The total payment processing costs for global airlines reached $24.5 billion at the end of 2025, Report informs referring to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
According to the association's statement published on Monday, airlines' payment processing costs rose by 10.4% compared to 2023, while total sales volume over the same period increased by only 7.7%, from $977 billion to $1.05 trillion.
In 2025, global airlines processed transactions totaling $1.05 trillion. The average cost of processing a single payment transaction was $5 per passenger. For comparison, according to IATA's forecasts, airlines' net profit in 2026 is expected to be $4.5 per passenger.
"The air transport industry is highly competitive and requires large-scale capital investments with historically low margins. Under such conditions, it is extremely important to assess every category of costs in detail. Payment processing costs are increasing at a faster pace compared to carriers' revenues, and such dynamics cannot be sustainable in the long term," the statement notes, citing Sandrine Le Borgne, IATA's Acting Director General and Chief Financial Officer.
She emphasized that this situation indicates the need for more effective cost control, despite technological development. The detailed breakdown of airlines' payment processing costs of $24.5 billion for 2025 was distributed as follows: $20.7 billion (84.5% of the total amount) went toward payment commissions and direct costs of completing transactions; $2.9 billion (11.8%) comprised operational costs, covering expenses for payment infrastructure, delays in receiving funds, employee remuneration, and regulatory compliance; $0.9 billion (3.7%) was lost due to fraudulent activities or unpaid orders. The maximum costs per transaction still fall on bank card payments: the average commission on them was 2.53%, which noticeably exceeds the average calculated value across all payment methods - 1.97%.
The minimum expenses were recorded when using alternative payment instruments, where commissions started from 0.01%. In response to the growing financial burden, IATA is forming recommendations for optimizing payment procedures, including the introduction of alternative payment methods. According to the results of IATA's 2025 global passenger survey, 29% of travelers prefer digital wallets, and 8% prefer local instant payment services.