Every course and job advert names the same handful of products: Avinode, JetNet, AMSTAT, ARGUS, Wyvern, VREF, Conklin & de Decker. Few explain what each one does or what it costs. This page groups the aircraft broker software and data services in common use by the job they do, and says what each vendor publishes about price.
Every description below comes from the vendor's own website, read on 17 October 2026. Where a vendor publishes no price, we say "price on request". Vendors change plans often, so check before you budget.
Key points
- Broker tools fall into six jobs: charter sourcing and quoting, operator safety vetting, market and ownership data, valuation, operating cost data and registry lookups.
- Avinode is the only charter sourcing platform here with a published broker price: $740, $1,058 or $2,119 a month on a 6 or 12 month prepaid contract.
- WYVERN publishes a $499 a month membership. JetNet, AMSTAT, ARGUS, VREF, Aircraft Bluebook, Asset Insight and Conklin & de Decker publish no price.
- The FAA aircraft registry, its downloadable database and the FAA list of Part 135 operators are free.
- Employed brokers usually work on the firm's subscriptions. Independent brokers pay for their own, which is why first-year costs vary so widely.
Charter sourcing and quoting
A charter broker's daily work is finding an aircraft for a trip, checking price and availability with the operator, and turning that into a quote the client can sign. Sourcing platforms connect brokers with operators' fleets. Quoting tools handle the paperwork. If the broker and operator roles are new to you, read what a private jet broker is first.
Avinode
What it does. Avinode describes itself as an air charter sales and sourcing platform. Its broker page says brokers can source and check prices and availability among more than 3,400 aircraft, post requests on a Trip Board, find empty legs that operators promote and chat with operators inside the system. TripManager, its quoting tool, turns a request into a quote for the end client. Avinode is part of Avinode Group.
Who uses it. Charter brokers and operators. Brokers pay for broker plans. Operators pay a separate membership to put their fleet in front of brokers.
How it is sold. Avinode's pricing page lists three broker plans, each including one user, on a 6 or 12 month prepaid contract. Starter is $740 a month and is described as the basic package for the individual broker, with a maximum of three licences. Advanced is $1,058 a month. Ultimate is $2,119 a month and adds API access. The same figures appear in euros. Extra users are listed at $128 each in US dollars. The page notes that pricing and currency may differ depending on your business's location. On the broker page, TripManager is shown for Advanced and Ultimate only.
FL3XX Source
FL3XX's broker product, FL3XX Source, is described as a platform that centralises information and automates pricing, charter quotes and invoices, with a two-way Avinode integration for sourcing. It also lists integrations with Aviapages and other marketplaces. Price on request: the page offers a discovery call.
Aviapages
Aviapages calls itself a global air charter marketplace. Brokers can search charter companies, send quote requests and use its flight time and cost calculator, which it says covers more than 500 aircraft types. Sign-up is free with a limit on requests, and paid PRO plans exist with a 14-day trial. We could not read plan prices on its interactive pricing page.
Operator safety vetting
Before a client flies, someone must confirm the operator holds a valid certificate and the aircraft and crew are qualified for that trip. The FAA's free list of Part 135 operators is the starting point in the US. Third-party audit firms sell deeper, trip-level checks. What a broker must disclose to the client is a separate question, covered in our guide to Part 295 disclosures.
ARGUS: CHEQ and TripCHEQ
What it does. ARGUS International, an SGS company, audits and rates operators. CHEQ is its operator database. TripCHEQ is described as individual flight qualification software that verifies crew qualifications, aircraft qualification and a valid operating certificate for a specific flight, and tracks accidents, incidents or violations.
Who uses it. ARGUS says brokers, operators, corporate flight departments and universities use CHEQ and TripCHEQ. How it is sold. By subscription. Price on request.
ARGUS also sells PRISM SMS, safety management software it says is built for FBOs, charter operators, MROs and corporate flight departments. Brokers are not its stated audience.
WYVERN: Wingman and PASS reports
What it does. WYVERN has run the Wingman Standard, an audit-based safety benchmark, since 1991. Its PASS report is a trip-specific analysis that WYVERN says uses over 150 data points to check the operator, aircraft and pilots against the Wingman Standards. Clients request one from a WYVERN broker. WYVERN also certifies some brokers under a Wingman Broker designation.
Who uses it. Operators, charter brokers, MROs, FBOs and drone teams, per the membership page. How it is sold. WYVERN Membership is listed at $499 a month and includes PASS reports, access to its ACES platform and a suite of safety management tools. Audit prices are not published.
Aircraft market and ownership data
On the sales side, a broker needs to know who owns each aircraft of a type, which ones are for sale, what has sold recently and who the decision-maker is. That is the job of JetNet and AMSTAT, compared in detail below. Public listing marketplaces cover part of the same ground for free.
Listing sites. AvBuyer and Controller.com carry aircraft-for-sale listings from dealers and owners. AvBuyer's search can be browsed without an account. Listings show only aircraft someone chose to advertise, so they are a partial view of the market.
Valuation
Brokers use valuation services to price a listing or test an offer. None of the three below publishes a subscription price on the pages we read.
- VREF. VREF Online is an aircraft valuation platform covering corporate jets, turbine and piston fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, commercial narrow-bodies and engines. VREF says two tiers are available, billed monthly or annually. It also sells quarterly guidebooks and appraisals. Price on request.
- Aircraft Bluebook. Published by Aviation Week (Informa). The online subscription gives market values for thousands of model years of business and general aviation aircraft, plus historical quarterly prices. It is sold online, in print, or as a combination. The subscription page displayed no price when we checked; it says prices are for individual recipients and gives a phone contact for multiple recipients.
- Asset Insight. Sells eValues, which it describes as a real-time aircraft valuation tool, by registration or demo request. Price on request.
JetNet and AMSTAT both sell valuation modules too, listed in the comparison below.
Operating cost data: Conklin & de Decker
Buyers ask what an aircraft will cost to fly each year. Conklin & de Decker, now a business line of JSSI (Jet Support Services), has published cost and performance data since 1989. Its page covers more than 500 business aircraft across jets, turboprops, helicopters and pistons, with variable and fixed operating costs, range maps, runway requirements, cabin comparisons and 20-year life-cycle cost estimates.
It is sold by subscription with a free trial ("Try it") and a contact form. No current price is published. The most recent list prices we found are in 2016 trade-press releases (secondary sources), which are too old to use for a budget. Ask for a quote.
Registry lookups: the FAA registry (free)
The FAA Civil Aviation Registry's Aircraft Inquiry lets anyone look up a US-registered aircraft by N-number, serial number, owner name, make and model, engine, dealer or document index, at no cost. The FAA says the data is updated each federal working day at midnight. The full Releasable Aircraft Database can also be downloaded as comma-delimited text files, refreshed daily, including the registration master file, the dealer file and deregistered aircraft.
Two limits apply. The registry shows the registered owner, which is often a trust or a company set up to hold the aircraft. And under 49 U.S.C. § 44114(b), private owners can ask the FAA to withhold their names and addresses from public display. Paid databases add the research that links a registration to an actual decision-maker. For the meaning of registry and transaction terms, see the aircraft broker glossary.
JetNet vs AMSTAT
Both are subscription research databases on the business aircraft fleet. The table compares them on the same criteria, using only what each company publishes on its own site. Headline figures are the vendors' own and are not measured the same way.
| Criterion | JETNET | AMSTAT |
|---|---|---|
| Main product | Aerodex (fleet, ownership and contacts); Marketplace (listings, valuations, market intelligence) | AMSTAT Premier+ (flagship); AMSTAT Connect (fleet and decision-maker data only) |
| Researching since | "Since 1988" | "44+ years" of client success |
| Aircraft covered | Jets, turboprops, pistons, helicopters and commercial aircraft | Business, corporate and private jets, turboprops and turbine helicopters, worldwide |
| Fleet figures stated | 170,000 airframes researched; 860 aircraft models | 80,000+ business aircraft tracked; 500+ resale markets |
| Owner and contact data | "300K verified aviation contacts" | Connects subscribers with "full and fractional owner decision makers" |
| Transaction history | 670,000 aircraft transactions (homepage) | 540,000+ aircraft transactions; 40+ years of transaction data |
| Valuation | Values add-on, for Marketplace and JETNET Manager subscribers only | AMSTAT Aircraft Valuation module |
| Flight activity | WINGX, ADS-B Exchange and Jettrack products | Not described on the pages we read |
| Integrations | API, Salesforce, MCP connections | AMSTAT for Salesforce; Data Services for integration |
| How sold | Subscription; free trial or demo on request | Subscription; free trial of Premier+ |
| Published price | None. Price on request | None. Price on request |
Neither publishes a price. A practical comparison is to run both free trials on the aircraft types you plan to work, check owners you can already verify through the FAA registry, and get written quotes for the seats you need.
What a new broker actually needs in year one
Brokerages usually hold these subscriptions. If you join a firm, ask which subscriptions you will have access to; aircraft broker jobs covers the kinds of roles that exist. If you plan to work independently, the list below separates the free resources from the paid ones. It describes what exists and is not a purchase recommendation, or legal or financial advice.
Charter side
- Free: the FAA's list of certificated Part 135 operators, the FAA aircraft registry, the text of 14 CFR Part 295 on eCFR, and NBAA's Best Practices for Air Charter Brokering (July 2024), a public PDF.
- Paid, published price: an Avinode broker plan from $740 a month on a 6 or 12 month prepaid contract. A WYVERN membership at $499 a month if you want PASS reports.
- Paid, price on request: ARGUS CHEQ and TripCHEQ, FL3XX Source, Aviapages PRO.
Sales side
- Free: the FAA registry and its daily downloadable database, AvBuyer and other listing sites, manufacturers' specification pages, and Aircraft Bluebook's free Marketline newsletter.
- Paid, price on request: JetNet or AMSTAT for fleet and ownership data, VREF, Aircraft Bluebook or Asset Insight for values, and Conklin & de Decker for operating costs. JetNet, AMSTAT and Conklin all offer trials.
For how these subscriptions add up with tuition, insurance, events and the months before a first commission, use the first-year cost calculator rather than a fixed figure from us. If you want to learn before paying for anything, the free self-study plan uses only public sources. Training is covered on charter broker training and sales broker training; the sale process these tools support is on how an aircraft sale closes.
Free from IABI · IABI publishes this guide
Want to talk it through before you spend anything?
IABI runs a free webinar on how to become an aircraft broker, and offers a free one-to-one consultation. Both are a way to ask questions and judge the teaching for yourself before paying for any course.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Avinode cost?
Avinode's pricing page lists broker plans at $740, $1,058 and $2,119 a month, each including one user, on a 6 or 12 month prepaid contract. Extra users are listed at $128 each. Avinode says pricing and currency may differ by location. Checked 17 October 2026.
JetNet vs AMSTAT: which should a broker use?
We do not rank them. Both sell subscription research on the business aircraft fleet, with ownership, transaction and valuation data, and neither publishes a price. JetNet also covers pistons and commercial aircraft. Both offer free trials, which are the fairest way to compare them on the aircraft you plan to sell.
How much is a Conklin & de Decker subscription?
Conklin & de Decker, now part of JSSI, publishes no current price. Its page offers a trial and a contact form. The last list prices we found are from 2016 press releases and are too old to budget with. Ask JSSI for a quote.
What tools do aircraft brokers use?
Charter brokers typically use a sourcing platform such as Avinode, a quoting tool, and an operator vetting service such as ARGUS or WYVERN. Sales brokers use a fleet database such as JetNet or AMSTAT, a valuation service such as VREF or Aircraft Bluebook, and operating cost data from Conklin & de Decker. Both use the free FAA registry.
Are there free aircraft broker tools?
Yes. The FAA aircraft registry and its downloadable database, the FAA list of Part 135 operators, the eCFR text of Part 295, NBAA's broker best-practices PDF and public listing sites are all free. They do not replace a sourcing platform or a fleet database once you are working deals.
Sources
Every source below was checked on 17 October 2026.
- FAA, Aircraft Inquiry (Civil Aviation Registry)
- FAA, Releasable Aircraft Database Download
- FAA, FAA certificated Part 135 operators and aircraft
- eCFR, 14 CFR Part 295, Air Charter Brokers
- NBAA, Best Practices for Air Charter Brokering (July 2024)
- Avinode, Pricing
- Avinode, Avinode Marketplace for Brokers
- FL3XX, Solutions for brokers
- Aviapages, home page and pricing
- ARGUS, CHEQ and TripCHEQ and PRISM SMS
- WYVERN, Membership and Request a WYVERN PASS Report from your WYVERN broker (24 June 2024)
- JETNET, home page, Aerodex and Values
- AMSTAT, home page and AMSTAT Premier+
- VREF, home page
- Aircraft Bluebook, home page and online subscription
- Asset Insight, home page
- JSSI, Conklin & de Decker cost and performance
- AvBuyer, aircraft for sale
- Secondary: HeliHub reprint of a Conklin & de Decker press release, 19 April 2016, cited only to date the last published price