Lufthansa vs SAS
Lufthansa scores 9/10 against SAS at 8.8/10 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.
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
SAS
A330-300 / A350-900
- Seat
- 8/10
- IFE
- 8/10
- Lounge & bags
- 10/10
- Value
- 9/10
- Product score
- 8.8/10
Dimension by dimension
Seat: Lufthansa
10/10 on the A350-900 / 787-9 (Allegris) against 8/10 on the A330-300 / A350-900.
IFE: level
Screens, connectivity and power: 8/10 against 8/10.
Lounge & bags: level
What the fare includes before you board: 10/10 against 10/10.
Value: SAS
Median premium over the cheapest carrier on the same route: 8/10 against 9/10.
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 | Lufthansa | SAS | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOS → OSL | economy | $728 | $422 | SAS by $306 |
| BOS → HEL | economy | $458 | $600 | Lufthansa by $142 |
| ORD → OSL | economy | $737 | $559 | SAS by $178 |
| JFK → ARN | economy | $661 | $596 | SAS by $65 |
| ORD → ARN | economy | $692 | $625 | SAS by $67 |
| BOS → KRK | economy | $666 | $637 | SAS by $29 |
| JFK → KRK | economy | $666 | $665 | SAS by $1 |
| ORD → KRK | economy | $850 | $665 | SAS by $185 |
| LAX → KRK | economy | $689 | $693 | Lufthansa by $4 |
| JFK → BUD | economy | $694 | $840 | Lufthansa by $146 |
| ORD → MUC | economy | $909 | $698 | SAS by $211 |
| BOS → BER | economy | $916 | $702 | SAS by $214 |
| ORD → BER | economy | $894 | $705 | SAS by $189 |
| ORD → HAM | economy | $898 | $707 | SAS by $191 |
| ORD → FRA | economy | $1114 | $708 | SAS by $406 |
| BOS → MLA | economy | $741 | $713 | SAS by $28 |
| LAX → ARN | economy | $766 | $713 | SAS by $53 |
| ORD → BUD | economy | $852 | $718 | SAS by $134 |
| ORD → HEL | economy | $873 | $721 | SAS by $152 |
| BOS → FRA | economy | $785 | $733 | SAS by $52 |
| LAX → PRG | economy | $750 | $742 | SAS by $8 |
| LAX → OSL | economy | $748 | $764 | Lufthansa by $16 |
| LAX → BUD | economy | $758 | $861 | Lufthansa by $103 |
| BOS → ATH | economy | $787 | $769 | SAS by $18 |
| LAX → ZRH | economy | $769 | $887 | Lufthansa by $118 |
| ORD → MXP | economy | $797 | $772 | SAS by $25 |
| BOS → MUC | economy | $774 | $821 | Lufthansa by $47 |
| JFK → BER | economy | $961 | $778 | SAS by $183 |
| JFK → HAM | economy | $863 | $780 | SAS by $83 |
| BOS → HAM | economy | $947 | $783 | SAS by $164 |
| ORD → ATH | economy | $841 | $795 | SAS by $46 |
| JFK → FRA | economy | $802 | $809 | Lufthansa by $7 |
| JFK → MLA | economy | $802 | $837 | Lufthansa by $35 |
| ORD → MLA | economy | $802 | $884 | Lufthansa by $82 |
| ORD → PRG | economy | $954 | $818 | SAS by $136 |
| LAX → BER | economy | $887 | $825 | SAS by $62 |
| BOS → BUD | economy | $870 | $836 | SAS by $34 |
| JFK → MUC | economy | $839 | $837 | SAS by $2 |
| LAX → FRA | economy | $846 | $856 | Lufthansa by $10 |
| LAX → HAM | economy | $881 | $861 | SAS by $20 |
| LAX → CPH | economy | $878 | $863 | SAS by $15 |
| LAX → MUC | economy | $1020 | $931 | SAS by $89 |
| LAX → HEL | economy | $965 | $1049 | Lufthansa by $84 |
| ORD → FRA | business | $6070 | $4003 | SAS by $2067 |
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:
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
SAS
A330-300 / A350-900
- Seat
- 8/10
- IFE
- 8/10
- Lounge & bags
- 10/10
- Value
- 9/10
- Product score
- 8.8/10
Lufthansa: The cabin Allegris is replacing. Still widely flown on US routes into late 2026.
SAS: Thompson Vantage XL in a staggered 1-2-1 on both widebodies, so the product does not change with the frame.
Common questions
- Is Lufthansa or SAS better to Europe?
- Lufthansa scores 9/10 against SAS at 8.8/10 on seat, screens, lounge and fare. On the four dimensions we can verify, Lufthansa wins 1 and SAS wins 1. Service and food are not scored here because they cannot be read off a spec sheet.
- Which is cheaper, Lufthansa or SAS?
- On the 44 routes where both were priced for the same week (November 8–14, 2026), Lufthansa was cheaper on 12 and SAS on 32. 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. 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?
- Lufthansa, in business on a Europe route. SAS has not been flown, so nothing here claims firsthand experience of its cabin.
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