Airbus A380 vs Boeing 747
The Airbus A380 and the Boeing 747 are the two four-engine giants of airline flying, and one feature tells them apart from any angle: the A380 carries two passenger decks along its whole length, so its fuselage looks tall and evenly rounded, while the 747's upper deck covers only the front of the fuselage and forms its famous hump. The A380 is the bigger aircraft — about 15 metres more wingspan and over 160 tonnes more maximum take-off weight than the 747-400, the 747 the receiver networks still hear most often.
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Side by side
| Specification | Airbus A380 | Boeing 747 |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 72.7 m (239 ft) | 70.7 m (232 ft) |
| Wingspan | 79.8 m (262 ft) | 64.4 m (211 ft) |
| Height | 24.1 m (79 ft) | 19.4 m (64 ft) |
| Maximum passengers | 868 | 660 |
| Persons on board | 555 | 450 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 560 t | 396.9 t |
| Range | 8,200 NM (15,186 km) | 7,260 NM (13,446 km) |
| Maximum speed | 551 kt (1,020 km/h) | 493 kt (913 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 43,000 ft (13,106 m) | 45,100 ft (13,746 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 35,000 ft (10,668 m) | 35,000 ft (10,668 m) |
| Rate of climb | – | 1,500 ft/min (7.6 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 3,000 m (9,843 ft) | 3,352 m (10,997 ft) |
| Landing distance | – | 2,072 m (6,798 ft) |
| Fuel capacity | 325,000 l | 216,800 l |
| Engines | RR Trent 900/EA GP7000 | CF6-80C2/PW4000/RB211 |
| Units built | 251 | 675 |
| Airframes seen in 30 days | 160 | 212 |
| Rarity in CatchFlights | Rare | Rare |
Compared variant for variant: the Airbus A-380-800 and the Boeing 747-400. Specifications are curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; a dash means no source could confirm the value.
Airframes seen are the different aircraft of each type the receiver networks CatchFlights uses saw in the last 30 days — a lower bound, since aircraft out of range or without a broadcasting transponder are not counted.
Catch both. CatchFlights shows the aircraft flying near you on a radar, so either of these is only a catch away when it passes overhead. Explore CatchFlights.
More comparisons
- Airbus A350 vs Boeing 787
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- Airbus A321neo vs Boeing 737 MAX
- ATR 72 vs Dash 8 Q400
For every other pair, our guide shows how to tell Airbus from Boeing.