# Airmate vs Planningcharts

The clearest difference is rating: Planningcharts at 5.0 against Airmate's 4.5. Planningcharts also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks). Airmate's advantage is ratings volume (545 vs 3) and review sentiment (75% vs 63%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Airmate sells 21 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per year and Planningcharts sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $16.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Planningcharts holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Airmate has 545 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 75% of Airmate's written reviews are positive against 63% of Planningcharts's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Airmate ships an update every 6 weeks, Planningcharts every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Airmate | Planningcharts |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.5 (545 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/airmate/id998181102/reviews) | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/planningcharts/id1420042900/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **545** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | **75.0% of reviews** | 62.5% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 220 MB | 81 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | +4 |
| Developer | [Myriel Aviation SA](https://appshunter.io/developer/998181101) | [Apollodor Aviation GmbH](https://appshunter.io/developer/1770259641) |

## What reviewers say

### Airmate

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/airmate/id998181102)

This app provides pilots with comprehensive flight planning tools, including weather forecasts, airport data, and navigation charts. It enhances situational awareness with a moving map, traffic displays, and terrain elevation views. Pilots can also file flight plans and record their flights.

**Highlights:** Flight planning and weather forecasts, Airport data and aviation maps, Moving map with aircraft location, Traffic and terrain elevation display, Flight plan filing and management, Flight recording and replay, ADS-B traffic and weather reception

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (21)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Airmate Premium | $24.99 | per year |
| Photorealistic terrain display | $47.99 | per year |
| Flight plan filing token | $1.99 | one-time |
| Token for 1 year chart access | $3.99 | one-time |
| Support Airmate development! | $4.99 | one-time |
| Argentina Center VFR 2022 | $4.99 | one-time |
| Chile North VFR chart 2022 | $4.99 | one-time |
| Chile Santiago VFR chart 2022 | $4.99 | one-time |
| Argentina/Chile South VFR 2022 | $4.99 | one-time |
| Support Airmate development! | $8.99 | one-time |
| Chart download token | $8.99 | one-time |
| Italy North Avioportolano 2022 | $11.99 | one-time |
| Support Airmate development! | $17.99 | one-time |
| Airmate Pro version | $22.99 | one-time |
| Tunisia VFR Air Million 2024 | $24.99 | one-time |
| Skyguide Swiss VFR Airport Plates (with one year updates) | $36.99 | one-time |
| Airmate Dispatcher | $44.99 | one-time |
| Avioportolano VFR Airfield Plates for Italy (one year subscription) | $46.99 | one-time |
| Airport Plates premium browser | $54.99 | one-time |
| UAE 2023 Rogers Data | $79.99 | one-time |
| UAE 2025 Rogers Data | $89.99 | one-time |


### Planningcharts

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/planningcharts/id1420042900)

This app provides professional long-haul pilots with essential aviation charts and real-time airport data for enhanced situational awareness and safety. It allows for offline chart downloads and access to critical information like NOTAMs, WX/TAF, and airport-specific details.

**Highlights:** Offline chart downloads, Real-time NOTAMs and WX/TAF, Airport categorization and approach data, NAT crossing procedures and ATC information, Swipe navigation between charts, Automatic news downloads

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

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Membership | $16.49 | per month |
| Half Yearly Membership | $80.99 | per 6 months |
| Yearly Membership | $129.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Airmate free?

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

### Is Planningcharts free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Airmate or Planningcharts?

Planningcharts is rated higher. Airmate averages 4.5 out of 5 from 545 ratings, while Planningcharts averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.

### Do Airmate or Planningcharts have ads?

Neither Airmate nor Planningcharts shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Airmate or Planningcharts?

Airmate ships an update every 6 weeks, and Planningcharts every 2 weeks. Most recently, Airmate was updated on September 24, 2026 and Planningcharts on September 22, 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.*