Online aircraft valuation: how it works and where to get one

What is an online aircraft valuation?

It is an automated calculation that estimates what an aircraft is worth in the current market, without an appraiser inspecting the airplane. Instead of a survey, the tool uses three ingredients: the data you declare, a base of comparable listings, and a model that adjusts the value for the difference between your aircraft and the references.

The result comes out as a value range, not an exact price. The range is there on purpose: it reflects the uncertainty an online tool cannot eliminate (real condition, quality of repairs and documentation, the context of the negotiation).

It is different from three things that are often confused with it:

• Appraisal report: a document signed by a qualified appraiser or engineer, with a physical inspection of the aircraft and its records. It is the document a bank, an insurer or a court may ask for when it wants a formal appraisal.
• A broker's market analysis: a professional opinion on price, based on the experience of someone who negotiates, usually free and subject to an interest in the sale.
• Asking price in a listing: what the seller wants, not what the market pays. Listings marked "make offer" or "call for price" are common among used jets, and the closing price can land below the asking price, depending on the negotiation.

How does an online aircraft valuation work?

The flow is similar in most tools. Understanding each step helps you judge whether the result deserves your trust:

1. You enter the aircraft's data. Model and variant (for example, Phenom 300 or 300E), year of manufacture, total time, cycles, configuration, avionics and whether the engines are on a maintenance program. The more fields filled in, the smaller the uncertainty of the range tends to be.
2. The platform identifies comparable aircraft. It searches the base for aircraft of the same model, with a similar year and hours profile, that were listed (or, on some platforms, traded) recently. It is the logic of the comparable method in formal appraisals, only automated.
3. The model adjusts the value. Each difference between your aircraft and the references becomes an adjustment: a newer year adds, hours above average subtract, an engine on a program adds, a worn interior subtracts. The result is the range.
4. You receive the estimate with context. Good tools show the range and also the comparables used. If the tool returns only a number, without showing the references, be suspicious.

In Jet Tracker, the path starts with the registration: the tool pulls the aircraft's record from the registry, cross-checks it against comparable listings of the same model and adjusts for year, total time, hours since engine overhaul, engine program, modifications and damage history. It returns a value range with the comparables used and the adjustments laid open item by item, and adds a separate quick-sale scenario in Brazil. The result is delivered to people with an account, and signing up is free. The tool is at aircraft valuation tool.

What data goes into the calculation, and why does each one matter?

Not every field weighs the same. The table shows the main ones and the order of magnitude of the effect:

The weights above are qualitative. Jet Tracker does not publish a measure of how much the range narrows with each field filled in, so this article cites no percentage.

How much does an online aircraft valuation cost?

It depends on the depth:

• Free estimate: several tools deliver a basic range at no cost. In Jet Tracker, the result goes to people with an account, and signing up is free.
• Paid detailed report: international platforms charge for reports with listed comparables, transaction history and a depreciation projection, by subscription or as a one-off report. Confirm the current price on the vendor's website, because it changes.
• Formal on-site appraisal: another level. It is usually quoted per project and varies with the size of the aircraft and with the appraiser. Ask for a quote directly from appraisers or appraisal firms, because there is no reliable public price list.

Where can I do an online aircraft valuation in Brazil?

The Brazilian market has few native options: most valuation tools were born in the United States and designed for the American market. In practice, there are three paths.

1. Brazilian tools with RAB data. The advantage of a national platform is that it starts from the Brazilian registry: the aircraft's record comes from the RAB (Brazil's civil aircraft registry, kept by ANAC), and the model's fleet data in the country gives context to the reading. That matters because a jet's price in Brazil is not its price in the United States: there is import, nationalization, small local supply and concentrated demand.

2. International platforms (Amstat, VRef, Aircraft Bluebook). These are databases and value tables well known in the industry. The weak point for someone in Brazil: the data is mostly American, prices come out in dollars and the subscription is paid in foreign currency. They work well as a second opinion.

3. Brokers and classifieds. Sites such as Controller and AvBuyer, plus Brazilian classifieds, show asking price. They work as a thermometer, always remembering that asking price is not closing price. Jet Tracker's Sales Radar (aircraft for sale) brings listings together for this comparison, and the market picture is in aircraft for sale in Brazil.

Jet Tracker's comparables base is made of public listings: as of Oct 12, 2026, there were 11,966 active listings monitored worldwide, adding Brazil and abroad. Most listings do not publish a price, and that limits the reading for any model with few priced listings.

What are the limitations of an online valuation?

An online valuation is a starting point, not a verdict. The limitations are structural and apply to any tool:

• It does not see the aircraft's real condition. Hidden corrosion, a worn interior, repainted surfaces, a poorly documented repair: none of that shows up in a form. Two aircraft with the same year and the same hours can be worth quite a bit more or less depending on condition (a market reading, with no percentage measured by Jet Tracker).
• It depends on the quality of the comparables. If the model has few listings, or few with a price, the range gets wide and less reliable. Popular models tend to produce better estimates.
• It does not capture urgency or negotiation context. A seller who needs cash, a buyer on a deadline, a trade-in involved: the closing price reflects circumstances no algorithm knows.
• Declared data can be wrong. Total time, engine program and damage history depend on what is entered. Wrong input produces a wrong estimate.
• It is not an appraisal. An automatic estimate does not replace the appraisal when the bank, the insurer, one of the parties or the court asks for a formal valuation. Whoever asked decides what to accept.

Online valuation vs. on-site appraisal: what is the difference?

When is an online valuation enough, and when do I need an appraisal?

An online valuation is enough when:

• You are researching out of curiosity or planning a future purchase and want to calibrate price expectations.
• You are about to make an opening offer and need a numerical argument to anchor the negotiation.
• You are a seller and want to set a realistic asking price before listing.
• You want to track the aircraft's depreciation over the years to plan a trade-up.
• You are comparing two or three candidate models and need to understand the price-level gap between them.

A professional appraisal comes in when an outside party asks for a formal valuation:

• Financing: the bank may require a formal appraisal to set the collateral value.
• Insurance: the insurer may require the documented insured value to issue or renew the policy.
• Court proceedings: in an estate, a divorce, debt enforcement or another dispute over the asset's value, one of the parties or the court may ask for a formal appraisal.
• Import and nationalization: confirm with the customs broker or the accountant which valuation document the operation requires. The cost of that operation is in how much it costs to import an aircraft.
• Corporate transaction: buying a stake in the company that owns the aircraft, a merger or a capital contribution in which the asset goes on the balance sheet, when partners, auditors or the accountant ask for a documented value.

The practical rule: if an institution is going to make a financial decision based on the number, the path is the appraisal. If the number serves your own decision, the online valuation does the job. For those at the buying stage, the step-by-step is in how to buy an airplane.

Example: what the comparables base shows in practice

To see the kind of raw material a valuation uses, it helps to look at one model. The table shows what the monitored public listings show for the Phenom 300. It is asking price, not sale price, and the sample is small.

Source: Jet Tracker, public listings monitored worldwide, queried Oct 11, 2026. Asking price, not sale price. The model's record and the active market are on the Phenom 300 market tab.