Private jet cost per hour, by category.
The hourly rate is the industry's real unit of price — and the number most sites hide. Here's ours by category, what the hour includes, and how the meter actually runs.
— The card
Six categories, two rates each.
Market is what on-demand missions run today; locked is the 24-month fixed rate for JetNine Card holders. Either way the quote you accept is all-in and doesn’t move.
| Category | Typical mission | Sample lane | Market hourly | Card locked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light | 3–4 pax · 1,500 NM · regional hops | KVNY → KASE | $3,200–3,600/hr | $2,950/HR |
| Midsize | 5–6 pax · 2,500 NM · transcon | KVNY → KTEB | $4,200–4,600/hr | $3,950/HR |
| Super-mid | 6–8 pax · 3,500 NM · transcon nonstop | KSFO → KMIA | $5,400–5,900/hr | $5,100/HR |
| Heavy | 8–12 pax · 4,500 NM · transatlantic | KJFK → EGLL | $7,800–8,400/hr | $7,400/HR |
| Ultra long range | 12–16 pax · 6,500+ NM · transpacific | KLAX → RJTT | $10,400–11,200/hr | $9,850/HR |
— Included: flight time, fuel, crew, landing, repositioning, 7.5% FET, standard catering, sedan transfer · Itemized separately: premium catering, de-icing, international handling · Rates reviewed quarterly · Updated August 2026
— Rate × speed = the real comparison
A cheaper hour isn’t always a cheaper trip.
Categories cruise at different speeds, so the hourly rate alone can mislead: a turboprop’s lower hourly buys a 290-knot cruise, while a super-mid covers the same ground at 490 knots — fewer billed hours on long sectors. Rule of thumb: under ~600 NM the cheaper hourly usually wins; past ~1,500 NM the faster airframe often costs less all-in, and it always costs less of your day. The wizard runs this math per route automatically.
— Asked about hourly rates
What does the hourly rate include?
On a JetNine quote: the airframe, two-pilot crew, fuel, landing fees, repositioning, 7.5% FET, standard catering, and a sedan transfer. Some brokers quote a bare hourly and add those back later — always compare all-in totals, not headline rates.
Is billed time the same as time in the air?
No — charter is billed on block time: engine start at the departure ramp to shutdown at arrival, so taxi and climb-out count. Our indicative engine pads great-circle flight time for exactly that, which is why its estimates track final quotes closely.
Why is a heavy jet three times the hourly of a light jet?
Fuel burn scales with airframe size, crews are larger, maintenance reserves are higher, and acquisition costs are in a different bracket. You're paying for range and cabin: a light jet does 3-hour legs for 6–7 people; a heavy does transatlantic legs with two cabin zones for 12.
— Start a quote
Numbers read. Now price yours.
Route, date, and passenger count — the same engine behind every figure in this guide, live on your trip.
Or just ask a human.
The dispatch desk wrote this guide and picks up in under twenty seconds — every hour of every day.