Watching planes overhead used to mean a spare ESP32, an RTL-SDR dongle, and a soldering iron. The best apps for ADS-B flight tracking on Android skip that entire desk build. Every airliner transmits its position, altitude, and callsign in the clear on 1090 MHz, and the phone in your pocket can decode the ambient stream through a crowdsourced feed, a nearby PiAware receiver on your home Wi-Fi, or a USB dongle plugged straight into the USB-C port. These seven apps for ADS-B tracking on Android cover the three ways of getting the data onto the screen: crowdsourced live maps, local receiver clients, and self-hosted dump1090 setups.
What to look for in an ADS-B flight tracker app
A good ADS-B app has to do four things well. It has to render a smooth live map with filters that let you narrow the sky to what you care about, whether that is airline, aircraft type, altitude band, or a specific route. It has to support playback so you can rewind a flight that already passed. It has to offer either a paid ad-free tier or an open-source alternative if crowdsourced networks are not your thing. And for enthusiasts, it has to talk to a local receiver over the network, not just the vendor cloud.
Filters, playback, and local receiver support are the three features that separate a casual “what plane was that” app from something a real spotter uses daily.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Free | Data source | Aptoide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flightradar24 | Everyday flight spotting | Yes (freemium) | Crowdsourced ADS-B and MLAT | Yes |
| FlightAware | Route history and airline detail | Yes (freemium) | FlightAware receiver network | Yes |
| AirNav Radar | Airport-centric tracking | Yes (freemium) | AirNav receiver network | Yes |
| ADSB Flight Tracker | Local dump1090 or PiAware feed | Yes | Local receiver or OpenSky | Yes |
| Plane Finder | Simple map with AR overhead view | Yes (freemium) | Crowdsourced ADS-B | Yes |
| ADSB Decoder & Streamer | USB SDR dongle, no cloud | Yes | Local RTL-SDR via OTG | Yes |
| Termux | Running dump1090 on the phone | Yes | Self-hosted | Yes |
The 7 best ADS-B flight tracking apps for Android in 2026
1. Flightradar24 – best for everyday flight spotting
Flightradar24 is the app most people mean when they say “flight tracker”. It aggregates ADS-B, MLAT, and radar data from tens of thousands of volunteer receivers into a single global map, then adds route history, aircraft photos, and a slick augmented-reality overhead view. Point the phone at the sky and the app labels the contrails.
The free tier covers the live map with a short delay. The Silver and Gold subscriptions add filters by airline, aircraft type, and altitude, plus longer playback history and 3D cockpit views. For 90 percent of users, Flightradar24 for ADS-B tracking on Android is the default install.
Where it falls short: The free tier has ads and rate limits. Military and blocked flights are hidden without a Gold subscription. Coverage over remote oceans and central Africa depends on satellite ADS-B, which is a Business-tier feature.
Pricing:
- Free with ads.
- Silver: around $1.50/mo.
- Gold: around $3.50/mo.
- Business: around $50/mo.
Platforms: Android, iOS, web.
Bottom line: The default flight tracker. Install this first and add specialty apps around it.
2. FlightAware – best for route history and airline detail
FlightAware Flight Tracker wraps the same receiver network that powers PiAware and dump1090 telemetry into a mobile app aimed at aviation professionals and enthusiasts. The route history goes further back than Flightradar24 on the free tier, and the airport-focused screens show delays, gate assignments, and expected arrival times in one view.
Pilots, dispatchers, and passengers use FlightAware to check whether an inbound aircraft has actually left its origin airport. That focus on movement history rather than just live position makes it a better companion to Flightradar24 than a replacement.
Where it falls short: The mobile UI feels heavier than Flightradar24. Some data fields are locked behind FlightAware Premium accounts. The augmented-reality overhead view is missing.
Pricing:
- Free with limited history.
- Premium: around $40/mo for extended history and alerts.
- Enterprise pricing on request.
Platforms: Android, iOS, web.
Bottom line: The companion to Flightradar24 for anyone tracking a specific flight door to door.
3. AirNav Radar – best for airport-centric tracking
AirNav Radar (formerly RadarBox) leans into airport pages: pick JFK, LHR, or your home field and you get scheduled arrivals, departures, live gate assignments, and the aircraft currently on final approach on a single screen. The receiver network is smaller than Flightradar24’s but coverage over Europe and the US is comparable, and the airport-first structure is genuinely different.
For plane spotters at fence lines, the “planes near me” view with distance from the airport terminal is more useful than a raw map. Push notifications for a specific tail number are a paid feature that pilots’ family members swear by.
Where it falls short: Coverage in Africa, Central Asia, and remote Pacific is thinner than Flightradar24. The map rendering can stutter on older phones. Some airport data is delayed by a minute or two behind Flightradar24.
Pricing:
- Free with ads.
- Silver: around $1/mo.
- Gold: around $4/mo.
- Business plans available.
Platforms: Android, iOS, web.
Bottom line: Install if your daily flight tracking centers on one or two specific airports.
4. ADSB Flight Tracker – best for local dump1090 or PiAware feeds
ADSB Flight Tracker is the app that speaks to your own receiver. Point it at a Raspberry Pi running dump1090 or PiAware on the local network, drop in the IP address and port, and the phone renders the raw ADS-B stream in a proper moving map without the crowdsourced network ever seeing your data. It also connects to the OpenSky Network as a fallback when you are away from home.
For enthusiasts who already run a receiver on the roof, this is the client that pulls the feed onto the phone in seconds. The UI is spartan compared to Flightradar24 but the data path is direct.
Where it falls short: No airline branding or aircraft photos. Setup requires knowing your receiver’s IP and port. Push notifications and augmented reality are missing.
Pricing:
- Free.
- Pro in-app purchase around $5 removes ads and unlocks extra map layers.
Platforms: Android.
Bottom line: The pick if you already run PiAware, dump1090, or a Virtual Radar Server at home.
5. Plane Finder – best for a simple map and overhead AR view
Plane Finder by Pinkfroot is the veteran spotter app with one of the cleanest map renderings on Android and an augmented-reality mode that overlays live aircraft labels on the phone camera view. Pinkfroot runs its own receiver network alongside crowdsourced feeds, so coverage is respectable in Europe, North America, and coastal Asia.
For the “point the phone at the sky and see what is flying overhead” use case, Plane Finder’s AR view is faster and less cluttered than Flightradar24’s. The free Lite version is genuinely usable rather than a demo.
Where it falls short: The free Lite version has ads and locks flight-history playback behind the paid app. Coverage in interior Africa and Central Asia is limited.
Pricing:
- Plane Finder Lite: free with ads.
- Plane Finder (paid): one-time purchase around $4.
Platforms: Android, iOS.
Bottom line: The overhead-AR flight tracker to try if you like the “look up, see what’s flying” experience.
6. ADSB Decoder & Streamer – best for a USB SDR dongle on the phone
ADSB Decoder & Streamer takes the RTL-SDR dongle out of the Raspberry Pi and plugs it straight into the phone’s USB-C port via an OTG cable. The app decodes the 1090 MHz stream on-device, plots the aircraft on a local map, and optionally streams the feed to OpenSky Network or ADSBExchange so you contribute to the crowdsourced pool. No Raspberry Pi, no roof antenna, no cloud dependency required.
For a portable ADS-B setup that fits in a jacket pocket, this app plus a $25 SDR dongle and a short 1090 MHz antenna is the entire kit.
Where it falls short: Still in beta and rough around the edges. Requires an RTL-SDR compatible USB dongle and an OTG cable, not just a phone. Battery drain during long sessions is significant.
Pricing:
- Free.
Platforms: Android.
Bottom line: The closest analog to the ESP32 desk build; ditches the microcontroller for a phone-plus-dongle rig.
7. Termux – best for running dump1090 on the phone itself
Termux is not an ADS-B app, it is a full Linux terminal for Android. Install it, add the Termux packages for librtlsdr and dump1090-fa, plug in a USB SDR dongle over OTG, and the phone becomes a headless dump1090 host that serves the standard web UI on http://localhost:8080. Any browser on the phone or another device on the network sees the map.
For anyone who wants the exact PiAware or SkyAware experience without owning a Raspberry Pi, Termux is the fastest path from a spare Android phone to a working ADS-B receiver.
Where it falls short: Not a beginner setup; expect to work through Termux repos, USB permissions, and OTG power quirks. Battery and heat under sustained SDR use are real concerns. Android background limits can kill long-running processes.
Pricing:
- Free, open source (GPLv3).
Platforms: Android.
Bottom line: For DIY spotters who want the ESP32 project without the ESP32; an old Android phone plus Termux plus dump1090 is a full receiver.
How to pick the right one
- Just curious what’s flying overhead? Install Flightradar24.
- Tracking a specific inbound flight for a pickup? Add FlightAware.
- Spend most of your spotting time at one airport? AirNav Radar.
- Already run a Pi with PiAware or dump1090 at home? ADSB Flight Tracker.
- Want a fast overhead-AR view? Plane Finder.
- Own an RTL-SDR dongle and want a portable rig? ADSB Decoder & Streamer.
- Want to turn a spare phone into a full receiver? Termux with
dump1090-fa.
FAQ
What is ADS-B and why can a phone track it? ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast) is the position and identity signal every commercial aircraft broadcasts on 1090 MHz. Volunteer receivers around the world decode the signal and push it to networks like Flightradar24, FlightAware, and OpenSky, which then serve the aggregated feed to apps on your phone.
Do I need my own hardware receiver? No. Flightradar24, FlightAware, AirNav Radar, and Plane Finder all work over the internet using the crowdsourced networks. A local RTL-SDR dongle or a Raspberry Pi running PiAware only matters if you want direct-to-phone decoding without depending on the cloud.
Which app is fully free and ad-free? ADSB Flight Tracker and Termux are the closest to genuinely free options. The mainstream apps (Flightradar24, FlightAware, AirNav Radar, Plane Finder) all have ads on the free tier and paid upgrades to remove them.
Can I run dump1090 on an Android phone?
Yes, using Termux with the community dump1090-fa package plus a USB SDR dongle connected over OTG. The dump1090 web UI runs on the phone’s local port 8080 and serves a live map to any browser.
Which app has the best coverage in remote areas? Flightradar24 with a Business subscription adds satellite ADS-B coverage over oceans and remote continents. For land-based enthusiast use anywhere in Europe, the US, or East Asia, the free tiers of Flightradar24 and FlightAware are already excellent.
Are these apps legal to use? Yes. ADS-B is an unencrypted broadcast intended for public reception, and receiving it is legal in nearly every jurisdiction. Rebroadcasting the feed commercially may require agreements with the aggregator networks.
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