You might think that being all part of the same airline holding company, comparing Air France economy vs KLM economy would not be necessary. Surely, they maintain some similar standards across both airlines, making a comparison pointless, right?However, as our review has revealed, there are some stark differences between Air France vs KLM, which are worth thinking about if you’re faced with a choice of flying one or the other. With many routes shared between the two airlines and fares often similar, it’s worthwhile getting to know where one outpaces the other, so you can fly with only the best.
The differences between KLM and Air France
Having been a passenger on both these airlines numerous times for trips across the continent, I’m keen to dive in and get to grips with which airline does it best. I know what I think, but let’s crunch some numbers, stack some stats and see which airline really deserves our dedication. I’m going to look at all the important elements, from seating to food, entertainment to pricing and, of course, the all-important customer service.
Fares
From my searches, there’s really not a lot in it in terms of basic flight costs between Air France vs KLM. As both airlines are in the same parent group, they often advertise fares for each other’s routes on their own websites. They often share routes too, so on some trips you might make the first leg on KLM but then transfer to Air France to complete your journey. I ran a few searches to check the prices based on trips taking place between July 1 and July 8. Here’s what I found:
London Heathrow – Montreal
Air France is $654 with a stopover in Paris Charles de Gaulle.
KLM $534 with a stopover in Amsterdam Schiphol.
Paris – New York
Air France from $600
KLM from $603 through Air France or $837 via Amsterdam.
Amsterdam – Paris
Air France from $180 flying with Air France or $80 flying with KLM.
KLM from $80 flying with KLM or $180 with Air France.
There really is very little to choose between the two carriers in terms of price, so I guess it all comes down to the other benefits of flying with these guys as to who is the winner out of KLM vs Air France.
Fleet
Air France has a fleet of 255 aircraft as of May 2023. This includes narrowbody and widebody jets built by Airbus (from 23 A220-300s and 20 A350-900s), widebodies built by Boeing (it has 18 777-200ERs, 43 777-300ERs, and ten 787-9s), and some Embraer narrowbodies flying for its subsidiary HOP!.
Meanwhile, KLM has a fleet of 172 aircraft. The airline has eleven Airbus aircraft (six A330-200s and five A330-300s), 97 Boeing narrowbodies and widebodies (including 31 737-800s, 15 777-200ERs, and 13 787-9s), and 64 Embraer operating for KLM cityhopper.
With these fleets, Air France has 66,525 seats available or about 260 per departure, while KLM has 35,197 seats available or about 204 per departure.
Seating
The economy seats on both carriers are relatively similar, but there are some crucial differences as you’ll see. Let’s take a look at the numbers.
Air France:
Pitch: 31” – 32”
Width: - 17.3” - 18”
KLM:
Pitch: 30” - 31”
Width: 17” - 17.5”
These specs are for straightforward economy, not economy plus or any other upgrade. It’s clear to see that, with Air France, you get a little bit more in most cases. Their largest seats, with a pitch of 32” and a width of 18”, are some of the most generous economy seats around. While it’s only a matter of an inch, or even half an inch, when that’s the difference between being comfortable and being in pain for your flight, it makes all the difference. We recently published a flight review onboard KLM's economy class between Berlin and Amsterdam which you can read here.
Food and drink
KLM short-haul will see you blessed with a small sweet or savory snack free of charge and one drink in a tiny can. You can ask for a second, but it will depend on the mood of the flight attendant whether you get it or not. Longer European flights also include sandwiches or wraps.
Air France on the other hand regularly hand out delicious snacks in the sky. The morning will see a fresh croissant or pastry landing on your tray, and later on, it’s a sandwich or a sweet treat outside of mealtimes. Longer flights that are still within Europe get a hot meal served up.
On long-haul flights, passengers get a choice of two hot meals and may get snacks or breakfast too depending on the time of day. Cocktails, champagnes, and hot and cold drinks are all available throughout the flights. For a treat, long-haul passengers can avail of the A La Carte menu from Air France. These feature a choice of meals, covering traditional French cuisine, comfortable Italian eating or a fishy ocean focussed plate, as well as some specialties.
KLM long-haul similarly welcomes guests onboard with a drink, and then they can choose from one of two hot meals. A second meal will also be served on longer flights. Between meals, they are fairly generous with the handing out of snacks, ice creams, sandwiches and hot and cold drinks. In fact, you can expect to be offered a drink at least once an hour if you’re still awake.
Their a la carte offering looks pretty good, but with Dutch food not being particularly well-known or loved, it’s a bit of an odd selection. Some of the choices include Indonesian rice dishes, Japanese selections and an Italian choice. Prices range between 19 and 30 euros. The airline states on its website,
"If your intercontinental flight is departing from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, you can order an à la carte menu up to 24 hours before departure. Prices for these meals range from EUR 19 to EUR 30. We only have a limited number of à la carte meals available per flight, so be sure to order as soon as possible."
Comments have been made that KLM serves up real coffee rather than the instant that’s the norm on Air France. Personally, that could be a deal breaker.
It’s hard to pick a winner from Air France vs KLM for food and drink. Again, it’s going to come down to personal preference. As someone who flies frequently with children, the free kid's meals and hourly alcohol service tip me towards KLM. But if fine dining is all part of the inflight experience for you, I reckon Air France has got the edge.
Entertainment and WiFi
As of May 2023, Air France claims about 90% of its aircraft fleet has onboard WiFi. It offers three WiFi pass options to get online using smartphones, tablets or computers. These options are Message Pass, Surf Pass and Stream Pass. All Air France planes have on-demand TV though, showing a rotation of current blockbusters as well as a selection of homegrown French movies.
For the last few years, Air France has upgraded its cabins, refurbishing them to add more comfort and amenities for the passengers. This year alone, the airline introduced the new long-haul cabins in services to New York, Rio de Janeiro, and Dakar. The airline said,
"In the Economy cabin (273 seats), the seats also meet the highest standards of comfort on the market. Each seat has a wide 43 cm seat pan, a 119-degree recline and 79 cm of legroom. The backrest is ergonomically designed, offering reinforced lateral support. It is also equipped with a USB A port. The seats in these two cabins are equipped with a wide 13.3-inch 4K High-Definition screen with Bluetooth connection, ideal for enjoying over 1,500 hours of on-demand entertainment with personal headphones."
On KLM flights, there’s a real mixed bag of features. All their widebody jets have on-demand TV available, but for narrowbody economy there’s no TV available. AC power is available on all flights apart from the Embraer class aircraft, but laptop power is again lacking except on a few of the newer widebody aircraft.
Similarly to Air France, KLM also offers inflight WiFi and offers three options, Message Pass for free messaging during the entire flight. This service is complimentary. The Surf Pass costs 8 euros for the entire flight and allows surfing the internet, sending and receiving e-mails and text messages. Finally, Stream Pass costs 12 euros and allows streaming music, audio, and video as well.
Should I fly with KLM or Air France?
In some ways, my verdict is based on not solely what the aircraft provide but what the overall experience is going to be. For the majority of Air France flights, you’ll need to make a connection in Paris to continue your journey in any direction. Charles DeGaulle Airport is notoriously inefficient and from personal experience is one of the most stressful places to undertake a transfer.
On the other hand, KLM will always connect you in the wonderful Schiphol airport. If you’ve ever had a transfer at this Dutch masterpiece, you’ll already know what I’m talking about. Refined, pleasant, laid back and altogether a nicer place to spend a few hours than CDG, although Schiphol did suffer from a harsh COVID-19 hangover in the summer of 2022 making headlines all over the world for all the wrong reasons, and it is looking to avoid collapsing this summer season.
Hopefully, Amsterdam's hub is able to bounce back strongly this year. However, if you’re flying direct with no messy transfer to worry about, then my pick would be Air France. The seats are more comfortable, the in-flight amenities tend to be better and the food just has the slightest of edges over the Dutch carrier.
Which economy cabin do you prefer the most? Air France or KLM? Let us know in the comments below.