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Is the Airbus A350 bigger than the Boeing 777X? The short answer is no, and the longer answer is that the popular Boeing 777-9 is comprehensively larger than the Airbus A350 family and is set to be the largest twin-engine commercial aircraft in the skies. Having said that, these aircraft each come in two passenger variants, and could the largest A350 variant (the A350-1000) be larger than the smallest Boeing 777X variant (the 777-8)? Are there any categories where the A350 has the edge over the Boeing 777X?
Following the termination of the Boeing 747-8 Jumbo program, the Boeing 777 family is the airplane maker’s flagship product. Similarly, after the end of the Airbus A380 ‘superjumbo,’ the Airbus A350 stands as the flagship widebody aircraft for Airbus. Here is what to know about the respective sizes of the four passenger models from two rival widebody families.
Airbus A350-900: The Smallest Variant
The Airbus A350-900 is the smaller of the two A350 variants and is comprehensively the smallest of the four aircraft considered in this article. The aircraft has a maximum takeoff weight of 623,907 lbs and a maximum payload of 141,096 lbs. Like its stretched Airbus A350-1000 counterpart, it has a wingspan of 212.43 feet and stands 56.04 feet high. It is the shortest of the four aircraft, measuring 219.16 feet. Meanwhile, in terms of internal dimensions, the cabin length stretches 167.45 feet while the internal cabin width is 18.41 feet.
The variant has the least thrust, being powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-84 turbofans providing 84,000 lbf. The A350-900 has a typical three-class seating capacity of 300-350 passengers and a maximum seating capacity of 440 passengers. In terms of range, Airbus lists its range as 8,500 nautical miles. This gives it a fairly typical range for these aircraft, except for the Boeing 777-9, which has a significantly shorter range than the A350 variants and its smaller 777-8 counterpart.
While technically not related to being ‘bigger,’ the one area with the A350-900 that tops the list is the range of its ULR version. Airbus developed the A350-900ULR version specially for Singapore Airlines. This is currently the longest-range commercial aircraft on the market, boasting a range of 9,700 nautical miles. That is around 1,000 nautical miles more than the next longest-range A350 or 777X, excluding the -1000ULR Airbus is working on.
Boeing 777-8: The Smaller 777X
The passenger 
Boeing 777-8 is the smaller, longer-range variant of the Boeing 777X family. It has struggled to attract significant orders, with its stretched 777-9 being much more popular. While many of its characteristics are known, some need to be inferred. By some measures, the aircraft is smaller than the Airbus A350-1000, and by others, it is larger. Both 777X variants are powered by GE Aerospace GE9X engines, providing 110,000 Ibf of thrust, more than either A350 variant.
Like the 777-9, the 777-8 stands taller than the A350 family at around 64 feet, has a longer (extended) wingspan of 235.4 feet, and has a wider internal cabin width of 19.55 feet. While the cabin width is greater than the A350’s, its cabin length is likely shorter, at least based on the BBJ version’s cabin area. The cabin is estimated to be 166.5 feet long, significantly shorter than the approximately 190 feet of the A350-1000 and more or less the same as the A350-900.
|
Aircraft |
Length |
Wingspan |
Height |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Airbus A350-900 |
219 feet, 2 inches |
212 feet, 5 inches |
56 feet |
|
Boeing 777-8 |
232 feet, 6 inches |
235 feet, 5 inches |
64 feet |
|
Airbus A350-1000 |
242 feet, 1 inch |
212 feet, 5 inches |
56 feet |
|
Boeing 777-9 |
251 feet, 9 inches |
235 feet, 5 inches |
64 feet 7 inches |
Its max takeoff weight is 774,999 lbs, and its max payload is estimated to be around 159,000 lbs. If true, that would give it a greater MTOW than the A350-1000, but a smaller payload. The aircraft’s length is also between the two A350 variants, at 232.48 feet. According to Boeing, it comes with a range of 8,745 nautical miles, giving it a similar range to the A350-1000.
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The A350-1000: Airbus’s Largest Aircraft In Production
The A350-1000 is the largest aircraft currently built by Airbus. As stated above, compared with the 777X, it stands shorter (56.04 feet vs 63.98/64.63 feet), has a shorter wingspan (212.43 feet vs 235.40 feet), and has a narrower internal cabin width (18.41 feet vs 19.55 feet). Its length of 242.09 feet places it between the two 777X variants, as does its cabin length of 190.29 feet. Meanwhile, the A350-1000’s engines, Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 turbofans, provide 97,000 lbf of thrust, more than the A350-900, but less than the Boeing 777X.
According to Airbus, the A350-1000 has a maximum seating capacity of 480 passengers and a typical three-class seating capacity of 375-400 passengers. Airbus also lists the aircraft with a 9,000 nautical mile range. Airbus is also working on developing the A350-1000ULR version for Qantas. These aircraft are rumored to have a range of 9,700 nautical miles, which is longer than the 777X variants and ties with the A350-900ULR.
|
Aircraft |
Cabin width |
Cabin length |
Range (NM) |
Typical seating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Airbus A350-900 |
18 feet, 8 inches |
167 feet, 6 inches |
8,500 |
300-350 (3-class) |
|
Boeing 777-8 |
19 feet, 6 inches |
166 feet, 6 inches (est.) |
8,745 |
396 (2-class) |
|
Airbus A350-1000 |
18 feet, 8 inches |
190 feet, 4 inches |
9,000 |
375-400 (3-class) |
|
Boeing 777-9 |
19 feet, 6 inches |
188 feet, 7 inches (est.) |
7,285 |
426 (2-class) |
It would appear that the A350-1000 outranges the 777-8 and has a significantly longer, but narrower internal cabin. It appears the A350-1000 could have a higher seating density, as Boeing’s typical two-class configuration is within the range of Airbus’ listed three-class configuration. Three-class configurations normally have fewer seats than two-class setups. However, without knowing the 777-8’s max one-class seating, it is difficult to be sure.
Boeing 777-9: The Largest Bird
The Boeing 777-9 is, by most measures, the largest aircraft. The aircraft measures 251.71 feet in length and has a maximum takeoff weight of 774,999 lbs. As stated, it has a wider wingspan and stands higher at 64.63 feet. One area where the Airbus A350-1000 might have an edge is cabin length. The 777-9 is estimated to have a cabin length of around 189 feet based on the BBJ’s cabin area, which would put it in the range of the A350-1000.
It is unclear what the maximum seating capacity of either of the 777X variants is, as Boeing just lists them as 395 and 426, respectively, for a typical two-class configuration. As Airbus provides a range of 375–400 seats for a typical three-class configuration, it is difficult to make a straight apples-to-apples comparison. When it comes to range, the Boeing 777-9 falls short, with Boeing reporting it as having a range of 7,285 nautical miles. That is around 1,700 nautical miles shorter than the range Airbus claims for its standard A350-1000.
Still, the Boeing 777-9 is a big and long-range airplane. In fact, it is too big for the North American market, as major US-based airlines operate half a dozen hubs or more. No US-based carriers have ordered the jet, while more than half of the firm orders have come from just two international carriers: Emirates and Qatar Airways.
Airbus A350-900 Vs A350-1000: Features Compared
Comparing and contrasting the modern widebody variants.
The More Popular Versions
If it comes down to a popularity contest and ‘biggest’ orderbook, it should be noted that the A350-900 has been in service for a decade, while the Boeing 777-9 is not expected to enter service until 2027. This means the A350 has had far more time to attract orders. That said, the Boeing 777X already has an impressive order book (all from international airlines).
Boeing lists the 777X family as having attracted a total of 619 orders. The Boeing 777-9 is overwhelmingly more popular with 521 orders. The smaller 777-8 is struggling to attract orders, having only 35 examples on firm order, plus another 63 freighters based on the 777-8.
The Airbus A350 family has so far attracted 1,529 orders, of which 700 have been delivered and 829 remain on order. The Airbus A350-900 has attracted the bulk of the orders, having passed 1,000 firm orders to reach 1,081. The A350-1000 has accrued 367 orders, while the remainder are 81 A350F freighters.
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The Boeing 777X Is Overall Larger Than The Airbus A350
Overall, the Boeing 777X is the bigger of the two families. However, there is some nuance in the details when considering specific measurements and when comparing the larger A350 to the smaller 777X. Put another way, the Boeing 777X is larger than the A350 with exceptions and asterisks. Bigger is not always better, and US airlines are turning to ordering the smaller 787 and A350.
Another area where the Boeing 777X is bigger is with the windows. Like the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the Boeing 777X will have large, automatically dimming windows. It will also be powered by the new GE9X engines (the largest on the market), which Boeing and GE Aerospace claim are 5% more efficient than those on the A350. That said, Rolls-Royce is rolling out improvements to make its A350 engines 1% more efficient.
While the Boeing 777X will update the now-aging 777 to be a modern and competitive aircraft using much of the modern technology, it is still not a clean-sheet aircraft like the 787 and A350. This comes with some compromises. For example, the A350 makes extensive use of lightweight materials, with it being 70% advanced materials (53% composite and 14% titanium). By comparison, the 777X is only increasing composite materials to 30%.
