Actual pilot's license cost, down to the penny

TexasAviation

TexasAviation

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TexasAviation
I know a lot of aspiring student pilots ask how much it costs to get a license. And, of course, the answer is "it depends" because every student/plane/instructor is different.

Now that the disclaimer is out of the way, I've been tracking my expenses down to the penny ever since starting my training so I can say exactly what it cost for my particular situation. Wanna know the number?

Drumroll, please ...

$9,167.88

That breaks down as:

- $4,505.04 for plane rental and fuel

- $2,345 for the instructor

- $1,480 for flying club dues, deposits, etc.

- $649.95 for testing and checkride

- $187.89 for miscellaneous items (including medical)

Technically, the flying club expenses will cover a full year when my training only took six months. And a big chunk of that was a deposit that will be refunded to me eventually. If you factor that in, my hard costs will be closer to $8,000.

For some background, I'm in rural East Texas flying an Archer II that I rented for about $90/hour tach time with an instructor that charged a flat rate of $65 per flight. He's a real talker, so I'm glad I wasn't paying him by the hour! And in case you want to see where every penny went, here's the complete list:

Gleim online ground school -- $99.95
Medical exam -- $110.00
Written exam -- $150.00
1 yr club dues, initiation fee, deposit -- $1,480.00
First two lessons - check to instructor -- $130.00
5-20-14 - Lesson No. 3 - instructor -- $65.00
Ginger from Vitamin World -- $20.39
6-2-14 - Lesson No. 4 - instructor -- $65.00
6-5-14 - Lesson No. 5 - instructor -- $65.00
6-16-14 - AOPA membership -- $35.00
6-19-14 - Lessons 6a and 6b - instructor -- $130.00
6-19-14 - May flying time -- $79.21
6-26-14 - Lesson 7a - instructor -- $65.00
7-3-14 - Lessons 7b-c - instructor -- $130.00
7-10-14 - June flying time -- $472.21
7-10-14 - Lessons 8a-b -- $130.00
7-31-14 - Lessons 8c, 9a -- $130.00
8-7-14 Lesson 9b, 9c -- $130.00
8-15-14 - July flying time -- $435.21
8-18-14 - Lessons 10a, 10b -- $130.00
8-21-14 - Lessons 10c, 11a -- $130.00
8-29-14 - Lessons 11b, 13 -- $130.00
9-1-14 - Lesson 14 -- $65.00
9-4-14 - Lesson 12 (stage check) -- $60.00
9-11-14 - August flying time -- $788.21
9-14-14 - Lesson 16 (mini xc) -- $65.00
9-17-14 - Cross Country and lesson -- $215.00
9-17-14 Duke's Fish Shack -- $22.50
9-17-14 - TAC Air FBO -- $95.49
9-17-14 - KRS FBO -- $37.14
9-29-14 - Night Flight Local lesson -- $65.00
10-13-14 - September flying time -- $767.21
10-20-14 - KRS FBO -- $35.94
10-20 - TAC Air FBO -- $67.19
10-20 - Ennis fuel -- $41.92
10-20 - Check for instructor -- $120.00
11-5 - Check for instructor -- $130.00
11-12 - Check for instructor -- $130.00
11-17 - Final lesson - instructor -- $65.00
11-18 - October club bill -- $993.21
11-20 - Fee for examiner -- $400.00
November club bill (to come in December) -- $692.10

So there you have it: one person's real-world expenses for getting a private pilot certificate, start to finish. And I'd do it again in a heartbeat!
 
WOW!! I spent 5K, I flew every day and finished in 3 months. I would hate to break it down because I would cry. LOL
 
For PPL and Instrument I am "all-in" for 12.5K
 
What part of your training did "Dukes Fish Shack" provide??
 
Captain said:
What part of your training did "Dukes Fish Shack" provide??
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Lunch for me and instructor on dual cross country. He's buying a celebration dinner now that I passed the checkride :)
 
Nice breakdown. I wish I knew how much I spent 0 time through CFI.
 
TexasAviation said:
Ginger from Vitamin World -- $20.39
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A little tummy trouble at first?:lol:

I don't have a detailed breakdown, but I sold my small business to go flying. I started with about $60,000 and finished with about $20,000 left.

That included all expenses, food, rent, etc,.

Private, IFR, SEL comm, MEL comm, CFI and CFII, plus the ground instructor ratings.

Later on I spent about $2500 to add the ATP, again including all expenses. I did buy my instructor dinner at a really nice (read expensive) restaurant after the ATP ride because I was making so much more money than he, plus I wanted to make sure he was getting proper nutrition.

All in all it was worth every cent.
 
Zeldman said:
A little tummy trouble at first?:lol:
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Lost my lunch on the first 10+ flights. Every. Freakin'. Time. And the ginger didn't do a thing.

But all's better now. Just a little bump in the road :)
 
TexasAviation said:
Lost my lunch on the first 10+ flights. Every. Freakin'. Time. And the ginger didn't do a thing.

But all's better now. Just a little bump in the road :)
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Glad its better. It happens sometimes.

Some people think crashing is the most dangerous part of being a flight instructor....
vomit-smiley-024.gif
 
I don't see expenses getting to and from the airport.
 
Not counting miles driven to the airport? That could be a decent chunk of change. Joking, but you know someone is going to add it up.
Edit just saw Ed jump in.
 
My license cost a little over $12,000 when I added up not just the training, but all of the gear, foreflight, medical, headset, and all the flights/ground sessions required to start from nowhere to the temporary airmen certificate being signed. This is for the east bay of San Francisco in a Cessna 172R/S.

Aircraft was $130 per hour (137.50 for C172S) and CFI was $50 per hour. I went for the checkride around 54 hours.
 
Late 80s early 90s a little over 3K start to finish.
 
Didn't keep records,just went with pay as you go.
 
Private was cheap, unfortunately it was a gateway drug.
 
TexasAviation said:
Lunch for me and instructor on dual cross country. He's buying a celebration dinner now that I passed the checkride :)
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Only $22.50 for lunch for two? That was the most economical part of your training. Was the Fish Shack located on the field, too? That would be great.
 
My golden rule regarding flying...

Ask how much it costs, the hell with how much you spent
 
superdad said:
WOW!! I spent 5K, I flew every day and finished in 3 months. I would hate to break it down because I would cry. LOL
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Cost $4,500 and took me 28 days start to finish including the written. I had been flying ultra lights for 1,000 hours prior, but those hours or experience didn't count. :rolleyes:
 
Not far from mine; $7,9xx (barely shy of $8k) for just PPL, not quite 2 years ago in Arizona. Starting my instrument as we speak, which I'm doing in the airplane I bought earlier this year---making it a fair bit cheaper than average, or considerably more expensive, depending on how you look at it. ;)
 
NoHeat said:
Only $22.50 for lunch for two? That was the most economical part of your training. Was the Fish Shack located on the field, too? That would be great.
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He had the side salad....wasnt that hungry that day.:yes:

If the Fish Shack was located on the field...they had a can of sardines and some saltines...split a can of coke!!:D
 
Mine was about 7k. Like OP said i would do it again in a heartbeat. If you can afford it, without a dought it is one of the best things ive ever done, worth every penny ive spent and will continue to spend.
 
My ratings all got progressively cheaper, as I figured things out and as I met new friends with planes...
between 7-8k for private.
 
I am very careful to spread my flying expenses across all accounts and credit cards so I never find out how much I spend.
 
Great breakdown in the OP.

I think my ppl cost about $500.00

I look at it like the plane is cheaper than some hottie with a new car, apartment, bills, shopping, etc..:rolleyes:
 
Beginning of the 90s I added it up and ended up right at $3500 for PP.
 
My PPL cost me a little over $400, all in, back in 1967. I did it in an Aeronca 7AC Champ. It cost me $4 an hour wet and the CFI was $6 or so if I recall correctly. I had to rent something with gyros for the checkride, so I bought a 10 hour block in a brand-spanking new C-150 for a total of $60 (wet). It seems to me the DPE charged me $75 and medicals ran around $45 or so. Back then, you went to the FAA to take the writtens and there was no charge for that. After I got my license, I rented a Cessna 170 for $7 an hour wet. My first retractable time was in a brand-new 1967 Mooney M20C Ranger. The FBO charged $16 an hour.
 
My PPL was around $750 .... 40.0 hrs. That was with a private instructor who owned the Cessna 150.

RT
 
I was always afraid to add it up. Should I include the cost of the airplane that I bought between my checkride and the end of that last 10-hour block of time? And annuals, insurance, etc? To say nothing of flying all over the country, Instrument training, another checkride, hangar rent . . .

The longer it goes on, the less I want to know an exact breakdown!
 
Great post Texas!

Now when asked, my answer will be, "about 10K, half for the plane, a quarter of it for an instructor and the rest misc, YMMV but not as much as you may think".

Some data is always useful.
 
Wow.... Staggering prices.....
I commend you all for spending the cash and sticking with it to get your PPL..


Back in 1980 mine was less then 1,400... And I thought I was going broke getting it..
 
Didn't keep track of mine but it was somewhere around 5k-6k. Working at the airport got me a discount. Usually flew once a month until I was 16 then twice a month.
 
bout 60hrs in a C-152 for the PPL....at these rates (early 80's). :D

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About $23,000. Took around 95 hours. And Chicago prices are not cheap. The plane was $125 an hour and the instructor was $55 an hour.
 
Catalo;1621376[B said:
]About $23,000.[/B] Took around 95 hours. And Chicago prices are not cheap. The plane was $125 an hour and the instructor was $55 an hour.
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HOLY Crap.....:yikes::yikes:....:eek:
 
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