Boeing Finally Beat Airbus. This Matters More.

Through November, Boeing has taken in 1,000 orders for new jets, about 200 more than Airbus. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU /AFP via Getty Images)

Key Points

• Boeing secured 1,000 new jet orders through November, surpassing Airbus by approximately 200 orders for the year.
• Boeing has not reported a full-year profit since 2018 and has not delivered more jets than Airbus since 2018.
• Boeing is projected to deliver almost 700 jets in 2026, an increase from about 600 in 2024.

Boeing will notch a win against Airbus this year, taking in more orders for new jets than its European rival. Orders, however, won’t drive either stock in 2026.

Through November, Boeing has taken in 1,000 orders for new jets, about 200 more than Airbus. Boeing’s lead is all but assured to last through the end of the year, making 2025 the first time Boeing has topped the annual order total since 2021.

It’s good news for the embattled American airplane maker. Boeing hasn’t reported a full-year profit since 2018, the year before the second tragic 737 MAX crash. It hasn’t delivered more jets than Airbus since 2018.

It’s been a tough stretch for Boeing since the MAX disaster. Starting in 2019, Boeing has delivered about 2,800 jets. Airbus has delivered almost 4,900. Boeing has taken in orders for about 5,300 aircraft. Airbus has received orders for about 7,200 planes. Airbus’ business has generated about $18 billion in free cash flow. Boeing has used $20 billion.

That’s all in the past, though. None of that matters for either company in 2026. Both have huge backlogs and need to build more planes. Boeing is expected to deliver almost 700 jets in 2026, up from about 600 in 2024. Airbus is expected to deliver about 900, up from about 790 in 2025.

Meeting or beating those estimates will go a long way to determine the direction of the stocks this coming year.

The long-term trends in orders, of course, do matter. They signal that Boeing might need to launch a new medium-sized jet to stem market share losses from the A320 family of jets.

Boeing will have to update its product lineup eventually, but that isn’t necessarily a block to the stock in 2026. Boeing shares entered Wednesday trading at about $200, a far cry from all-time highs north of $440 reached in early 2019.

Boeing’s first order of business is to grow plane production.

Boeing stock dropped 0.8% on Wednesday, closing at $198.72 a share, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7% and 1.1%, respectively.

Airbus stock fell 0.8% in overseas trading, leaving shares up 25% year to date. Entering the day, Boeing stock was up 13% so far in 2025.