In total, training for a private pilot certificate may cost $6,000 to $20,000 or more.
In many flight schools the FAA requires a minimum of 40 hours of flight time to earn the private pilot certificate. Some of that is with an instructor, and some is alone in the airplane. Most people don’t finish at the minimum. There’s no industrywide data to say exactly how many hours of flight experience most pilots have when they earn a certificate, but it’s most likely somewhere between 50 hours and 70 hours. In total, training for a private pilot certificate may cost $6,000 to $20,000 or more.