Japan head to head
ANA vs JAL Business Class
2 airlines · 10 business cabins scored · best 9.7/10
Japan's two full-service carriers are close on service and far apart on hardware, and the gap moves depending on the airframe. ANA's flagship suite is one of the highest-scoring business cabins in our data; ANA also still flies one of the oldest. JAL is more consistent across its fleet.
Side by Side
| Metric | All Nippon Airways | Japan Airlines |
|---|---|---|
| Best cabin measured | All Nippon Airways THE Room | Japan Airlines Business Class |
| Best score | 9.7/10 | 9.3/10 |
| Typical score | 7.9/10 | 8.7/10 |
| Worst cabin measured | All Nippon Airways ANA Business Cradle (5.3) | Japan Airlines JAL SKY SUITE (8.4) |
| Cabins measured | 5 | 5 |
| Aircraft types measured | 4 | 5 |
| Routes tracked | 14 | 18 |
| Seat width (best) | 96.5 cm | 56 cm |
| Bed length (best) | 180 cm | 198 cm |
| Direct aisle access | Best cabin only | Every cabin measured |
| Any measured cabin not lie-flat | Yes — 2 cabins | None so far — coverage incomplete |
| Privacy (best cabin) | 100/100 | 100/100 |
“Typical score” weights each cabin by how often Flightradar24 data shows it flying the routes we track. It is the number that answers “what will I probably get” rather than “what is the best they have”. Every row describes the cabins we have measured on those routes — not each airline's entire fleet, which we don't claim to cover.
The Verdict
On hardware alone, All Nippon Airways wins: its All Nippon Airways THE Room scores 9.7/10, the best in this comparison.
That is not the same as the best bet. Weighted by what we actually observe flying, Japan Airlines has the higher typical seat at 8.7/10 — because a flagship cabin on 20% of departures is worth less to you than a very good cabin on all of them.
If you would rather not gamble, Japan Airlines has the narrowest spread between its best and worst business cabin (8.4 to 9.3), so the downside is the shallowest.
None of these brands are one product. Every carrier here flies the same marketing name over cabins a generation apart, and the deciding variable is which airframe is scheduled on your date. Check the route page or look up the flight number before you decide the brand settled it.
Carrier by Carrier2
Best seat: All Nippon Airways THE Room on the 777-300ER, at 9.7/10. Across everything we observe them flying, the typical seat scores 7.9/10 — a 1.8-point drop from the brochure.
Not every All Nippon Airways business cabin we've measured goes fully flat — ANA Business Cradle, ANA Business Cradle do not.
By aircraft
- Boeing 777-300ER THE Room9.7
- Boeing 787-8 ANA Business Staggered / ANA Business Cradlenot flat5.3–8.6
- Boeing 787-9 ANA Business8.6
- Boeing 767-300 ANA Business Cradlenot flat5.5
Best seat: Japan Airlines Business Class on the A350-1000, at 9.3/10. Across everything we observe them flying, the typical seat scores 8.7/10 — a 0.6-point drop from the brochure.
By aircraft
- Airbus A350-1000 Business Class9.3
- Boeing 787-9 JAL SKY SUITE III8.8
- Boeing 767-300 JAL SKY SUITE II8.6
- Boeing 777-300ER JAL SKY SUITE8.4
- Boeing 787-8 JAL SKY SUITE8.4
Best Cabins in This Comparison8
