Private jet cost per hour by aircraft type
Private jet charter costs roughly USD 1,500 to 3,500 per flight hour for a turboprop, USD 2,500 to 4,600 for a light jet, USD 4,000 to 8,000 for a midsize jet and USD 10,500 to 20,000 or more for an ultra-long-range jet, based on three published 2026 rate guides. Hourly rates exclude positioning, taxes and airport fees.
| Turboprop | USD 1,500–3,500 per flight hour (range across three 2026 guides) |
|---|---|
| Light jet | USD 2,500–4,600 per flight hour |
| Midsize jet | USD 4,000–8,000 per flight hour |
| Ultra-long-range jet | USD 10,500–20,000+ per flight hour |
| Daily minimum | 2 billable hours per day is common (JetFinder, 2026); Paramount cites 2.0–3.0 |
| US federal excise tax | 7.5% of the fare on domestic flights (IRS Publication 510, 2026) |
An hourly rate is the number every charter quote is built on, and it is also the number most often misread. The figures below come from three published rate guides dated within the past year. They are model estimates, not quotes. A real quote from a licensed operator will differ because it adds positioning, minimum hours, airport fees and tax, and because the market moves with fuel prices and season.
What does a private jet cost per hour?
Across the three guides, the spread runs from about USD 1,500 per hour for a small turboprop to USD 20,000 or more for an ultra-long-range jet.
The table shows each guide's published band and the range across all three. Where the guides disagree, the disagreement is shown rather than averaged away. Paramount Business Jets splits light jets into "light" and "super light"; both are folded into the light band here.
| Category | Paramount Business Jets (Aug 2026) | Amalfi Jets (Jul 2026) | Simple Flying (Jul 2026) | Range across sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turboprop | USD 2,300–3,500 | USD 1,500–3,000 | USD 2,000–3,000 | USD 1,500–3,500 |
| Very light jet | USD 2,900–3,400 | USD 1,500–3,000 | USD 2,500–3,500 | USD 1,500–3,500 |
| Light jet | USD 3,750–4,600 | USD 2,500–4,000 | USD 3,000–4,500 | USD 2,500–4,600 |
| Midsize jet | USD 4,700–5,500 | USD 4,000–8,000 | USD 4,000–6,000 | USD 4,000–8,000 |
| Super-midsize jet | USD 6,200–7,500 | USD 5,000–10,500 | USD 6,000–8,000 | USD 5,000–10,500 |
| Heavy jet | USD 8,500–10,000 | USD 8,500–14,000+ | USD 8,000–15,000 | USD 8,000–15,000 |
| Ultra-long-range jet | USD 12,000–17,000 | USD 10,500–20,000+ | USD 18,000–20,000+ | USD 10,500–20,000+ |
Model estimate, not a quote. All figures are per flight hour in US dollars, as published by each guide on the date shown. Paramount Business Jets also lists VIP airliners at USD 18,000–23,000 per hour (Paramount, Aug 2026).
GBP and EUR note. European operators normally quote in euros and UK operators in pounds. Jetvice, a European guide updated on 1 September 2026, publishes EUR 3,000–5,000 per hour for light jets, EUR 5,500–8,500 for midsize, EUR 7,500–11,000 for super-midsize, EUR 10,000–15,000 for heavy and EUR 14,000–22,000 for ultra-long-range (Jetvice, 2026). Those euro bands sit above the US dollar bands for the same categories, partly because European quotes often bundle landing, handling and VAT (Jetvice, 2026). Convert at the day's exchange rate and expect the currency of the quote to follow the operator's base, not yours.
What is included in the hourly rate?
The hourly rate normally covers the aircraft, its crew, fuel with a standard surcharge and insurance (Paramount, Aug 2026).
That is the whole of it. The rate pays for the machine and the people flying it for one hour of flight time. Everything that happens on the ground, and everything the tax authorities add, is charged on top. Some European quotes go further and bundle landing and handling fees and VAT into a single figure (Jetvice, 2026), which is one reason a euro quote can look higher than a dollar quote for the same aircraft.
What is not included?
Positioning flights, daily minimums, overnight crew costs, airport fees and taxes are the usual additions, and together they can move a quote well above the arithmetic of rate multiplied by hours.
- Positioning. When the aircraft is not already near your departure airport, you pay for the time it takes to fly it in, which Paramount calls "often one of the largest swing factors in a quote" (Paramount, Aug 2026). Jetvice notes that positioning is charged separately from the quoted hourly figure (Jetvice, 2026).
- Daily minimums. Most operators bill at least 2.0 to 3.0 hours per day (Paramount, Aug 2026). JetFinder's estimator also assumes a daily minimum of two hours (JetFinder, 2026). A 45-minute hop is priced as two hours.
- Crew overnights. When the crew must stay away from base, Jetvice cites EUR 1,500–3,500 per night (Jetvice, 2026).
- Airport fees. JetFinder gives landing fees of USD 150 to 500 depending on aircraft size and ramp and handling fees of USD 100 to 500 per visit (JetFinder, 2026).
- Taxes. In the United States, a 7.5% federal excise tax applies to amounts paid for domestic air transportation of persons, plus a USD 5.30 domestic segment tax and a USD 23.40 per-person tax on international flights that begin or end in the US, all 2026 figures (IRS Publication 510, 2026). In the UK, Air Passenger Duty is charged per passenger by distance band; the guide on one-way pricing sets out the current rates.
- Peak surcharges. Jetvice reports surcharges of 10–30% around major events (Jetvice, 2026).
Why do the guides disagree?
The guides disagree because each draws on a different pool of operators, a different mix of aircraft ages and a different month of fuel prices.
The spread is widest at the top. For ultra-long-range jets Paramount's band tops out at USD 17,000 while Simple Flying's starts at USD 18,000. Part of that is aircraft age: a 20-year-old heavy jet and a new one sit in the same category but not at the same price. Part is method: some guides publish a floor, some a typical range, and some fold in fees. Treat any single figure with suspicion and treat the range as the useful information.
How does the hourly rate turn into a trip price?
A trip price is the billable hours multiplied by the rate, plus positioning, plus fees and tax, so a short flight can cost far more per hour flown than the headline figure suggests.
Take a 1.5-hour flight on a light jet, using the middle of the range at USD 3,500 per hour. The flight itself is USD 5,250. A two-hour daily minimum lifts the billable time to two hours, or USD 7,000. If the aircraft has to position for an hour to reach you, that hour is billed too, and the return positioning may be as well. Add landing and handling at each end, then tax. The all-in figure can approach twice the flight-only arithmetic. This is a model estimate, not a quote; the only reliable number is the written quote from the operator.
The same arithmetic runs in reverse on longer flights. A six-hour sector spreads the fixed items over more hours, so the effective cost per hour flown sits closer to the published rate.
How do empty legs change the arithmetic?
An empty leg removes the positioning problem because the aircraft is already scheduled to fly the route without passengers, so the operator can price the seat-less sector below the normal rate.
Empty Leg Exclusive is a charter broker that arranges flights with licensed operators. On an empty leg the operator has already been paid for the original charter, so the repositioning sector is sold for whatever it can recover. The trade-offs are fixed dates, fixed routing and the risk that the original booking changes. The hourly rates above still matter, because the discount is measured against them.
Which category should you actually price?
Price the smallest aircraft that can do the trip with your group, your bags and the runway at each end, then check one category up.
Turboprops and very light jets suit one- to two-hour sectors with up to four or five passengers and light luggage. Light jets add range and a lavatory. Midsize and super-midsize jets cross a continent with a standing cabin. Heavy and ultra-long-range jets are for intercontinental flights or groups of ten or more. Moving up a category typically adds USD 1,000 to 3,000 per hour in the bands above, and on a two-hour flight that is a modest share of the total once fees are included. Moving down a category to save money can fail on range or baggage and force a fuel stop that costs more than it saved.
Frequently asked questions
Is the hourly rate the price I will pay?
No. The hourly rate covers the aircraft, crew, fuel and insurance for each flight hour. A quote adds positioning time, a daily minimum of about two hours, airport landing and handling fees, crew overnights and tax. On short flights those additions can roughly double the flight-only arithmetic.
Why do published rates vary so much?
Each guide samples different operators, aircraft ages and months. Some publish a floor, some a typical range and some bundle fees. The three guides used here were published between July and September 2026 and still differ by several thousand dollars per hour at the top end.
Are prices in pounds or euros similar?
Not directly. European guides quote in euros and often bundle landing, handling and VAT. Jetvice, updated September 2026, gives EUR 3,000–5,000 per hour for a light jet against USD 2,500–4,600 across the US-dollar guides. Convert at the day’s rate and compare what each figure includes.
Does Empty Leg Exclusive set these prices?
No. Empty Leg Exclusive is a charter broker. Licensed operators set their own rates and issue the quote. The figures above are compiled from published third-party rate guides and are model estimates, not offers.
Sources
- Paramount Business Jets, Private Jet Rental: Jet Cost and Hourly Rates (2026), updated August 2026 (accessed 2026-09-20)
- Amalfi Jets, Private Jet Charter Cost Per Hour in 2026: Every Aircraft Category Explained, 14 July 2026 (accessed 2026-09-20)
- Simple Flying, How Much A Private Jet Flight Actually Costs Per Hour In 2026, 2 July 2026 (accessed 2026-09-20)
- Jetvice, Private Jet Charter Hourly Rates 2026: Cost by Aircraft and Flight Length, updated 1 September 2026 (accessed 2026-09-20)
- JetFinder, Private Jet Charter Cost Estimator 2026 (accessed 2026-09-20)
- IRS, Publication 510, Excise Taxes (2026): Transportation of Persons by Air (accessed 2026-09-20)
Last reviewed 20 September 2026 by Empty Leg Exclusive Editorial Team.
