- American Airlines will offer free Wi-Fi to passengers. The service will begin in January 2026. Currently, passengers pay as much as $20 to connect to the internet when flying with the carrier.
American Airlines is joining the growing number of carriers offering free in-flight WiFi.
The company has announced it will no longer charge for passengers to connect to the internet starting in January 2026. The free Wi-Fi will be available to members of the company's loyalty program and sponsored by AT&T.
The change comes as a growing number of airlines have begun making Wi-Fi access complimentary on flights. Delta has offered free in-flight Wi-Fi since 2023. United Airlines is in the process of adding Starlink satellite Wi-Fi to its planes, which will be free to loyalty members.
Smaller carriers, such as JetBlue and Hawaiian Airlines, also offer free in-flight Wi-Fi.
American has been a holdout, collecting $20 or more per connected passenger per flight.
“Our customers greatly value staying connected while in the air, whether communicating with friends, getting work done, checking in on social media, or streaming their favorite subscription services,” said Heather Garboden, chief customer officer at American Airlines. “We’ve been working diligently to outfit our aircraft with best-in-class high-speed Wi-Fi.”
Beyond large jets, American said it plans on installing high-speed internet services on 500 regional jets by the end of next year.
American's in-flight Wi-Fi will be powered by Viasat and Intelsat, the company said. That could give it a timing advantage over United. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved the use of the Elon Musk–owned satellite internet service on select aircraft models, but the carrier is still waiting for approval on planes that make cross-country flights. There's no timeline for when that might occur.
