Boeing 737 vs Airbus A320 family: dimensions side by side
The two lines have almost the same wingspan today, 117.4 to 117.8 ft on the 737 and 117.5 ft on the A320 family, but the Airbus line covers the wider length range: 42.8 ft from the A318 to the A321, against 38.1 ft from the 737-200 to the 737 MAX 9.
The FAA file lists eleven Boeing 737 variants and seven A320 family variants. This explainer sets them side by side using only the published figures; it does not compare cabins, performance or economics, which the file does not cover.
Wingspan
The 737 line has more wingspans in the file: its five different spans run from 93.0 ft on the 737-200 to 117.8 ft on the MAX. The A320 family has two: the A318 at 111.9 ft and every other variant at 117.5 ft with sharklets. From the 737-600 and the A319 on, every variant of both lines stops within 0.6 ft of the 118 ft line where Design Group IV begins, which the 118-foot line explainer covers in detail.
Length
The shortest variant is a 737: the 737-200 at 100.2 ft, 3.0 ft shorter than the A318. The longest is an Airbus: the A321 and A321neo at 146.0 ft, 7.7 ft longer than the 737 MAX 9 at 138.3 ft. Between those ends the 737 has more steps; the A320 family has four lengths, three of them shared by a ceo and neo pair.
Length of every variant
Tail height and weight
Tail heights overlap: 39.6 ft to 42.3 ft on the A320 family against 36.3 ft to 41.7 ft on the 737, with the A318 holding the tallest tail of either line. Maximum takeoff weight runs from 115,500 lb to 194,700 lb on the 737, a growth of 68.6%, and from 149,914 lb to 209,439 lb on the A320 family, a growth of 39.7%. Both lines span Approach Categories C and D; five 737 variants and the A321 are listed by the FAA in both.
| Variant | Wingspan | Length | Tail height | MTOW | Category | US ops FY2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-200 | 93.0 ft | 100.2 ft | 36.8 ft | 115,500 lb | C | 5,202 |
| Boeing 737-500 | 94.8 ft | 101.8 ft | 36.3 ft | 136,000 lb | C | 2,210 |
| Boeing 737-600 | 117.4 ft (112.6 ft without) | 102.5 ft | 41.7 ft | 144,500 lb | C | 16,720 |
| Boeing 737-300 | 102.4 ft (94.8 ft without) | 109.6 ft | 36.3 ft | 139,500 lb | C | 39,394 |
| Boeing 737-700 | 117.4 ft (112.6 ft without) | 110.3 ft | 41.6 ft | 154,500 lb | C | 1,720,060 |
| Boeing 737 MAX 7 | 117.8 ft | 116.7 ft | 41.0 ft | 177,000 lb | D | 94 |
| Boeing 737-400 | 94.8 ft | 119.6 ft | 36.3 ft | 150,000 lb | C | 34,514 |
| Boeing 737-800 | 117.4 ft (112.6 ft without) | 129.5 ft | 41.4 ft | 174,200 lb | D | 2,484,764 |
| Boeing 737 MAX 8 | 117.8 ft | 129.7 ft | 40.3 ft | 181,200 lb | D | 1,020,032 |
| Boeing 737-900 | 117.4 ft (112.6 ft without) | 138.2 ft | 41.4 ft | 187,700 lb | D | 962,126 |
| Boeing 737 MAX 9 | 117.8 ft | 138.3 ft | 40.8 ft | 194,700 lb | D | 291,234 |
| Variant | Wingspan | Length | Tail height | MTOW | Category | US ops FY2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A318 | 111.9 ft | 103.2 ft | 42.3 ft | 149,914 lb | C | 48 |
| Airbus A319 | 117.5 ft (111.9 ft without) | 111.0 ft | 39.7 ft | 168,653 lb | C | 915,976 |
| Airbus A319neo | 117.5 ft | 111.0 ft | 39.7 ft | 166,449 lb | C | 166 |
| Airbus A320 | 117.5 ft (111.9 ft without) | 123.3 ft | 39.6 ft | 171,961 lb | C | 1,397,404 |
| Airbus A320neo | 117.5 ft | 123.3 ft | 39.6 ft | 174,165 lb | C | 540,276 |
| Airbus A321 | 117.5 ft (111.9 ft without) | 146.0 ft | 39.7 ft | 200,621 lb | D | 1,364,686 |
| Airbus A321neo | 117.5 ft | 146.0 ft | 39.7 ft | 209,439 lb | C | 307,984 |
Gear, wheelbase and reference speed
The main gear of every A320 family variant is 29.4 ft wide; on the 737 it runs from 18.8 ft to 23.1 ft, so the Airbus gear is wider on every pairing. Wheelbase grows with length in both lines: 36.3 ft to 56.3 ft on the 737 and 33.6 ft to 55.5 ft on the A320 family.
The FAA reference approach speeds, the input for each Approach Category, run from 125 to 150 kt on the 737 and from 121 to 142 kt on the A320 family. The A318 sits exactly on the 121 kt floor of Category C.
Twins inside the A320 family
Three pairs in the Airbus line publish identical wingspan, length and tail height: the A319 and A319neo, the A320 and A320neo, and the A321 and A321neo. Their published maximum takeoff weights differ, and the neo variants appear in the file with one span only. On the 737 side no two variants share all three dimensions; even the 737-800 and 737 MAX 8, both close to 129.6 ft long, differ in span and tail height.
In US flight plans
The file’s FY2024 counts of US flight-plan operations give the 737 variants 6,576,350 operations and the A320 family 4,526,540. On the US register the counts are 2,278 and 1,862. Both figures cover only the United States, and the operations only flights with a flight plan; they are not a measure of the lines’ worldwide use.
Closest pairs across the two lines
Matching each 737 from the -600 on with the A320 family variant nearest in length gives the 737-600 and A318 (0.7 ft apart), the 737-700 and A319 (0.7 ft apart), the 737 MAX 7 and A319 (5.7 ft apart), the 737-800 and A320 (6.2 ft apart), the 737 MAX 8 and A320 (6.4 ft apart), the 737-900 and A321 (7.8 ft apart) and the 737 MAX 9 and A321 (7.7 ft apart). At the top of both lines the A321neo’s plan box, wingspan times length, is 17,155 ft², 5.3% larger than the 737 MAX 9’s 16,292 ft². Within the US counts, the 737-800 alone accounts for 37.8% of the 737 line’s FY2024 flight-plan operations, and the A320 for 30.9% of its family’s.
Try a pair
The overlay of the A321neo and the 737 MAX 9 shows the length difference at the top of both lines; the 737 and A320 family pages list every variant.
Sources: FAA Aircraft Characteristics Database, October 2024 release (dimensions, weights, approach categories, FY2024 US flight-plan operations, registration counts). Ranges computed by this site.