Save Money. Be Prepared.

An FAA Private Pilot checkride costs between $600 and $1,200. Flight Instructor checkrides can cost up to $2,000. A failure during the oral examination portion of the checkride means just that; a failure. There are no refunds.

A comprehensive mock checkride is the best way to verify that you are ready to pass your FAA checkride on the first attempt. Book yours today!

What is a Mock Checkride?

A mock checkride is an opportunity for you to assess your preparedness for your upcoming FAA Practical Test.

Meet with Scott Kinney, an experienced FAA Certificated Flight Instructor (CFI/AGI/IGI), for a comprehensive mock checkride experience from the comfort of your own home.

A mock checkride typically runs 2.5 to 3 hours, with a 15 to 30 minute debrief at the end of the session. Plan for 3.5 hours for most mock checkride appointments (instructor orals, allow for 4 hours). Currently, we offer mock checkrides for Private Pilot, Sport Pilot, Commercial Pilot, CFI, and CFI-Sport. Pricing ranges from $225 to $325.

We’re a no-BS operation. If you’re not ready to take a checkride, we’ll say so. If you’re prepared, we’ll give you a vote of confidence that you can carry forward into your FAA exam.

Here’s what to expect with a mock checkride.

Schedule your mock checkride now!

The MockCheckride.com Difference

Customized for You

Our goal is to provide you the most realistic mock checkride experience possible. Whether you are flying a Cessna in the Class Golf airspace of Montana or a Cirrus in the New York Class Bravo, we'll be reviewing questions that you might see on your actual checkride.

Each mock checkride includes a scenario tailored specifically to you, your airplane, and the certificate you seek.

Expect questions that will help verify you have the knowledge that you need, as well as questions that will test your critical thinking skills and risk management.

The exam will be conducted with the same structure and verbiage used by FAA Designated Pilot Examiners (DPEs) in actual FAA checkrides.

We follow FAA Order 8900.2C and use a Plan of Action.  We will cover all required ACS/PTS Areas of Operation, as well as common elective Tasks and Elements.

Evaluation

After your mock checkride, expect a 15 to 30 minute verbal debrief. You'll receive a pass/fail grade, as you would on an actual checkride.

During the debrief, we will talk about areas of strengths and weaknesses, as well as strategies for improvement prior to your checkride date. We also welcome your regular flight instructor to sit in on the verbal debrief.

An ACS/PTS-based written evaluation is available for an additional fee. This is a great way to communicate deficiencies to your flight instructor.

No-Nonsense Price

We believe that fixed, transparent pricing is the best way to conduct thorough evaluations of this kind. Rather than watching the clock, candidates can concentrate on the training session.

A complete mock checkride and verbal debrief is $225 for Private Pilot and Sport Pilot, $250 for Commercial Pilot, and $325 for CFI Initial or CFI-Sport Initial.

A comprehensive ACS/PTS-based written debrief costs $60.

A $75 deposit is required to book an appointment. Payment for mock checkrides is requested during the video call pre-test stage, prior to test administration. PayPal, Venmo, or Zelle are accepted.

Review in deficient subject areas can be conducted after the mock checkride, schedule permitting, at a rate of $75/hour.

Client Feedback

PASSED MY RIDE

Passed with flying colors! Thanks for your help!

A.T.

Washington, PP-ASEL, 11/2023

CFI in the books!

I took my CFI ride on Monday and passed.  The ground portion was almost exactly what I expected based on our work last week. The flight was just okay. My DPE said that my ground work helped make up for some deficiencies in the flight. I hope you add CFII to your offerings soon as that is the next on my list.

J.L.

Arizona, CFI-Initial, 1/2024

Thanks so much!!!

I enjoyed it a lot and found it very helpful. This write up is very thorough! Appreciate it.

S.N.

Nevada, PP-ASEL, 1/2024

Passed PPL ride

We did a mock oral around 5 weeks ago. Wanted you to know that not only did I pass, but during debrief the DPE said he did 24 checkrides last year and my oral exam was the best of them. He hit me with a fair amount of commercial stuff, I never looked up a thing. Having a yearning for knowledge and a willingness to dig into the information made that happen. Thank you for being part of my pilot journey!

J.P.

Wyoming, PP-ASEL, 2/2024

Thank you!

I found today’s session extremely valuable. Thanks so much for your help with everything.

S.M.

California, PP-ASEL, 3/2024

Ready to take the ride!

Thanks Scott! Really enjoyed the session. I feel ready to take the ride.

N.K.

California, PP-ASEL, 4/2024

RE: Mock Checkride Debrief

It was great talking to you and you were a huge help figuring out where I am and what I need to work on.

D.D.

Utah, SP-Airplane, 4/2024

Just wanted to let you know – I passed!

My session with you made the oral a lot easier, not just the topics, but the flow of conversation felt like I was used to it.

I.Z.

Washington, PP-ASEL, 6/2024

I did it!

Hi Scott,  Thank you for your help preparing me for my check ride. My original check ride was rescheduled due to weather. I completed it on my first try on Wednesday!
Your mock oral prepared me very well for the actual test. I look forward to working with you again for future test preps!

D.P.

Washington, PP-ASEL, 7/2024

Check Ride Success

I’ve been feeling overwhelmed the past week trying to cover and grasp the material.  You helped me find confidence and I passed. Cleared for takeoff on the private pilot journey.  I’ll see you in the sky!

K.C.

Washington, PP-ASEL, 6/2024

Passed!

My private pilot practical test went well, especially the knowledge portion. The time that you and I spent going through the mock exam helped. I value humility, but I have to brag a bit: the DPE said after we finished the ground portion that I had done “the best”. At the end of the day, she told my instructor that the ground portion had been “perfect”. So that’s worth something. I made some mistakes during the flight portion, but apparently none of it was bad enough to change the outcome of the test.

G.H.

Washington, PP-ASEL, 7/2024

Ready to go

Thanks for the great mock checkride and the feedback.  I have a much better grasp of what to study, and where to look for it.

C.D.

Arizona, PP-ASEL, 9/2024

CFI Pass!

I wanted to email to inform you that I passed my CFI first try! Thank you for all of the help preparing, it was certainly an interesting ride if you’d like the write-up! She was a gem of a DPE to take a ride with, and it felt almost easy! Never felt like I was going to fail! Anyway, thank you very much again for your help, and for going above and beyond to answer my questions.

D.A.

Oklahoma, CFI-Initial, 10/2024

New commercial pilot

Checkride ended up getting moved to yesterday and I passed! Thanks again for all your help, I’ll be recommending you to other students at my school for some extra prep!

A.H.

Michigan, C-ASEL (and later, CFI-Initial), 10/2024

Next steps

I passed my checkride! Thanks so much for all the help and guidance leading up to it. I’m now going to start working on my instrument rating.

J.B.

Michigan, PP-ASEL, 10/2024

Re: Logbook Entry

Hi Scott, I was able to pass my check ride on the first try Saturday @ KESN. Your help was critical in giving me confidence that I was prepared for the oral portion.

A.V.

Maryland, PP-ASEL, 10/2024

Success!

Wanted to share the good news. DPE said I aced the oral. My flying wasn’t as good but it was apparently good enough. Thanks for your help with preparation!

C.V.

New York, PP-ASEL, 11/2024

Check ride update

I passed my oral portion of the check ride but had to stop because of a maintenance issue. I do feel that you helped me cross the finish line thank you so much.

C.B.

Arizona, PP-ASEL, 11/2024

Update and debrief

Hi there Scott,  I had a CFI Initial mock checkride with you around mid October. I just wanted to let you know that I passed the exam.

B.G.

Texas, CFI-Initial, 10/2024

one more pilot in this world now

I’m glad to share the news that I successfully passed my checkride yesterday. Oral part wasn’t much different from what you mocked, except it was significantly shorter and many topics were omitted. Thanks to your mock exam, I was very confident and talked a lot without worrying about opening a can of worms. DPE was quite happy that he didn’t have to ask a lot of questions, and we had a good friendly conversation which I personally enjoyed.

A.G.

California, PP-ASEL, 1/2025

New CFI in the house!

I flew out to Kansas to take my ride as we had discussed. It went really well. Even though it was more than 100 degrees during the flight, I was able to talk through the maneuvers and fly well enough to pass. The ground portion was around 4 hours. Obviously, the questions weren’t the same, but the areas she emphasized were similar to the ones that we worked on last week.

A.W.

Colorado, CFI-Initial, 9/2024

Re: Mock Checkride Followup

I passed my CFI oral today, ultimately discontinued for wx, the plan is to knock out the flight on Wednesday morning. Thanks for your help in preparing, everything went very smoothly. Additionally, thanks for the book recommendations, I will definitely plan on purchasing those in the future.

A.C.

Michigan, CFI-Initial, 3/2025

Resources

What to Bring

You'll want to bring the same items that you would on the day of your FAA checkride. Click here for checklists.

Common Deficiencies

Here are a few areas where we often find applicants to be lacking.

Free Checkride Prep Guide

We've put together a comprehensive checkride prep guide that you can use to get ready for your FAA Practical Test.

Ten Reasons for a Mock Checkride

Ten great reasons you should consider doing an online mock checkride with a MockCheckride.com instructor.

Example Scenario

Check out an example flight planning scenario for a Private Pilot checkride.

Video Conferencing

Even if you're new to video conferencing, Zoom makes it easy to log on and experience a face-to-face mock checkride. We suggest the Zoom desktop client for a seamless experience. We can also conduct sessions via Skype, Google Meet, Facebook Video, and other software by prior arrangement.

Schedule Now!

  • Please schedule using the form below. If you need assistance, email scott@mockcheckride.com.

  • We recommend scheduling your mock checkride between one and two weeks prior to your checkride date. This will allow for time to review any deficient areas that are identified during our meeting.

  • We require a $75 deposit to reserve your appointment. You may also pay the full balance while booking. If the full balance is not paid in advance, we will collect the remainder during the Zoom call.

  • In the event you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment, please provide at least 24 hours notice. We will do our best to accommodate reschedule requests. If you cancel with more than 24 hours notice, you will receive a full refund. If you cancel with less than 24 hours notice or no-show to the appointment, you will forfeit your reservation deposit. Email scott@mockcheckride.com to cancel/change an appointment.

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