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Aviation · head to head

Flighty vs Zoom Earth

Flighty logo

Flighty

Aviation

Subscription flight tracking for iOS with predictive delay alerts

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zoom Earth logo

Zoom Earth

Weather

Free browser-based satellite weather and storm tracking, no account or install

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Zoom Earth has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Flighty it is iOS-only, so a mixed-platform household or an Android user cannot use it at all.; Zoom Earth there are no push notifications or alerts, so it cannot warn you proactively the way a mobile weather app can.
  • They diverge on capability: Flighty covers Delay prediction, Zoom Earth covers Global satellite view.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Flighty and Zoom Earth actually diverge.

Attributes where Flighty and Zoom Earth differ
AttributeFlightyZoom Earth
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelPer user per month or one-time purchaseFree, no account required
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsiOSWeb
CategoryAviationWeather

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Flighty

  • Delay prediction
  • Gate and baggage alerts
  • Auto flight import
  • Taxi and weather context
  • Trip statistics
  • Family sharing

Only in Zoom Earth

  • Global satellite view
  • Storm tracking
  • MODIS high resolution
  • Historical imagery
  • Precipitation radar overlay
  • No install required

What people use each for

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

Flighty

  • A frequent business flyer who wants a delay warning before the gate agent announces itnot Zoom Earth
  • An iPhone user willing to pay for a single well-maintained app instead of a free ad-supported onenot Zoom Earth
  • A family wanting to see at a glance where a travelling relative currently isnot Zoom Earth
  • A traveller who wants automatic flight import from confirmation emails without manual entrynot Zoom Earth

Zoom Earth

  • Watching a hurricane or typhoon track develop without installing an appnot Flighty
  • A quick global satellite check before deciding whether a local forecast app is worth openingnot Flighty
  • Journalists or researchers needing a citable, no-login satellite view of a weather eventnot Flighty
  • Comparing current satellite imagery against archived imagery from years earlier for the same regionnot Flighty

Where each one falls short

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

Flighty

  • It is iOS-only, so a mixed-platform household or an Android user cannot use it at all.
  • The free tier tracks very few flights, so anyone who flies more than occasionally is pushed toward the subscription almost immediately.
  • Delay predictions are a probability model, not a guarantee, and can be wrong in either direction.
  • It depends on the same underlying ADS-B and airline feeds as free trackers, so the raw position data is not exclusive to Flighty.
  • A lifetime purchase is expensive relative to a year or two of the annual plan, so it only pays off for someone certain they will use it for years.

Zoom Earth

  • There are no push notifications or alerts, so it cannot warn you proactively the way a mobile weather app can.
  • It has no offline mode, so it is unusable without an internet connection, unlike apps that cache forecasts.
  • Forecasting is minimal; it shows what the satellites and radar currently see rather than a detailed hyperlocal forecast.
  • Being free and unaccountable to a paying customer base, there is no committed support channel if the site or a data feed goes down.
  • The browser-only interface is less convenient for quick daily checks than a home-screen app icon with widgets.

Pricing, plan by plan

Flighty

On request
  • Flighty Plus$9.99/month
    • Unlimited tracked flights
    • Delay prediction alerts
    • Gate, baggage and taxi data
  • Flighty Plus Annual$49/year
    • Same features billed yearly
  • Flighty Lifetime$299/one-time
    • One-time purchase, no renewal

Zoom Earth

Free
  • Zoom EarthFree
    • Full satellite and storm tracking access
    • No account, no ads-gated tier
    • No offline mode or push alerts

Which should you pick?

Choose Flighty if

  • You need delay prediction.
  • You work on iOS.
  • You also want gate and baggage alerts.
Flighty review

Choose Zoom Earth if

  • You need global satellite view.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want storm tracking.
Zoom Earth review

Questions people ask

Is Flighty or Zoom Earth better?
Neither clearly leads. Flighty starts at On request and Zoom Earth at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Flighty or Zoom Earth?
Zoom Earth has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Flighty and Free for Zoom Earth.
Does Flighty or Zoom Earth run on more platforms?
Flighty runs on iOS. Zoom Earth runs on Web.
Can I use Zoom Earth for free?
Yes. Zoom Earth has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Flighty starts at On request.
What is Flighty best used for?
Flighty is most often used for a frequent business flyer who wants a delay warning before the gate agent announces it, an iphone user willing to pay for a single well-maintained app instead of a free ad-supported one, a family wanting to see at a glance where a travelling relative currently is, a traveller who wants automatic flight import from confirmation emails without manual entry. Of those, a frequent business flyer who wants a delay warning before the gate agent announces it and an iphone user willing to pay for a single well-maintained app instead of a free ad-supported one are not what Zoom Earth is typically brought in for.
What can Flighty do that Zoom Earth cannot?
Flighty covers Delay prediction, Gate and baggage alerts, Auto flight import, Taxi and weather context. Zoom Earth covers Global satellite view, Storm tracking, MODIS high resolution, Historical imagery.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Flighty: Is there an Android version?

No. Flighty has only ever shipped for iOS.

Zoom Earth: Do I need to create an account?

No. Zoom Earth works without registration or login.

Flighty: Can I use it for free?

A limited free tier exists but tracks very few flights; regular use requires the Plus subscription or the lifetime purchase.

Zoom Earth: Is there a mobile app?

No, it is a responsive website that works in mobile browsers rather than a native app.

Flighty: How is it different from Flightradar24 or FlightAware?

Those are free-first, cross-platform trackers with ads; Flighty is a paid iOS-only app that adds predictive delay alerts.

Zoom Earth: How current is the imagery?

Geostationary imagery updates roughly every 10 to 15 minutes; higher-resolution MODIS imagery updates about twice a day.

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