How do I install add-on aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

On PC, install most add-on aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 or 2024 by extracting the download and placing the package folder containing manifest.json in that simulator’s Community folder, then restarting MSFS. Use a supplied installer when provided. Consoles accept add-ons only through the simulator’s built-in Marketplace or library.

Which aircraft installation method should I use?

Choose the method that matches the files you received rather than putting every download into Community.

What should I check before installing a plane?

Before copying anything, confirm that the add-on is compatible with your simulator version and is actually a complete aircraft.

• MSFS version: a package labelled for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 is not automatically compatible with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, or vice versa.
• Aircraft or livery: a livery appears as a paint option for its base aircraft. It does not normally add a separate aeroplane to the selection screen.
• Required content: some add-ons need a default, Marketplace or third-party base aircraft, plus one or more shared libraries.
• Correct simulator family: FSX, Prepar3D and X-Plane aircraft cannot be installed in MSFS simply by copying their folders.
• Extracted files: do not put an unopened .zip, .rar or .7z archive in Community.
• Trusted installer: only run an executable installer when it comes from a source you trust and belongs to the aircraft you intended to download.

How do I manually install aircraft in MSFS 2020 or 2024?

Manual installation consists of extracting the download, identifying the actual package root and copying that complete folder into the active Community folder.

1. Close Microsoft Flight Simulator. Community packages are normally scanned during start-up, so do not make changes with the simulator open.
2. Extract the archive into a temporary folder. Extracting to a short location first also reduces problems caused by excessively long Windows paths.
3. Read the supplied documentation. Use the developer’s installer or updater if one is provided instead of making a second manual copy.
4. Find the package root. This is the folder that directly contains manifest.json and normally layout.json.
5. Open the correct Community folder for the version of MSFS you intend to run.
6. Copy the complete package folder into Community. Keep the supplied folder name unless the instructions explicitly say otherwise.
7. Check the folder depth. Opening the copied aircraft folder should reveal manifest.json immediately, rather than another identically named folder.
8. Start MSFS normally and check aircraft selection. If the download is a livery, variant or enhancement, inspect its base aircraft instead of expecting a new entry.

Some archives contain several installable package folders, such as the aircraft and a shared instrument or object library. If each required folder has its own manifest.json, copy each one separately as directed by the documentation.

What should the Community package structure look like?

The folder containing manifest.json must sit directly inside Community; excessive nesting is the installation error we see most often.

• Correct: Community\aircraft-name\manifest.json
• Wrong: Community\aircraft-name\aircraft-name\manifest.json
• Wrong: Community\aircraft-name.zip

Downloads often include an outer folder containing screenshots, documentation and one or more actual packages. Copy the inner package folders, not the outer download folder.

What if the aircraft has its own installer?

An aircraft with a dedicated installer should normally be installed and updated through that application.

Read the destination prompt carefully. If it asks for the main Packages location, select the location used by MSFS; if it specifically asks for Community, select that child folder. Do not then add a manual copy as well, because duplicate versions can override one another or prevent the aircraft from loading correctly.

How do I find the correct MSFS Community folder?

The safest way to find the Community folder is to identify the active Packages location rather than relying on a default path copied from another computer.

For MSFS 2020 on PC, the UserCfg.opt configuration file contains an InstalledPackagesPath entry. Microsoft Store and Xbox app installations generally keep the configuration below a simulator-specific folder in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages, while Steam installations generally use %APPDATA%. Open the relevant UserCfg.opt in a text editor, find InstalledPackagesPath, then open the Community folder inside that location.

Custom content locations override common defaults. If both MSFS 2020 and MSFS 2024 are installed, they can use different Community folders, so confirm which configuration belongs to the simulator you are launching. Our explanation of where MSFS stores manually installed aircraft covers the different installation types in more detail.

Do not put freeware aircraft in Official, beside the simulator executable or in another version’s Packages directory. An empty Community folder can also be perfectly normal when all your aircraft came from the Marketplace; our Community-folder troubleshooting checks help distinguish an unused folder from the wrong one.

How do I add planes to MSFS 2024?

On PC, locally installed MSFS 2024 aircraft still belong in that installation’s active Community folder unless the add-on supplies an installer.

Use aircraft explicitly marked as compatible with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. A 2020 package may look structurally correct yet fail because its model, instruments, systems or dependencies were built for the earlier simulator.

MSFS 2024 can manage or stream eligible owned content through its library system, so a Marketplace aircraft does not need to appear in Community to be available. Do not copy or modify simulator-managed packages. For version-specific folder and nesting checks, see our local aircraft installation instructions for MSFS 2024.

How can I get more planes in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

You can add more aircraft through the in-sim Marketplace, PC freeware packages or developer-supplied installers, while some edition content may need to be enabled through the simulator’s library or content manager.

• Freeware on PC: download an aircraft compatible with your exact simulator and install its package in Community. Our MSFS aircraft and add-on library identifies the intended simulator where that information is available.
• Marketplace aircraft: acquire and manage the aircraft inside MSFS rather than manually moving its files.
• Installer-managed aircraft: use the supplied setup application or updater and retain it for later updates or removal.
• Included edition aircraft: check the simulator’s library or content-management controls if an aircraft included with your edition is missing.

Can I install add-on aircraft manually on Xbox or PlayStation?

Manual Community-folder installation is unavailable on consoles, including Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PS5 Pro.

Console users can install only aircraft distributed through the simulator and supported on that platform. A PC archive cannot be copied by USB or placed into a console Community folder. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 is available on PC and Xbox but was never released for PlayStation; Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is available on PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PS5 Pro.

Why is my installed aircraft not showing up?

A missing aircraft is usually caused by the wrong Community folder, an extra folder layer, an incompatible package or an absent dependency.

1. Start MSFS in normal mode. If the simulator offered Safe Mode after a crash, Community packages are deliberately disabled there.
2. Confirm the simulator version. Check that the aircraft explicitly supports MSFS 2020 or MSFS 2024 as appropriate.
3. Verify the active Community path. Do not assume the first folder named Community that appears in a Windows search is the correct one.
4. Inspect the package root. The expected structure is Community\package-name\manifest.json.
5. Check the dependencies. Install any required base aircraft, shared library, avionics package or other component listed in the documentation.
6. Remove duplicate versions. Move the old package out before installing its replacement rather than merging their contents.
7. Extract the archive again if necessary. Windows may skip files when it encounters a long path, invalid name or damaged archive.
8. Look under the base aircraft. Liveries and some variants appear beneath an existing aircraft. Clear restrictive aircraft-selection filters as well.
9. Test for a conflict. Temporarily move other Community packages elsewhere, leaving only the affected aircraft and its dependencies. Restore the remaining packages in batches after the test.

If the aircraft appears but has an invisible model, blank instruments or broken systems, MSFS has probably detected the package. That points instead to an incompatible version, missing dependency or conflict with another add-on.

How do I install scenery in MSFS 2020 or 2024?

Most manually downloaded PC scenery uses the same Community-folder method as aircraft: extract it and copy each package folder containing manifest.json into the correct simulator’s Community folder.

Large airports may include separate scenery, object-library and data packages, all of which may be required. Scenery does not appear in the aircraft list; check the relevant airport or location after restarting MSFS. Use a supplied installer when provided, and manage Marketplace scenery through the simulator rather than moving its files manually.

Avoid keeping two packages that replace the same airport unless their documentation confirms compatibility. For liveries, utilities and other package types, our broader MSFS 2020 mod-installation guidance explains how the same package rules apply.

How do I install an AIRAC cycle in MSFS 2020?

An AIRAC or navigation-data cycle is not installed as an aircraft, so use the navigation-data provider’s supplied installer or update application unless its documentation explicitly gives manual package instructions.

Close MSFS, select Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 in the updater and let it manage the destination. Some tools place their packages in Community automatically; do not rename, merge or copy those managed folders into an aircraft directory. The navigation data supplied with the simulator is updated through the simulator’s own content system.

How should I update or remove an add-on aircraft?

Update or remove the aircraft through the same method that originally installed it, and never leave old and new copies active together.

• Manual Community package: close MSFS, remove the old package folder and copy in the replacement. Replacing the folder is safer than merging files because obsolete files may otherwise remain.
• Installer-managed aircraft: use its updater, installer or uninstaller.
• Marketplace aircraft: update or remove it through the simulator’s library or content-management controls.
• Shared library: remove it only after checking that no other aircraft or scenery package depends on it.

Deleting a livery removes only that paint scheme. Removing its required base aircraft will also make the livery unavailable, even if the livery package remains in Community.