What does it cost to own a Cirrus SR22? SR20, SR22T, Bonanza and DA40 compared
October 27, 2026 · Chris van Eijk
A Cirrus SR22 costs more to keep than most four-seat singles, and the reason is not only that it is faster. Its parachute adds two reserves the other makes do not have, and at 100 hours a year its engine and propeller reserves, like those of every type here, run on the calendar rather than on the hours you fly. This guide compares the SR22 with seven other piston singles in the cost model of our aircraft ownership cost calculator, at US prices, and works out what one owner pays when an SR22 is shared.
Short answer: flown 100 hours a year, a new Cirrus SR22 costs $42,921 a year to operate in the calculator — $25,021 in fixed costs plus $179 for every hour flown, or $429 per hour flown — before insurance and depreciation. A Cirrus SR20 comes to $33,228 ($332 per hour flown), an SR22T to $52,755 ($528), a Beechcraft G36 Bonanza to $39,803 ($398) and a Diamond DA40 XLT to $28,010 ($280). Every amount is a planning assumption, not a quote.
What 8 piston singles cost to operate for 100 hours a year
- Fixed costs a year
- Hourly costs × 100 h
| Aircraft | One year at 100 hours | Fixed per year and per flight hour |
|---|---|---|
| Cessna 172S Skyhawk SP | $27,313 | $15,813 + $115/h · $273 per hour flown |
| Diamond DA40 XLT (Lycoming) | $28,010 | $17,110 + $109/h · $280 per hour flown |
| Mooney M20J 201 | $28,610 | $17,110 + $115/h · $286 per hour flown |
| Cirrus SR20 | $33,228 | $21,028 + $122/h · $332 per hour flown |
| Cessna 182T Skylane | $37,303 | $21,103 + $162/h · $373 per hour flown |
| Beechcraft A36/G36 Bonanza | $39,803 | $21,103 + $187/h · $398 per hour flown |
| Cirrus SR22 | $42,921 | $25,021 + $179/h · $429 per hour flown |
| Cirrus SR22T | $52,755 | $32,755 + $200/h · $528 per hour flown |
Why an SR22 costs more than a Bonanza or a Skylane
The SR22's fixed costs are $25,021 a year against $21,103 for a Beechcraft G36 Bonanza and a Cessna 182T Skylane. The difference, $3,918, is almost exactly the parachute. The calculator reserves for the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) twice: a repack with rocket replacement every 10 years, at $22,000 today, and new line cutters every 6 years, at $1,500 (check the maintenance manual for your aircraft). Both are planning assumptions from owners' quotes and service centres (2025–2026). With overhaul prices rising about 5% a year, that is $3,584 a year for the repack and $335 for the cutters, $3,919 together, however little the aircraft flies.
Per flight hour the SR22 is slightly cheaper than the Bonanza: $179 against $187 for the Bonanza, which burns more fuel in the calculator. Fuel is $103 an hour of the SR22's $179, at 13.7 US gallons an hour and $7.50 a gallon. That burn is an estimate, because the SR22's handbook gives a best-economy figure only at 55% power; put your own figure in if you fly it differently.
Where an SR22's $25,021 of fixed costs a year go
- Other aircraft have this line too
- Cirrus parachute (CAPS)
| Cost line | Per year |
|---|---|
| Engine overhaul reserve (Continental IO-550-N) | $10,177 |
| Hangarage | $4,800 |
| CAPS parachute repack | $3,584 |
| Annual inspection / ARC | $2,800 |
| Propeller overhaul reserve | $1,117 |
| Bookkeeping / administration | $1,080 |
| Navigation database (e.g. Garmin) | $700 |
| CAPS line cutters | $335 |
| Charts / EFB (e.g. Jeppesen) | $200 |
| Propeller governor overhaul reserve | $180 |
| Weather service | $50 |
The engine reserve runs on the calendar below 183 hours a year
Continental gives the IO-550-N in the SR22 a time between overhauls of 2,200 hours or 12 years, whichever comes first (Continental's 550 engine spec sheet, March 2026; the TSIO-550-K in the SR22T has the same; an older engine can have a lower limit, so check the one in your logbook). Below 183 hours a year, the 12 years arrive before the 2,200 hours, so the overhaul has to be saved for by the year, not by the hour. At 100 hours a year the calculator reserves $10,177 a year for it — a planning overhaul price of $68,000, raised by 5% a year to the year it is due — which is about $102 for every hour flown. At 200 hours a year the hours come first and the reserve drops to $53 per hour flown.
Flying more makes an SR22 much cheaper per hour, because every fixed cost is spread over more hours: at 200 hours a year it costs $61,265 to operate, or $306 per hour flown, against $429 at 100 hours. Our guides to maintenance cost per flight hour and propeller TBO work out the same calendar effect for a Cessna 172 and for the propeller.
Insurance and depreciation for a new SR22
Both follow the price you pay. The calculator starts a type that is still built as new, at the manufacturer's list price: $937,900 for the SR22, $694,900 for the SR20 and $1,069,900 for the SR22T, the base prices on Cirrus's North America price lists for 2026 (read 26 October 2026). At that value the calculator's planning assumptions give $10,917 a year of insurance (1.1% of the hull value plus $600 liability) and $55,772 of depreciation a year on average over the first five years (10% of the value in the first year, $93,790, then 6% of what is left each year — an estimate of the loss of market value, not a forecast). A real insurance quote for a Cirrus depends heavily on the pilot's experience, so replace that line with yours.
One owner flying 100 hours a year then spends $109,610 a year, or $1,096 per hour flown.
Sharing an SR22
Sharing divides the lines that do not depend on the hours: the hangar, the annual inspection, the subscriptions, the parachute, the calendar part of the engine and propeller reserves, the insurance and the depreciation. With every owner flying 50 hours a year, one owner of a new SR22 pays $100,660 a year alone, $54,806 with one partner, $39,520 with two and $31,988 with three — everything included. Without insurance and depreciation, it is $33,971 alone and $15,316 with three partners.
What one SR22 owner pays a year, alone or with one to three partners
- Operating costs (fixed share + own hours)
- Share of insurance and depreciation
| Owners | One owner per year, everything | Operating costs only |
|---|---|---|
| 1 owner | $100,660 | $33,971 operating |
| 2 owners | $54,806 | $21,461 operating |
| 3 owners | $39,520 | $17,290 operating |
| 4 owners | $31,988 | $15,316 operating |
What has to be agreed between owners is the same as for any shared aircraft: who pays which fixed costs, how each owner's hours are charged, and how the reserves are kept when an owner sells. Our aircraft partnership agreement guide lists what to put in writing, and aircraft partnership software compares the tools that keep the shares and the hours.
A used SR22
These figures are for a new aircraft. For a used SR22, insurance and depreciation follow the price you paid, so both drop with it; the parachute repack and the engine overhaul do not get cheaper with the airframe. Open the aircraft ownership cost calculator, pick the Cirrus SR22, enter the build year and the price, and replace any line with your own quote, hangar and fuel price. The calculator shows the source next to every line. For the turbine Cirrus, see what a Vision Jet, a TBM 960 or a PC-12 costs.