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CO2 Emissions From Flight Calculator

Work out co2 emissions from flight instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About CO2 Emissions From Flight Calculator

Aviation emissions per passenger kilometre depend on flight length and cabin class. Short flights carry a take-off penalty at about 0.25 kg per passenger km, while long haul falls to 0.145. A 1500 km economy flight is about 225 kg of CO2, or 428 kg once the roughly 1.9x radiative forcing uplift for contrails and high-altitude effects is applied.

Formulas

Flight emissions

CO2 = distance x factor x class multiplier x passengers

Radiative forcing

multiply by about 1.9 for total climate impact

Worked example

With the default values below, CO2 Emissions From Flight Calculator returns Carbon Dioxide Emitted of 225.0. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Flight distanceminimum 0 km
1,500 km
Cabin classone of Economy, Premium economy, Business, First
Economy
Passengers travellingminimum 0
1

Results

Carbon Dioxide Emitted
225.0 kg
Same Emissions In Tonnes
0.2250
Emission Factor Applied
0.1500 kg/pax km
With Radiative Forcing Uplift
427.5 kg CO2e

Step by step

  1. 1Values used
  2. 2Flight emissions
  3. 3Radiative forcing
  4. 4Carbon Dioxide Emitted= 225.0 kg
  5. 5Same Emissions In Tonnes= 0.2250
  6. 6Emission Factor Applied= 0.1500 kg/pax km
  7. 7With Radiative Forcing Uplift= 427.5 kg CO2e

Assumptions and limits

  • The result is derived only from the 3 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
  • In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
  • Figures are rounded for display to 4 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do business class seats emit more?

Because they occupy far more floor area, so each passenger carries a larger share of the aircraft's fuel burn - roughly three times economy.

What is the radiative forcing multiplier?

An uplift accounting for contrails, nitrogen oxides and water vapour released at altitude, commonly taken as 1.7-2.0 times the CO2 alone.

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