How much might flight training cost?
Build your own flight-training budget in seconds. Set local aircraft and instructor rates, estimate lesson time, and account for supplies, exams and unexpected costs.
Your training assumptions
Starting values are illustrative examples, not local price quotes. Change everything to match your flight school.
How to make a more realistic estimate
Ask your flight school whether the aircraft hourly rate includes fuel, and whether instructor time is billed separately during flights and preflight or postflight discussions. Enter dual flight instruction only for the flight hours that involve a paid instructor, to avoid charging instructor fees for solo hours.
Budget for ground instruction, knowledge testing, checkride, equipment, and extra training time. The hours you ultimately need depend on your progress, training schedule, weather and aircraft availability. Compare estimates from different flight schools using the same assumptions.
This calculator is an informal planning tool, not a quote, official logbook, guaranteed certificate cost, or regulatory hour determination. For recording actual spending, see our student pilot expense guide and cost-tracking guide.