United Airlines posts record revenue figures for 2025 and flies 181 million passengers during the year
January 22, 2026
United Airlines has reported finishing 2025 strongly, with revenues, profits and operational performance all up on the year before. Additionally, with demand for premium and business class travel continuing to climb, the US airline said that its forecasts indicate that 2026 will be another strong year for the carrier.
United Airlines posts record earnings for 2025
In its results posted on 20 January, United Airlines said that its full-year results for 2025 showed that the company made pre-tax earnings of $4.3 billion, with a pre-tax margin of 7.3%. Net income reached $3.4 billion while the company generated $8.4 billion of operating cash flow.
For the 2025 year, United posted diluted earnings per share of $10.20, up 8% from 2024, and adjusted earnings per share of $10.62. The airline generated $2.7 billion of free cash flow during the year and ended 2025 with an availability of $15,2 billion.
For the full year 2025, United said total operating revenue rose 3.5% from 2024 to $59.1 billion, the highest annual revenue in the company’s history. Showing signs of strong growth in its premium cabins, United said premium revenue rose 9% in the fourth quarter and 11% for the full year.
For the final quarter of 2025 (4Q25), United’s total operating revenue reached $15.4 billion, up 4.8% compared to the same quarter in 2024 and the highest quarterly total in the company’s history. Costs per available seat kilometre (CASM) fell by 0.3% while overall fleet capacity rose by 6.5% compared to 4Q24.
Pre-tax earnings for the fourth quarter reached $1.3 billion, although they took an estimated $250 million hit from the US federal government shutdown in October and November 2025. The airline said it earned $3.19 per share in the quarter, or $3.10 per share on an adjusted basis.
United’s operational performance in 2025
United carried more than 181 million revenue passengers in 2025, beginning service on 29 domestic and Canadian routes and adding 13 new international destinations to its industry-leading network. In 2025, United added 82 new aircraft and updated 119 aircraft to its Signature Interior, bringing the total to 68% of its narrowbody fleet.
The company ranked second in the US for on-time performance and first in terms of cancelled flights. United highlighted that its regional subsidiary, United Express, went 134 days without a single cancellation.
Additionally, United continued to expand its international network in 2025, including new flights that made it the only US airline to serve Bangkok (Thailand), Adelaide (Australia), Tepic (Mexico), and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam).
The carrier also announced plans to inaugurate new services to Bari (Italy), Santiago de Compostela (Spain), Glasgow (Scotland) and Split (Croatia) in 2026, as well as new routes from Newark to Seoul (South Korea), and Washington-Dulles to Reykjavik (Iceland).
In 4Q25, United operated the largest mainline schedule in the airline’s history, carrying an average of more than 496,000 passengers daily. United’s 303 daily widebody departures in 2025 were the most in its history.
United achieved its lowest seat cancel rate in history and had the lowest seat cancel rate of any mainline network US carrier. The airline added that its Connection Saver tool saved more than one million potential missed connections during the year, a 42% increase over 2024.
The airline faced some headwinds at the end of 2025
As reported by Yahoo Finance News, analysts say that the airline facing a $250 million impact on pre-tax earnings due to the government shutdown highlighted certain vulnerabilities to internal and external political factors.
This figure relates to refunds offered to customers, including some whose flights were not cancelled. However, United said this approach actually helped lift its customer satisfaction ratings, with November posting its highest-ever monthly customer satisfaction score.
Additionally, revenues in United economy class cabins showed ongoing weakness, with a decline of approximately 5% for standard and basic economy revenues, indicating challenges in the lower-end market segment.
The company also experienced challenges in the Latin America market, with underperformance in the third and fourth quarters of 2025 affecting overall regional performance, while the airline’s operations were impacted by FAA-directed capacity reductions at major airports due to staffing and system constraints, leading to certain operational challenges.
Analysts also point out that United is currently in negotiations with several workers’ unions that could have the potential to cause some disruptions in 2026 if a deal cannot be reached, or increased labour costs if it can.
What the airline said about its 2025 results
Speaking about the results, Scott Kirby, United’s CEO, said, “Our results are built on winning more and more brand-loyal customers. They get the most value flying United. [4Q25] was the highest-revenue quarter in United’s history and the highest quarterly revenue per available seat mile (RASM) for the year, providing strong revenue momentum that is continuing into 2026.”
Kirby also credited United passengers across the service cabins for their ongoing loyalty, which was having a positive effect on the airline’s bottom line. Loyalty revenue, which also includes sales tied to MileagePlus and co-branded credit card activity, increased 10% in 4Q25 and reached 9% for the year. Basic Economy also grew, up 7% in the quarter and 5% for the full year.
United provides an update on the start of 2026
Looking ahead to 2026, United said it expects to take delivery of over 100 narrowbody aircraft plus 20 Boeing 787 Dreamliners during the year. The arrival of the additional 787s will be the largest intake of widebodied jets by any US passenger airline since 1988, the airline added.
In terms of in-flight connectivity, the company said that Starlink Wi-Fi is now installed on nearly all of the dual-cabin United Express fleet, covering more than 300 aircraft, with completion expected by the end of January 2026.
In the meantime, Starlink installations have now also begun on mainline jets, with the carrier expecting the installation rate to increase throughout 2026 as the Wi-Fi rollout accelerates.
According to Planespotters.net, as of January 2026, the United Airlines mainline fleet consists of 1,057 aircraft. United Express, meanwhile, operates 468 airframes.
Featured image: Kyo46 / stock.adobe.com
