20 Best Airline Brands On Instagram In 2021
More than any other social media, Instagram has become necessary for marketing and especially branding. As a result, companies all over the world started to produce content. So do airlines. Almost every airline operates an Instagram profile and posts content regularly. Some of them focused on promotional stuff, and some of them on photos from their destinations around the world. However, they all have one thing in common: They want to gain as many followers as possible.
Best Airline Brands On Instagram — How to Measure?
We wanted to know the details. Therefore, we analyzed the profiles of the world’s 100 biggest airlines. And since everybody has a different taste and sense for quality, we took a look at a number that doesn’t lie: The number of followers!
Accordingly, for us, the best and most successful airline brand on Instagram is —solely— defined by the number of followers. So let’s dive into the details and discover which airline attracted the most followers!
Top 20 — Best Airline Brands On Instagram
#20 Ryanair — 737,000 Follower
Europe’s biggest low-cost airline kicks off the top 20 of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram. With 737,000 followers Ryanair’s marketing team is doing a great job. Ryanair utilizes Instagram’s entire features from standard posts to reels, stories, and IGTV.
Airline Background
Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline founded in 1984. Including their subsidiaries, Ryanair operates a fleet of more than 450 aircraft and forms Europe’s biggest low-cost airline. Ryanair has its headquarters in Dublin and operates aircraft bases all over Europe. Before Corona, Ryanair transported almost 150 million passengers.
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#19 Southwest Airlines — 755,000 Follower
With just a couple (18,000) followers more than Ryanair, Southwest Airlines ranks 19th on the list of the best airline brands on Instagram. Although similar to Ryanair, Southwest utilizes Instagram’s entire functionality — from posts to reels, stories, and IGTV.
Airline Background
Southwest Airlines is one of the biggest U.S. airlines and the world’s biggest low-cost airline. With a fleet of more than 700 aircraft, Southwest operates about 4,000 departures a day. The airline is headquartered in Dallas, Texas and operates bases all over the country (e. g. Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and others).
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#18 Azul Linhas Aéras — 856,000 Follower
Brazilian airline Azul is one of three South American airlines on the list of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram. With more than 850,000 followers, Azul is 100,000 ahead of Southwest. So far, Azul uses posts, IGTV, and stories. However, they don’t use reels yet.
Airline Background
Founded in 2008, Azul is a relatively new airline based in Sao Paolo, Brazil. Azul operates a fleet of 143 aircraft and maintains three hubs (Belo Horizonte, Viracopos, and Recife). The airline mainly operates domestic flights but also intercontinental routes to Portugal and the United States.
Azul on Instagram
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#17 Air Canada — 906,000 Follower
Canada’s flag carrier, Air Canada ranks 17th on the list of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram. With the usage of Instagram’s entire functionality (posts, stories, reels, and IGTV), Air Canada’s marketing team is definitely on its road to 1,0 mil. follower!
Airline Background
Air Canada is Canada’s flag carrier and biggest airline at the same time. The airline is headquartered in Montreal and operates a fleet of more than 160 aircraft. With 30,000 employees, Air Canada operates ~1,500 daily flights to destinations all over the world. Prior to COVID-19, Air Canada transported ~50 million passengers.
Air Canada on Instagram
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#16 GOL Linhas Aéreas — 921,000 Follower
GOL is the second of three South American airlines on the top 20 of the best airline brands on Instagram. With 921,000 followers, GOL clearly aims for the magic 7-digit follower figure. Besides posts, stories, reels, and IGTV, GOL also started to use the “Guides” functionality on Instagram. However, it seems like they’ve just started to explore that feature.
Airline Background
GOL is a Brazilian low-cost airline based in Rio de Janeiro. The airline operates a fleet of 127 aircraft and serves approximately 60 destinations. GOL operates three main hubs and flies to both domestic and international destinations.
GOL on Instagram
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Top 15 — Best Airline Brands On Instagram
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#15 Qantas — 947,000 Follower
Australia’s flag carrier ranks 15th in terms of the best airline brands on Instagram. As one of the world’s oldest airlines, Qantas has a very modern Instagram profile and uses all available functions.
Airline Background
Qantas is Australia’s flag carrier and besides one of the world’s best airlines, Qantas is also one of the world’s oldest airlines. The airline was founded in 1920! Today Qantas operates a fleet of 120 aircraft from its hubs in Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney. The fleet consists of Airbus 330 and 380 and Boeing 737-800 and 787-9. Qantas flies to more than 80 destinations and has 30,000 employees.
Qantas on Instagram
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#14 AirAsia — 953,000 Follower
With AirAsia and only 6,000 followers ahead of Qantas, we have the first Asian airline in the ranking of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram. Although AirAsia maintains a ton of different Instagram channels for its different subsidiaries, it is still doing very well with its main profile. However, contrary to many other airlines, AirAsia only uses the posts functionality. Neither stories nor reels or IGTV are currently in use.
Airline Background
AirAsia is a Malaysian multinational low-cost airline headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. AirAsia has several subsidiaries across Asia and operates a combined fleet of more than 250 aircraft. The airline has consistently been named as the world’s best low-cost carrier for 11 years.
AirAsia on Instagram
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#13 British Airways — 1.04 mil. Follower
British Airways marks the first airline of the ranking the can be proud of a 7-digit follower base. With 1.04 follower, British Airways is some 50,000 ahead of Air Asia. Moreover, British Airways is one out of five European airlines among the 20 world’s best airline brands on Instagram. Similar to AirAsia, British Airways only uses a very reduced set of Instagram functionalities — currently only posts and stories.
Airline Background
British Airways is the flag carrier of the United Kingdom and headquartered in London, England. The airline is a founding member of the Oneworld alliance. With a fleet of more than 180 aircraft, British Airways serves more than 250 destinations all over the globe. Prior to Corona, the airline transported ~50 mils. passengers annually.
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#12 American Airlines — 1.07 mil. Follower
With 1.07 million followers, American Airlines is very close to the top 10 of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram. As you will see below, American’s direct competitor on rank ten is only a few followers ahead. However, American Airlines does an amazing job and can be proud to be one of the world’s twelve airline brands with more the 1 mil. a follower on Instagram.
Airline Background
American Airlines is a major carrier of the United States. Measured by fleet size, American Airlines is the world’s biggest airline. American operates a fleet of 860 aircraft out of its hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington. The airline has more than 130,000 employees and handled more than 200 million passengers in pre-COVID time.
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#11 Delta Air Lines — 1.09 mil. Follower
Amazingly close, Delta Air Lines ranks one position higher than its direct competitor. At the time of analysis, Delta had only 300 followers more than Americans. So it’s very likely that the two airlines swap places regularly. From a functionality point of view, Delta uses only stories, posts, and IGTV but now reels or guides yet.
Airline Background
Delta Air Lines, typically referred to as Delta, is another major U.S. carrier. With a fleet of 750 aircraft, Delta operates flights to 325 destinations. The airlines operate several hubs, such as Atlanta, Boston, or Detroit. Pre-COVID, the airline had 91,000 employees and handled 5,400 flights to 52 countries daily.
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Top 10 — Best Airline Brands On Instagram
#10 Air France — 1.09 mil. Follower
With Air France, we have a European airline that kicks off the top 10 of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram. However, Delta and American are not that far behind Air France. Air France is another airline that only uses stories and posts up to now.
Airline Background
Air France / KLM is a France-Dutch airline group. Besides the main carriers, Air France and KLM, the group consists of airlines such as Transavia, Hop, or Martinair. In pre-COVID time, the airline group had more than 85,000 employees and operated 2,300 flights with its 550 aircraft. In 2019, Air France / KLM operated 104 million passengers, mainly from their hubs in Paris and Amsterdam.
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#9 Garuda Indonesia — 1.1 mil. Follower
With 1.1 mil followers, Garuda Indonesia ranks 9th. However, again worth mentioning that Air France but also Delta, and American Airlines are very close behind. Therefore, it will be interesting to see how the ranking develops in the future. As one of two Asian carriers in the top 10, Garuda currently focuses on posts, stories, and IGTV.
Airline Background
Garuda Indonesia is Indonesia’s flag carrier headquartered in Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Garuda operates an aircraft fleet of more than 140 planes and flies to 90 destinations. Moreover, Garuda is the only Indonesian airline that flies to the European airspace. The airline is also the world’s most punctual airline. Find out everything about Garuda Indonesia on our dedicated Garuda Indonesia information page.
Garuda Indonesia on Instagram
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#8 Singapore Airlines — 1.2 mil. Follower
With more than 1.2 million followers, Singapore Airlines ranks eighth on the list of the best airline brands on Instagram. Singapore uses Instagram posts, stories, and IGTV.
Airline Background
Singapore Airlines is the flag carrier of Singapore with its hub at Singapore Changi Airport. The airline has been ranked as the world’s best airline according to Skytrax for more than 20 years. With a fleet of more than 150 aircraft, Singapore operates flights to 140 destinations all over the world.
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#7 KLM — 1.3 mil. Follower
With KLM we have another European airline on position seven. Again, KLM has roughly 100,000 followers more than Singapore Airlines on rank eight. KLM uses Instagram’s entire functionality — from posts to stories, IGTV, reels, and guides.
Airline Background
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is the flag carrier of the Netherlands. The airline is part of the Air France / KLM airline group. With a fleet of almost 120 aircraft, KM operates flights to 145 destinations. KLM’s aircraft fleet consists of Airbus A330 and Boeing B737, B777 as well as B787. In 2019, KLM had 35,000 employees and transported 35 million passengers.
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#6 Lufthansa — 1.4 mil. Follower
Just one position ahead of its neighboring competitor KLM, Lufthansa ranks sixth on the list of the best airline brands on Instagram. Lufthansa offers posts, stories, and IGTV videos to its solid fanbase of 1.4 million followers on Instagram.
Airline Background
Lufthansa is Germany’s largest airline and one of the world’s largest airline groups. The group airlines operated out of their bases in Frankfurt, Munich, Vienna, and Zurich. In total, the airline group has more than 700 aircraft and, before COVID-19, almost 140,000 employees. The airline operates flights to hundreds of European destinations and Asia, North America, Africa, Central, and South America.
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Top 5 — Best Airline Brands On Instagram
#5 Etihad — 1.7 mil. Follower
As we enter the top five of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram, we also see an increase in terms of followers. Etihad on position five has more than 300,000 followers more than Lufthansa. On top of that, Etihad is one out of three Middle East carriers in the top five! Etihad focuses on posts, stories, and IGTV with its Instagram presence.
Airline Background
Etihad is the second flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates. The airline has its hub in Abu Dhabi and operates a fleet of more than 100 aircraft. In 2019, Etihad had 20,000 employees (14,000 in 2020) and carried 17.5 million passengers (4.2 in 2020). In pre-COVID times, Etihad operated more than 1,000 daily flights to destinations in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and North America. Find out everything about Etihad on our dedicated Etihad information page.
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#4 Turkish Airlines — 1.8 mil. Follower
And we’re getting closer to the top 3! At position four, with only 100,000 followers more than Etihad, we find Turkish Airlines. Turkish uses Instagram’s complete functionality of posts, stories, reels, IGTV, and guides. Therefore, the airline is definitely on its way to 2 mils. follower in the near future!
Airline Background
Turkish Airlines is Turkey’s biggest airline. With a fleet of 362 aircraft and some 40,000 employees. The airline operates flights to 126 countries, more than any other airline in the world. Turkish Airlines has its main hub in Istanbul and operates a secondary hub in Izmir. Find out everything about Turkish Airlines on our dedicated Turkish Airlines information page.
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#3 LATAM Airlines — 1.8 mil. Followers
LATAM kicks off the top 3 airline brands on Instagram. However, worth mentioning, that LATAM (currently) only has a few followers more than Turkish Airlines on position four. Therefore, we’re pretty sure to see a battle in the near future for position three. LATAM uses posts, stories and IGTV to entertain and inform its fan base and passengers.
Airline Background
LATAM is the largest airline in South America with subsidiaries in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Peru. The airline operates a combined fleet of more than 300 aircraft from hubs in different countries. Moreover, LATAM operates flights to more than 120 destinations. Pre-COVID the airline had 43,000 employees.
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#2 Qatar Airways — 3.4 mil. Follower
The silver medal of the world’s best airline brands on Instagram goes to Qatar Airways. Qatar Airways has an amazing amount of 3.4 million followers. Accordingly, Qatar is 1.5 million followers ahead of LATAM on position three. Qatar Airways uses posts, stories, reels, and IGTV to provide high-quality content to its passengers and audience. Worth mentioning that Qatar also ranks as one of the world’s best airlines on our latest airline ranking.
Airline Background
Qatar Airways is the flag carrier of Qatar. Founded in 1993, the airline today operates a fleet of 235 aircraft. The fleet consists of different Airbus types (A319, A320, A321, A330, A350, A380) but also Boeing aircraft (B777). The airline has more than 50,000 employees and operates flights to 170 destinations. Find out everything about Qatar Airways on our dedicated Qatar Airways information page.
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#1 Emirates — 5.5 mil. Follower
The gold medal for the world’s best airline brand on Instagram goes to Emirates! That means the gold, as well as the silver medal, goes to airlines in the Middle East. However, Emirates definitely plays in its own league when it comes to the number of followers. With 5.5 million followers, Emirates has more than 2 million followers more than Qatar on rank two. Emirates uses posts, stories, and IGTV to provide amazing content to its fan base and passengers.
Airline Background
Emirates Airlines was founded in 1985 and operates out of its base in Dubai. The airline operates a fleet of 250 aircraft mainly Airbus A380 and Boeing B777. With more than 100 Airbus A380, Emirates is the world’s biggest operator of this aircraft. Emirates Airlines flies to more than 150 destinations all over the world. Pre-COVID, the airline had more than 60,000 employees. Find out everything about Emirates on our dedicated Emirates information page.
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World’s best airline brands on Instagram — What’s your opinion?
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