Is Icelandair or SWISS better to Europe?

SWISS scores 7.8/10 against Icelandair at 6/10 on seat, screens, lounge and fare. On the four dimensions we can verify, Icelandair wins 1 and SWISS wins 2. Service and food are not scored here because they cannot be read off a spec sheet.

Which is cheaper, Icelandair or SWISS?

On the 9 routes where both were priced for the same week (November 8–14, 2026), Icelandair was cheaper on 6 and SWISS 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?

Not on seat: both carriers fly a consistent product across the aircraft we have verified.

Has Jon flown either of these?

SWISS, in business on a Europe route. Icelandair has not been flown, so nothing here claims firsthand experience of its cabin.

Head to head

Icelandair vs SWISS

SWISS scores 7.8/10 against Icelandair at 6/10 on seat, screens, lounge and fare.

By Jon Miksis · cabin data verified August 30, 2026 · 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.

Icelandair

737 MAX / 757 (Saga Premium)

Seat: 0/10
IFE: 4/10
Lounge & bags: 10/10
Value: 10/10
Product score: 6/10

SWISS

A330-300 · flown by Jon

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

Dimension by dimension

Seat: SWISS
0/10 on the 737 MAX / 757 (Saga Premium) against 5/10 on the A330-300.
IFE: SWISS
Screens, connectivity and power: 4/10 against 8/10.
Lounge & bags: level
What the fare includes before you board: 10/10 against 10/10.
Value: Icelandair
Median premium over the cheapest carrier on the same route: 10/10 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.

Route	Cabin	Icelandair	SWISS	Cheaper
BOS → ARN	economy	$496	$647	Icelandair by $151
ORD → OSL	economy	$544	$725	Icelandair by $181
BOS → ZRH	economy	$548	$708	Icelandair by $160
BOS → CPH	economy	$585	$714	Icelandair by $129
ORD → ARN	economy	$630	$693	Icelandair by $63
JFK → ARN	economy	$1116	$647	SWISS by $469
JFK → OSL	economy	$1007	$689	SWISS by $318
BOS → FCO	economy	$713	$740	Icelandair by $27
ORD → ZRH	economy	$896	$857	SWISS by $39

Common questions

Is Icelandair or SWISS better to Europe?: SWISS scores 7.8/10 against Icelandair at 6/10 on seat, screens, lounge and fare. On the four dimensions we can verify, Icelandair wins 1 and SWISS wins 2. Service and food are not scored here because they cannot be read off a spec sheet.
Which is cheaper, Icelandair or SWISS?: On the 9 routes where both were priced for the same week (November 8–14, 2026), Icelandair was cheaper on 6 and SWISS 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?: Not on seat: both carriers fly a consistent product across the aircraft we have verified.
Has Jon flown either of these?: SWISS, in business on a Europe route. Icelandair has not been flown, so nothing here claims firsthand experience of its cabin.

Join the Club, free

One email a week: the Europe fares worth acting on, the new transatlantic routes, and first look at the tools. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.