Airline Ranking · As of July 16, 2026

Air France-KLM

Ranked #1 of 32 carriers on what is already operationally available in 2026, not on a 2050 pledge.

Score out of 100

78.5

Leading the field · rank 1 of 32 · Europe

Why Air France-KLM lands here

Strong SAF leadership plus visible non-CO₂ and contrail work.

0best in the world: 78.5100

This is the highest score in the ranking, and it is still well short of 100. No carrier reaches 80.

What this score is built from

Eight decision areas, weighted by what moves emissions now

Each area is graded against what Air France-KLM publishes, then scaled by how well that work is evidenced. Contrail avoidance carries the same weight as sustainable aviation fuel, because both are available today.

Where the points are

21.5 of the 100 points are still on the table for Air France-KLM. The three largest sit here:

  • 8.8

    Contrail avoidance and non-CO₂ action

    16.2 of 25 earned

  • 2.8

    Customer participation, checkout donation, and sustainability access

    7.2 of 10 earned

  • 2.4

    Ground operations, waste, and circularity

    3.6 of 6 earned

  • SAF deployment and market-building

    SAF

    23.0 / 25

    rough grade 4.5 of 5Aevidence ×1.002.0 points still available

    The group is one of the clearest European SAF leaders, with real procurement and deployment rather than aspiration alone.

  • Contrail avoidance and non-CO₂ action

    Contrails

    16.2 / 25

    rough grade 5 of 5Devidence ×0.658.8 points still available

    Air France-KLM combines strong SAF disclosure with visible non-CO₂ and contrail-related work rather than treating the issue as a footnote.

  • Fleet efficiency and operational decarbonization

    Ops

    9.9 / 12

    rough grade 4.5 of 5Bevidence ×0.902.1 points still available

    Fleet renewal and operating-efficiency work are visible and material.

  • Climate governance and transparency

    Governance

    9.3 / 10

    rough grade 4.5 of 5Aevidence ×1.000.7 points still available

    Public reporting is strong enough to compare targets, governance structure, and climate claims across reporting cycles.

  • Customer participation, checkout donation, and sustainability access

    Customer

    7.2 / 10

    rough grade 4 of 5Bevidence ×0.902.8 points still available

    Customer participation is real but somewhat less visible in checkout than British Airways, United, or Alaska.

  • Ground operations, waste, and circularity

    Ground

    3.6 / 6

    rough grade 3 of 5Aevidence ×1.002.4 points still available

    There is some evidence of ground or waste action, but the public detail remains limited.

  • Community and nonprofit investment

    Community

    4.2 / 6

    rough grade 3.5 of 5Aevidence ×1.001.8 points still available

    Community or nonprofit support is visible and quantified rather than symbolic.

  • Climate advocacy and sector collaboration

    Advocacy

    5.1 / 6

    rough grade 4.5 of 5Bevidence ×0.900.9 points still available

    The airline is visibly engaged in sector collaboration, policy work, or broader climate signaling beyond internal operations.

Evidence codes

  • A×1.00Current quantified disclosure or clearly documented live program.
  • B×0.90Good disclosure with small limits.
  • C×0.80Older-cycle, group-level, proxy, or incomplete quantified evidence.
  • D×0.65Fragmented or partial proxy evidence.
  • E×0.35No credible public evidence; floor only.

Grades are recorded to the nearest half point, so the published pillar score is the authoritative figure and the grade is a rounded description of it. Evidence quality for Air France-KLM overall is rated high.

How Air France-KLM compares

Either side in the table

No carrier scores higher. American Airlines one place behind at 78.5.

Within Europe

Ranked 1 of 11 carriers scored in Europe, the highest-scoring carrier in the region.

Who already leads the areas Air France-KLM is losing most

  • Contrail avoidance and non-CO₂ action

    American Airlines earns 25.0 of 25 here. Air France-KLM earns 16.2.

  • Customer participation, checkout donation, and sustainability access

    IAG earns 9.4 of 10 here. Air France-KLM earns 7.2.

  • Ground operations, waste, and circularity

    LATAM Airlines Group earns 4.2 of 6 here. Air France-KLM earns 3.6.

The full methodology, with a worked example →Every source behind the ranking →

If you work at Air France-KLM

We can tell you which points are cheapest to win

Two of the eight areas, booking-path participation and published uptake, are the ones our own real-money research speaks to directly: a redesigned donation step roughly doubled giving across three carriers, with no cost in brand favorability or booking intent.

Ask for your breakdownSee all 32 carriers

Think we have this wrong? If we have missed a published program, send it over and we will re-score and note the change.