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Delta vs Lufthansa

Lufthansa scores 9/10 against Delta at 8/10 on seat, screens, lounge and fare.

By Jon Miksis · cabin data verified · fares for travel November 8–14, 2026

Best product each one flies

Scored on what can be verified. Service, food and ground recovery are absent deliberately: they need someone in the seat, and they live in the reviews rather than here.

One caveat on the Value line, stated rather than buried: the cabin scores describe a business product and the fares behind Value are economy. A carrier that prices economy aggressively generally prices business the same way, but they are different products. Read Value as how an airline prices against its competitors, not as what its business seat costs.

Delta

A350 / A330-900 (Delta One Suite) · flown by Jon

Seat
10/10
IFE
10/10
Lounge & bags
10/10
Value
2/10
Product score
8/10

Lufthansa

A350-900 / 787-9 (Allegris) · flown by Jon

Seat
10/10
IFE
8/10
Lounge & bags
10/10
Value
8/10
Product score
9/10

Dimension by dimension

  • Seat: level

    10/10 on the A350 / A330-900 (Delta One Suite) against 10/10 on the A350-900 / 787-9 (Allegris).

  • IFE: Delta

    Screens, connectivity and power: 10/10 against 8/10.

  • Lounge & bags: level

    What the fare includes before you board: 10/10 against 10/10.

  • Value: Lufthansa

    Median premium over the cheapest carrier on the same route: 2/10 against 8/10.

Where both were priced on the same dates

Every fare is November 8–14, 2026, so a difference between two rows is a difference between two airlines and nothing else. These are economy fares, while the cabin scores above describe the business product — read them as how each airline prices against its competitors, not as what its business seat costs.

RouteCabinDeltaLufthansaCheaper
JFK → ATHeconomy$983$778Lufthansa by $205
LAX → OPOeconomy$788$859Delta by $71
JFK → FRAeconomy$1112$802Lufthansa by $310
LAX → ATHeconomy$915$903Lufthansa by $12

What happens if the aircraft swaps

Both carriers are paying-the-same-fare-either-way propositions on some frames. The worst product each one flies:

Delta

767-300ER · flown by Jon

Seat
8/10
IFE
10/10
Lounge & bags
10/10
Value
2/10
Product score
7.5/10

Lufthansa

747-8 / A330-300 (legacy) · flown by Jon

Seat
5/10
IFE
8/10
Lounge & bags
10/10
Value
8/10
Product score
7.8/10

Delta: Same 1-2-1 lie-flat, no privacy door.

Lufthansa: The cabin Allegris is replacing. Still widely flown on US routes into late 2026.

Common questions

Is Delta or Lufthansa better to Europe?
Lufthansa scores 9/10 against Delta at 8/10 on seat, screens, lounge and fare. On the four dimensions we can verify, Delta wins 1 and Lufthansa wins 1. Service and food are not scored here because they cannot be read off a spec sheet.
Which is cheaper, Delta or Lufthansa?
On the 4 routes where both were priced for the same week (November 8–14, 2026), Delta was cheaper on 1 and Lufthansa on 3. Every pair of fares is the same departure and return date in the same cabin, so the difference is the airline rather than the dates or the cabin.
Does the aircraft change the answer?
Yes. Delta scores 10/10 on the A350 / A330-900 (Delta One Suite) and 8/10 on the 767-300ER. Lufthansa scores 10/10 on the A350-900 / 787-9 (Allegris) and 5/10 on the 747-8 / A330-300 (legacy). Check the equipment on your date before deciding.
Has Jon flown either of these?
Both. Delta and Lufthansa are on the flown roster in business on a Europe route, so a full seven-dimension review of either can carry the Flown label.

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