Softwr

Aviation & Aerospace · head to head

FlightAware vs Garmin Pilot

FlightAware logo

FlightAware

Aviation & Aerospace

Global flight tracking and aviation data platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Garmin Pilot logo

Garmin Pilot

Aviation & Aerospace

All-in-one flight planning and navigation app

From
$99/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only FlightAware has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: FlightAware flightAware Global is sold per aircraft tail, with discounts applied only when multiple aircraft are tracked; Garmin Pilot garmin Pilot's iPad app is offered on a 30-day free trial from initial download, after which the subscription plans described on Garmin's site apply
  • They diverge on capability: FlightAware covers Real-time tracking, Garmin Pilot covers Flight planning.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which FlightAware and Garmin Pilot actually diverge.

Attributes where FlightAware and Garmin Pilot differ
AttributeFlightAwareGarmin Pilot
Starting priceFree$99/year
Pricing modelfreemiumsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidIos, Android
Founded20051989

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Aviation & Aerospace).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in FlightAware

  • Real-time tracking
  • Flight status
  • Airport info
  • Delay tracking
  • Weather data
  • APIs
  • Third-party apps
  • Airlines

Only in Garmin Pilot

  • Flight planning
  • Aeronautical charts
  • Weather overlays
  • Panel sync
  • Traffic display
  • Garmin avionics
  • GTN series
  • G1000/G3000

Both cover

  • Data encryption
  • Privacy protection
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

FlightAware

  • Tracking a business aviation fleet by tail number with taxi and ground alertsnot Garmin Pilot
  • Blocking or selectively sharing an aircraft's flight legs for privacynot Garmin Pilot
  • Pulling live and historical flight positions and tracks into an application over a REST APInot Garmin Pilot
  • Predicting arrival times with Foresight for airline and airport operationsnot Garmin Pilot

Garmin Pilot

  • Flight planningnot FlightAware
  • Weather analysisnot FlightAware
  • In-flight navigationnot FlightAware
  • Aircraft panel syncnot FlightAware
  • Chart viewingnot FlightAware

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

FlightAware

  • FlightAware Global is sold per aircraft tail, with discounts applied only when multiple aircraft are tracked
  • Global satellite tracking through Aireon space-based ADS-B requires the Platinum plan at $295 per month or $3,540 per year
  • Secure flight sharing, flight leg unblocking and access management start at the Gold plan at $168 per month, not the $60 per month Silver plan
  • AeroAPI Standard carries a $100 monthly minimum and AeroAPI Premium a $1,000 monthly minimum regardless of usage
  • Historical flight data and flight alerting are excluded from the free AeroAPI Personal tier
  • AeroAPI Personal is rate limited to 10 result sets per minute against 5 per second on Standard
  • AeroAPI billing is metered per result set, for example $0.050 per result set for flight search, where one result set is 15 records
  • AeroAPI volume discounts begin only above $1,000 of monthly usage
  • Firehose, Foresight and FBO Toolbox carry no published price on the commercial products page

Garmin Pilot

  • Garmin Pilot's iPad app is offered on a 30-day free trial from initial download, after which the subscription plans described on Garmin's site apply

Pricing, plan by plan

FlightAware

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Flight tracking
    • Basic info
    • Mobile app
  • Subscription$9.99/month
    • Ad-free
    • Premium tracking
    • Weather maps

Garmin Pilot

$99/year
  • Premium$99/year
    • IFR/VFR charts
    • Weather radar
    • Flight planning
  • Premium + Global$199/year
    • Everything in Premium
    • Worldwide charts
    • International planning

Which should you pick?

Choose FlightAware if

  • You need real-time tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want flight status.
FlightAware review

Choose Garmin Pilot if

  • You need flight planning.
  • You work on Ios, Android.
  • You also want aeronautical charts.
Garmin Pilot review

Questions people ask

Is FlightAware or Garmin Pilot better?
Neither clearly leads. FlightAware starts at Free and Garmin Pilot at $99/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, FlightAware or Garmin Pilot?
FlightAware has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for FlightAware and $99/year for Garmin Pilot.
Does FlightAware or Garmin Pilot run on more platforms?
FlightAware runs on Web, Ios, Android. Garmin Pilot runs on Ios, Android.
Can I use FlightAware for free?
Yes. FlightAware has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Garmin Pilot starts at $99/year.
What is FlightAware best used for?
FlightAware is most often used for tracking a business aviation fleet by tail number with taxi and ground alerts, blocking or selectively sharing an aircraft's flight legs for privacy, pulling live and historical flight positions and tracks into an application over a rest api, predicting arrival times with foresight for airline and airport operations. Of those, tracking a business aviation fleet by tail number with taxi and ground alerts and blocking or selectively sharing an aircraft's flight legs for privacy are not what Garmin Pilot is typically brought in for.
What can FlightAware do that Garmin Pilot cannot?
FlightAware covers Real-time tracking, Flight status, Airport info, Delay tracking. Garmin Pilot covers Flight planning, Aeronautical charts, Weather overlays, Panel sync. Both handle Data encryption, Privacy protection, Ios support, Android support.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on FlightAware

More on Garmin Pilot

Keep looking

Other head to heads