How much does a private jet cost? – Bankrate.com

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Long lines at airports, delayed flights and packed planes have made commercial air travel an unpleasant chore. And with COVID-19 still running rampant, you might be looking for fewer people on your next flight.
While flying by private jet used to be a privilege reserved only for the ultrarich, more people are taking private jets now because they’re becoming more accessible. But make no mistake: Private jet costs can still climb into the tens of millions of dollars.
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The price for a brand-new private jet ranges from $3 million to $90 million. Though secondhand jets are cheaper, they still cost millions of dollars. For perspective, a pre-owned Gulfstream G450 costs around $14.75 million on the Gulfstream website. With extras and customization, the price can soar to hundreds of millions of dollars.
Given the costs, it’s easy to see why more people opt for a private jet rental over private ownership. The purchase price of a private jet represents only a fraction of the cost of owning one. Maintenance and repair costs depend on the size of the aircraft but typically range from $500,000 to $4 million per year.
The price of a private jet depends on its size, the number of passengers it can hold and the distance it can fly. Because of that, fuel is one of the highest costs for private jets. Planes with larger fuel tanks for long-range flights require more fuel. For example, the Bombardier Global 8000 has a fuel capacity of nearly 50,000 pounds. Depending on how much the plane is flown, fuel costs can reach $400,000 to $900,000 per year.
While a private jet rental is considerably more expensive than flying on a commercial flight, it is still much cheaper than buying your own jet. Flights on private jets are charged by the hour. Prices vary depending on the size of the plane, the length of the flight and the number of people on board. The typical cost is between $2,000 and $12,000 per hour to charter a private jet, according to Airshare, a private charter service. A private jet rental for an entire weekend can run $100,000 or more.
However, unless you spend at least 150 hours a year flying, a private jet rental is probably a better option than buying — that way, you avoid many of the yearly maintenance fees private jets cost you.
“With on-demand charter, you don’t incur costs such as hangar fees, maintenance fees, crew salaries, insurance, depreciation, interest, not to mention the cost of tying up capital in a multimillion-dollar asset,” says Justin Crabbe, CEO of private jet charter company Jettly. “Less than 100 flight hours per year, the math is quite clear that chartering is much more cost-effective than owning an aircraft outright.”
According to Crabbe, private jets usually sit about six seats for a “light” flight. To find out the cost of a seat, you need to find the hourly rate of the aircraft, the total flight time and how many seats are on board.
For instance, a six-seat jet that’s $5,000 an hour — or $15,000 for a three-hour flight — would cost each seat about $2,500.
While this cost could be much higher or much lower depending on the company, it shows you the difference between flying on a private jet versus a commercial flight. For bookers who prefer first or business class, it might not seem like much of a difference to go on a private jet. But for commercial flyers in economy, this price might seem very high. It depends on the type of flyer you are.
Private jet card memberships are services that allow you to access and benefit from your provider’s aircraft. Different companies offer different levels and tiers of membership. For Jettly, the Jet Card membership will cost you almost $1,000 a month.
“The jet card membership opens a secure designated trust account in the member’s name with funds deposited by the member that can be used to charter aircraft anywhere in the world,” Crabbe says.
For near-constant flyers, this might seem like a great perk. But for travelers who fly only a few times a year, this might not be worth the investment.
A private jet app is similar to a regular flight booking app, where you put in where you’re leaving from, where you’re going and your travel dates and get matched with private jet booking options. You might need to create a login, but this lets you sign up for notifications and deals. Membership isn’t always required, but for some companies, it might get you an additional discount.
You can browse by the type of jet you’d like, how many seats you’d like on the plane and when you plan to depart. When you find your selection, you add your credit card and check out through the app.
Empty leg flights are planes that are leaving a destination without any passengers. These flights are open to everyone, since the jet is set to fly with or without passengers in it. And booking these jets can save you some cash — sometimes up to 75 percent on the cost of a conventional private jet charter, Crabbe says.
Many private jet companies and apps let you search for empty leg flights and sign up for notifications on when one is at an airport near you.
This lets you book a private jet at a fraction of its original cost. But you need to be extremely flexible. For instance, you might get notice of an empty leg flight only 24 to 48 hours before it’s set to leave (although some flights are available a few days from when you search). And you’ll need to find your own way back. Empty leg flights are just that: one leg of the journey.
Before you buy or charter a private jet, it’s important to evaluate the factors that influence the full price tag of a jet. Think ahead to the types of trips you want to take and the frequency at which you’ll take them; long trips with many people will likely require a more expensive plane than shorter, infrequent trips. When determining the overall cost of a jet, also make sure to factor in things like fuel, insurance, storage and maintenance.
When considering whether you can afford a private jet, think through these factors:
If you do decide to purchase a private jet, you’ll need to determine how you want to pay for it. Very few people can afford the cost of a jet in full, so it’s possible that you’ll have to borrow money.
With a personal loan, you can borrow money from a bank or credit union to pay for the jet up front, then repay the loan over time. However, getting a personal loan for a private jet is much more difficult than getting one for a new car. Even the cheapest private jets can cost millions of dollars, and only select lenders will approve a loan for that much money.
If you approach a bank for a private jet loan, make sure that you have a great credit score and a solid financial history. You can also look into getting a secured personal loan, which would require you to put down a valuable asset, such as your home. If you can’t repay your loan, the lender would be able to legally seize your asset.
Some lenders cater specifically to loans for private jet financing, including JetLoan Capital, JetLease Capital and Global Jet Capital. The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association also offers an online loan financing calculator to help estimate your monthly payments.
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If you’re not quite ready to purchase a private jet, consider leasing, which has many of the same benefits of owning a private jet. Leasing a private jet is similar to leasing a new car, with the option to sign a lease from several months to several years. Most aircraft companies allow you to choose between a few different types of leases:
Leasing a private jet is also a great way to test out different aircraft before making the full investment in purchasing one. And because lessors don’t legally own the aircraft, they don’t have to deal with depreciation or reselling the plane if they decide to purchase a new one.
Another way to fly on a private jet without having to own one is to invest in a charter flight membership. With these clubs, people pay for a single seat on a plane rather than the entire jet, but it’s still a very pricey option. For example, Wheels Up, a popular jet charter company, charges Connect members nearly $2,995 for a first year of membership, then $2,495 after the first year. Core membership prices start at $17,500 the first year, then drops to $8,500 per year after that. Memberships in these clubs come with some advantages, though, including guest passes and discounted deals for an entire family.
If you’ve decided on owning a plane over chartering one and have figured out the type of plane you want, there are a few places you can browse through selections:
While many websites let you browse for planes near you, you can also do a broad search of private jets in your area. Some sellers don’t list their planes on all websites, and you may have more luck reaching out to individual owners through businesses or marketplaces. If you have a specific model in mind, some companies like Gulfstream also advertise pre-owned aircraft on their websites.
Purchasing a private jet is an enormous expense that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Even if you travel frequently for business or pleasure, it will be decades until the cost of a private jet is less expensive than that of flying commercially. Before making the investment, it’s important to make sure that you can afford not only the up-front costs, but also the long-term expenses associated with gas, crewmembers, insurance and repairs.
If you are going to purchase a private jet, think about getting a personal loan from a reputable bank or explore your options with aircraft-specific lenders. As you would with any loan, shop around and get quotes from multiple providers to ensure that you’re getting the best deal possible.
Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. Bankrate is compensated in exchange for featured placement of sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. This compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear. Bankrate.com does not include all companies or all available products.
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