FLIGHT TRACKING HEAD-TO-HEAD
ADS-B Exchange vs Airplanes.live (2026)
ADS-B Exchange and Airplanes.live are the two community trackers that refuse to filter the sky — and they agree on almost nothing else. ADS-B Exchange, founded in 2016, pairs its unfiltered Global Map with a history function back to March 2020, an ad-free personal subscription and enterprise data products with no public prices. Airplanes.live, founded by four aviation enthusiasts as a not-for-profit that its by-laws say cannot be sold, keeps its web map free permanently with no accounts and no ads, and puts its paid tier inside an official iOS app. Both show the military and LADD traffic commercial trackers suppress; what differs is the model around the map.
Both refuse to filter the sky; they part on everything else. ADS-B Exchange is the archive with a business attached — deep history and enterprise data behind an ad-supported map. Airplanes.live is the commons — free, account-free and ad-free, with its best extras in an iOS app.
Last reviewed: October 2026 · Sources listed at the bottom of this page
Quick facts
| ADS-B Exchange | Airplanes.live | |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Freemium map plus paid enterprise data subscriptions | Community-run, not for profit; free web map plus freemium iOS app |
| Origin | Founded 2016 by an aviation enthusiast and IT professional | Founded by four aviation enthusiasts; by-laws bar sale or takeover |
| Free tier | Free Global Map with ads; feeders get the ad-free map free | Unfiltered web map free permanently; no accounts, no ads |
| Paid tier | Personal ad-free map $2.99/mo or $29.95/yr; enterprise pricing not public | iOS Pro $2.99/mo or $19.99/yr in-app; Pro free for feeders |
| History | Map history back to March 2020 | Replay mentioned as a feeder benefit; length not stated |
| Network claim | Claims over 25,000 active receivers | No receiver or coverage count published |
Key differences at a glance
- Long, stated map historyADS-B Exchange: YesAirplanes.live: Not verifiedADS-B Exchange's history function goes back to March 2020; Airplanes.live mentions data replay as a feeder benefit but states no replay or history length on its official pages
- Watchlist and emergency-squawk alertsADS-B Exchange: Not verifiedAirplanes.live: YesAirplanes.live Pro (iOS) adds push alerts for followed aircraft and anything squawking 7700, plus an unlimited watchlist; no alert feature was stated on the ADS-B Exchange pages checked
- Ad-free mapADS-B Exchange: PartialAirplanes.live: YesADS-B Exchange's map is ad-free only with the paid personal subscription (or free for feeders); Airplanes.live's free tier states 'No ads, ever'
- Official iOS appADS-B Exchange: Not verifiedAirplanes.live: YesAirplanes.live has an official app for iPhone and iPad (iOS 17 or later); no official ADS-B Exchange flight-tracking app was confirmed — its promoted Tailvision app's platform and price were unverified
What is ADS-B Exchange?
ADS-B Exchange is a global platform that aggregates and displays real-time aircraft movements via a collaborative network of contributors, offering a transparent view of the skies without censorship or filtering. Its live Global Map shows all aircraft broadcasts as received — military, commercial and private — fed by what it claims is a network of over 25,000 active receivers, with a map history function going back to March 2020. Alongside the map it sells production-ready enterprise data subscriptions (live and daily position and operations feeds); no enterprise prices are published.
What is Airplanes.live?
Airplanes.live is a community-run ADS-B aggregator: receivers built and hosted by enthusiasts pick up ADS-B and MLAT signals from the aircraft overhead, and the combined feed shows what is flying right now. It states it will never filter or obfuscate aircraft data — including military aircraft, aircraft squawking an emergency and LADD-enrolled aircraft other trackers suppress. It was founded by four aviation enthusiasts, is not run for profit, and its by-laws say the organisation cannot be sold, transferred or taken over by any one individual. The web map is free permanently, with an official iOS app alongside it.
ADS-B Exchange vs Airplanes.live: feature comparison
Verified against official sources. “Not verified” means we couldn’t confirm it — not that it doesn’t exist.
FEATURE TALLY — FROM THE TABLE BELOW
ADS-B Exchange
9 yes · 2 partial · 0 no · 3 not verified
Airplanes.live
8 yes · 1 partial · 0 no · 5 not verified
A count of the rows in the verified table beneath — not a quality rating. The rows themselves, and what each product does best, matter more than the totals.
| Feature | ADS-B Exchange | Airplanes.live |
|---|---|---|
| Live global flight mapBoth are live community-fed maps — ADS-B Exchange's Global Map and Airplanes.live's globe map | Yes | Yes |
| Unfiltered military, private and LADD aircraftBoth state they never filter or obfuscate: ADS-B Exchange shows all broadcasts as received, and Airplanes.live explicitly includes military, emergency-squawk and LADD-enrolled aircraft other trackers suppress | Yes | Yes |
| MLAT positionsBoth aggregate MLAT alongside ADS-B; Airplanes.live feeders get the unfiltered MLAT results back | Yes | Yes |
| Long, stated map historyADS-B Exchange's history function goes back to March 2020; Airplanes.live mentions data replay as a feeder benefit but states no replay or history length on its official pages | Yes | Not verified |
| Watchlist and emergency-squawk alertsAirplanes.live Pro (iOS) adds push alerts for followed aircraft and anything squawking 7700, plus an unlimited watchlist; no alert feature was stated on the ADS-B Exchange pages checked | Not verified | Yes |
| Ad-free mapADS-B Exchange's map is ad-free only with the paid personal subscription (or free for feeders); Airplanes.live's free tier states 'No ads, ever' | Partial | Yes |
| Free map with no accountBoth open free: ADS-B Exchange's Global Map, with feeder ad-free activation needing 'no registration or account needed', and Airplanes.live, whose app site states 'No accounts' | Yes | Yes |
| Official iOS appAirplanes.live has an official app for iPhone and iPad (iOS 17 or later); no official ADS-B Exchange flight-tracking app was confirmed — its promoted Tailvision app's platform and price were unverified | Not verified | Yes |
| Official Android appNo official Android app was confirmed for either on the official pages checked; a similarly named third-party Android client for Airplanes.live is not an official source | Not verified | Not verified |
| Weather radarADS-B Exchange lists weather radar for the US and Germany; Airplanes.live's live weather radar (NOAA/NWS) is a Pro feature in its iOS app | Partial | Partial |
| Detailed aircraft informationADS-B Exchange includes detailed aircraft, ADS-B and ownership information; Airplanes.live shows photograph, origin and destination, type, registered operator or owner, route, altitude and speed | Yes | Yes |
| Commercial and enterprise data feedsADS-B Exchange sells Live and Daily position and operations subscriptions (pricing not public); Airplanes.live states its data is intended to stay open to the community, with no public API documentation or pricing found | Yes | Not verified |
| Positions refreshed every 500msThe 500ms figure is ADS-B Exchange's own claim for its live positions; Airplanes.live publishes no equivalent update-rate figure on the pages checked | Yes | Not verified |
| Receiver network size stated publiclyADS-B Exchange claims over 25,000 active receivers; no receiver, feeder or aircraft count claim was found on Airplanes.live's official pages | Yes | Not verified |
Pricing: ADS-B Exchange vs Airplanes.live
ADS-B Exchange pricing
The live Global Map is free with ads. The personal ad-free subscription costs $2.99/month or $29.95/year — for individual, personal use only, with premium map layers — and feeders get the ad-free map free. Enterprise data subscriptions (Live positions, Live operations, Daily positions, Daily operations) have no public price: ADS-B Exchange does not publish one, so any figure quoted elsewhere should not be trusted.
Airplanes.live pricing
The web map is free — Airplanes.live's app site states the unfiltered map is free, permanently, and no web subscription price is published. The official iOS app is freemium: Free at $0 (the full unfiltered live map, aircraft details, photos and routes, search, and no ads), and Pro at $2.99/month or $19.99/year, adding live weather radar, ATC scope mode and convergence alerts, advanced filters, an unlimited watchlist and push alerts. Pro is free for active feeders for as long as they keep feeding.
ADS-B Exchange: pros and cons
- Unfiltered map — military, commercial and private aircraft shown
- Map history back to March 2020, with a replay feature
- Detailed aircraft, ADS-B and ownership information, plus charts and premium layers
- Enterprise live and daily data products for serious users
- Network claim of 25,000+ receivers and 500ms positions
- Free map carries ads — ad-free costs $2.99/mo or $29.95/yr
- No alert feature stated on its official pages — unverified
- Enterprise and API pricing is not public at all
- No official iOS/Android flight-tracking app confirmed
- Personal subscription is personal use only
Airplanes.live: pros and cons
- Unfiltered map free permanently — no accounts, no ads, no trackers claimed
- Official iOS app with ATC scope mode and convergence alerts
- Pro push alerts for followed aircraft and 7700 squawks
- Pro free for feeders for as long as they keep feeding
- Not-for-profit structure whose by-laws bar a sale or takeover
- No official Android app
- Replay length is not stated anywhere official — unverified
- No receiver or coverage count published to compare networks
- No public enterprise data product or API pricing
- Alerts, radar and advanced filters are Pro features in the iOS app, not the free web map
The verdict
Choose ADS-B Exchange if…
Choose ADS-B Exchange if the archive is the point — history back to March 2020, ownership detail and enterprise-grade feeds — and you accept ads on the free map or a small personal subscription to remove them.
Choose Airplanes.live if…
Choose Airplanes.live if the principle is the point — a free-forever, account-free, ad-free unfiltered map — and especially if you are on iPhone, where its Pro alerts and scope mode live.
Is ADS-B Exchange better than Airplanes.live?
On the headline promise — an unfiltered sky — they are tied: both show military and LADD traffic and neither filters. The split is everything around it. ADS-B Exchange is the researcher's tool: history back to March 2020, ownership detail, enterprise feeds and a claimed 25,000+ receiver network, paid for with an ad-supported free map. Airplanes.live is the purist's tool: free forever, no accounts, no ads, and the alerts and scope mode live in its iOS app. Pick by whether you need the archive or the app.
ANOTHER OPTION
Where WorldEye fits
If you want the sky in context rather than the sky alone, WorldEye shows live flights free on a 3D globe — no signup — alongside live ships, satellites, weather, earthquakes, wildfires and 74,229 public cameras across 105 countries in the same view. It is deliberately not a rival to either community tracker here: it does not claim their unfiltered military data, and it does not offer ADS-B Exchange's history back to 2020. An optional Pro tier ($7.99/week, $13.99/month or $74.99/year) adds the OSINT toolkit and intel feeds.
Live on WorldEye right now
Real cameras from WorldEye's live catalogue — no account, no install. Tap any frame to open that exact camera on the globe.
Full WorldEye head-to-heads: WorldEye vs ADS-B Exchange · WorldEye vs Airplanes.live
ADS-B Exchange vs Airplanes.live: quick answers
Which is more unfiltered, ADS-B Exchange or Airplanes.live?
Both state the same policy: never filter or obfuscate. ADS-B Exchange says it displays all aircraft broadcasts as received, including military, commercial and private aircraft. Airplanes.live says its map is never filtered or blocked, including military aircraft, emergency squawks and LADD-enrolled aircraft other trackers suppress.
Is Airplanes.live really free?
Yes — its homepage says Airplanes.live is free to use, and its app site states the unfiltered map is free, permanently. There is no web subscription price published. The paid tier lives in its iOS app: Pro at $2.99/month or $19.99/year, which feeders get free.
What does ADS-B Exchange cost?
ADS-B Exchange's free Global Map carries ads; the ad-free personal subscription is $2.99/month or $29.95/year (personal use only, with premium map layers), and feeders get the ad-free map free. Its enterprise data products have no public price.
Which has longer history, ADS-B Exchange or Airplanes.live?
ADS-B Exchange, clearly: its map history function goes back to March 2020. Airplanes.live mentions data replay as a feeder benefit, but no replay or history length is stated on its official pages, so its depth is unverified.
Which has alerts for emergency 7700 squawks?
Airplanes.live. Its iOS app's Pro tier includes push alerts — a notification when an aircraft you follow takes off, or when anything squawks 7700. No alert feature was stated on the ADS-B Exchange homepage, About or store pages checked, so its alerts are unverified.
Is there a free flight tracker with no signup?
WorldEye's globe shows live flights free with no signup, combined with ships, satellites, weather and 74,229 public cameras. For a deliberately unfiltered ADS-B map and deep community archives, ADS-B Exchange and Airplanes.live remain the specialists.
How we researched this comparison
Every row in the table above was checked against ADS-B Exchange’s and Airplanes.live’s official sites, documentation or published pricing — the sources are listed at the bottom of this page, and the comparison was last reviewed in October 2026. Where a capability couldn’t be confirmed from an official source, it is marked “Not verified” rather than guessed.
This page is published by WorldEye, so the head-to-head above is kept deliberately neutral: each product’s strengths are stated in its own terms, and WorldEye appears only in the labelled “another option” section. WorldEye’s own figures there are counted, not estimated — 74,229 public cameras in its live directory across 105 countries, and a free map (flights, satellites, ships, weather, earthquakes, wildfires, cameras and satellite imagery) with an optional Pro tier at $7.99/week, $13.99/month or $74.99/year.
Products change. If you spot a row that has gone stale, the sources below show exactly what each claim rests on.
Sources
- ADS-B Exchange — official homepage
- ADS-B Exchange — About the Exchange (official)
- ADS-B Exchange — monthly ad-free subscription (official store)
- ADS-B Exchange — annual ad-free subscription (official store)
- ADS-B Exchange — live Global Map
- Airplanes.live — official homepage
- Airplanes.live — FAQ (official)
- Airplanes.live — About (official)
- Airplanes.live — official iOS app site