app purchases

None

SAFE Toolkit

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Flight Instructor Checkride free?
Flight Instructor Checkride costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is SAFE Toolkit free?
SAFE Toolkit is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Flight Instructor Checkride or SAFE Toolkit?
SAFE Toolkit is rated higher. Flight Instructor Checkride averages 3.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while SAFE Toolkit averages 4.2 from 18 ratings.
Do Flight Instructor Checkride or SAFE Toolkit have ads?
SAFE Toolkit shows ads; Flight Instructor Checkride does not.
Which is updated more often, Flight Instructor Checkride or SAFE Toolkit?
Flight Instructor Checkride ships an update every 19 months, and SAFE Toolkit every 7 months. Most recently, Flight Instructor Checkride was updated on October 5, 2026 and SAFE Toolkit on October 2, 2026.

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