FlightAware vs FlightRadar24: Which is Better? [2024]

FlightAware vs FlightRadar24: Flight tracking information can save you a lot of time and money. FlightAware and Flightradar24 are such online tracking services that let you track flights in real-time.

However, a lot of people are confused as to which is better between FlightAware and Flightradar24. If you are wondering the same, you’ve landed at the right place.

In the article below, we’ve given a detailed FlightAware vs Flightradar24 comparison where we have mentioned how they work, their key features, and their differences. So, keep on reading without further ado!

FlightAware vs FlightRadar24: Overview

FlightAware

FlightAware is a multi-national tech platform that gives real-time, historical, and accurate flight tracking info and products. So, you can track the real-time status and view the live map flight track of any commercial flight across the world.

Not only for commercial airlines, but it also provides flight tracking information for private aircraft and cargo planes across the world. It collects flight details from several sources, including airlines, air traffic control systems, and satellite tracking systems to provide complete flight tracking services.

And you can easily search for flights by airline, flight number, or airport and view data like arrival and departure times, altitude, aircraft type, flight status, and speed.

Besides flight tracking, it also offers other aviation services like flight planning tools, airport delay maps, and aviation news updates.

FlightRadar24

FlightRadar24 is another internet-based real-time flight tracking service where you can even get to know about the flight position as they fly and follow flight paths in detail. It uses ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast) technology to track flights and give details about them.

It comprises flight tracking data, flight numbers, positions, headings and speeds, origins and destinations, aircraft types, and altitudes. And shows time-lapse replays of earlier tracks and historical flight information by aircraft, area, airline, or airport.

Like FlightAware, it also covers a range of flights including private planes, commercial flights, and even military aircraft from across the world.

Therefore, seamlessly turn your mobile phone or tablet into a live plane tracker and see flights across the world move in real-time on a detailed map.

How Do They Work?

FlightAware

FlightAware has equipped a network of over 20,000 ADS-B technology to track flights and provide flight information. Then the up-to-date flight tracking information is collected from the host ground stations.

Firstly, it uses a network of ground-based ADS-B receivers and satellite-based ADS-B receivers to gather information from flights that are equipped with ADS-B technology.

And the collected information is then combined with radar data and other sources to give a complete view of the current flight status. Further, it captures real-time positions for flights flying through this network several times per minute.

Besides radar data and ADS-B technology, it also uses data from other sources like weather data, flight plans, and airport information to give a detailed view of every aircraft.

FlightRadar24

Like FlightAware, Flightradar24 is also equipped with ADS-B technology which transmits positional data. And with the help of multiliterate, it calculates the position of aircraft that doesn’t have ADS-B transponders. This information is then sent to Flightradar24 which uses it to show real-time flight information on a map.

Further, it uses ground-based receivers that are connected to the internet and send the received data to its service. Flightradar24 uses this information to determine the altitude, position, speed, and other information of every aircraft.

However, it is important to understand that not all airplanes are equipped with ADS-B technology, so Flightradar24 might not have the entire coverage of all flights. Furthermore, the accuracy of data can affect large factors like the position of the ground-based receivers.

Key Features

FlightAware

• Immediate Flight Alerts: Get flight alerts when flights are delayed or cancelled or when the flight lands.
• Historical Data: It keeps records, fact checking, and logbook maintenance easy by giving you access to data from 3, 5, or 8 months back.
• Save Airports and Aircraft: You can bookmark your top airports and aircraft to easily check statuses and more.
• Real-time Flight Tracking: Gives real-time tracking of flights, including flight path, speed, flight status, altitude, and estimated arrival time.
• Flight Playback: Users can replay past flights and view flight paths and details.
• Flight Schedules: Offers flight schedules for airlines, allowing users to search for flights by airport, airline, or flight number.
• Aircraft Information: Get detailed information on airports, such as gate information, weather conditions, flight schedules, and gate information.

FlightRadar24

• Airplane Information: Get information about arrival and departure boards, aircraft on the ground, detailed weather conditions, flight status, and current delay stats.
• Augmented Reality: It allows you to point your phone camera at the sky to identify and track flights in real-time.
• Flight Mapping: Detailed mapping interface lets you view flights in real-time and filter flights by airports, airline, or flight number.
• Alerts: Get alerts like notifications for cancellations, flight delays, and gate changes.  
• 3D Flight Tracking: You can view flights in a 3D map view.
• Flight History: Access historical flight information like flight details and flight paths.
• Flight Details: Tap on a plane to get flight details like estimated time of arrival, aircraft type, altitude, route, the actual time of departure, speed, high-resolution photos of the flight, aircraft type, and more.

FlightAware vs FlightRadar24: Differences

Subscription Plans

FlightAware: Below are the subscription plans for FlightAware.

Plans	Basic	Premium+	Enterprise	Enterprise WX
Cost	Free	$44.95 a month	$99.95 a month	$149.99 a month
Saved Aircraft	5	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Saved Airports	3	50	50	50
Flight Tracking Alerts	5	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Fleet Tracking and Alerts	No	No	Yes	Yes
Past Flight Activity	3 Months	5 Months	8 Months	8 Months
Premium Map Styles	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Ad-Free Tracking Maps	No	No	Yes	Yes
Aircraft Statistics	No	No	Yes	Yes
Best For	Flight tracking for travelers and plane spotters	Extra features for professionals and frequent flyers	Enhanced fleet tracking for enterprise monitoring	First-class fleet tracking with entire, live weather information

FlightRadar24: It offers four different subscription plans which are as follows.

Basic

• It is entirely free
• Live flight tracking
• Limited enhanced 3D
• Search feature

Silver

• It costs $1.49 a month or $9.99 a year
• Offers 7-day free trial and includes everything from Basic plus the following features
• Ads removed
• Alerts and text labels
• Unlimited enhanced 3D
• 90 days of past flights
• More airplane information

Gold

• Costs $3.99 a month or $34.99 a year
• 7-day free trial and includes everything from Silver plus the following features
• Aviation weather layers
• 365 days of past flights
• Aeronautical charts
• More flight details
• ATC boundaries

Business

• Costs $49.99 a month or $499.99 a year
• 7-day free trial and includes everything from Gold plus the following features
• Licensed for businesses
• High-level significant weather
• AIRMETs/SIGMETs layer
• Airport and fleet view
• Lightning layer

Track Flights

FlightAware mainly uses a combination of radar data and ADS-B to track flights, whereas Flightradar24 chiefly relies on ADS-B technology. But they both can only give information about the flights that are equipped with ADS-B technology. 

Flight Information

Both services offer real-time flight information and tracking. While FlightAware also gives information about airport information, flight schedules, and flight alerts, Flightradar24 offers flight playback features and historical flight data.

User Interface

FlightAware has a more detailed map display, whereas Flightradar24 has more advanced filtering and search abilities. However, both allow you to seamlessly track flights and flight information.

Final Words

Having up-to-date tracking information about when a flight will take off or land at an airport could be really useful. Both FlightAware and Flightradar24 offer real-time tracking for private jets, commercial airlines, and military aircraft.

So, which one you prefer between FlightAware and Flightradar24 really depends on your preferences. 

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