How Much Do Emirates Flight Attendants Earn? You Might Be Surprised

Recently, Emirates reported a record profit, and declared itself the world’s most profitable airline. To celebrate this, the airline is offering staff a 22-week basic salary bonus. When I write about the economics of Gulf carriers, people will often say things like “well they pay their employees peanuts, so of course they can more easily make money.”

Along those lines, I thought it would be interesting to discuss how much Emirates flight attendants actually earn, as I think the overall compensation package puts US carriers to shame. Let me note that PYOK wrote a great post about the life of Emirates flight attendants, but I want to specifically talk more about the pay.

Emirates flight attendants are compensated pretty well

Emirates is transparent about how much it pays flight attendants. When you join the airline, you first start as a Grade 2 (meaning you work in economy), and you’re paid as follows:

• Starting flight attendants have a basic salary of 4,835 AED ($1,316) per month
• Starting flight attendants receive flying pay of 66.30 AED ($18) per hour, based on an average of 80-100 hours per month of flying
• Emirates states that starting flight attendants earn an average of $2,940 per month, which comes out to over $35,000 per year

That doesn’t account for profit sharing. Just recently, flight attendants received a 22-week bonus on their basic salary, which would be right around $6,800, meaning a starting flight attendant would’ve made over $40,000, on average. Of course there’s no guarantee that will be the case in the future, but the airline has now paid huge bonuses three years in a row.

But this is only the start of how they’re compensated:

• Flight attendants receive housing in Dubai, as well as transportation to & from the airport
• Flight attendants receive dry cleaning for their uniforms
• Flight attendants receive huge discounts all around Dubai by showing their ID
• Flight attendants don’t have to pay income taxes in Dubai
• Flight attendant receive 30 days of leave per year, and one free ticket home per year, plus huge discounts on additional travel

My point is simply to say that many people think that Emirates flight attendants are paid very little, but that’s not the case. It’s even more not the case when you consider that flight attendants at Emirates come from all over the world.

Like, if you’re from most of the world, making $40K+ per year, all while having your housing expenses paid for, is pretty incredible. It’s why Emirates flight attendants are often the bread winners for their families back home. Keep in mind that this is only starting pay, so as you work your way up the ranks (to Grade 1, First Grade 1, Supervisor, and Purser), you’ll be paid even more.

Also keep in mind that you truly get to see the world from the moment you join. It’s not like starting at a US airline, where you’re mostly going to be on reserve working short domestic flights all the time. Sure, you’ll have the occasional overnight turns at Emirates, but you’ll also have trips to every corner of the globe.

How does this compare to US flight attendant compensation?

Here’s what I think is kind of wild. Emirates flight attendants actually make more than many flight attendants at airlines in the United States, and that doesn’t even account for the fact that Emirates flight attendants have their housing and transportation paid for, and don’t have to pay taxes.

For example, United flight attendants still don’t have a new post-pandemic contract, and a first year United flight attendant makes $28.88 per flight hour, plus a $2.40-2.90 per diem per hour that they’re away from home on trips. You can assume that they rack up 1,000 hours per year (if they’re lucky), so a first year United flight attendant is making somewhere around $35,000 per year, before paying union dues.

However, unlike at Emirates, where housing is covered, these flight attendants will typically be based in one of the most expensive cities in the country, and then have to pay their rent, their transportation to and from the airport, their dry cleaning, etc.

So you can make of it what you will. But if you look at it objectively, I think most people would agree that Emirates flight attendants actually have a pretty sweet gig. Now, in fairness, a few downsides to Emirates:

• When you work for a US carrier, you typically get unlimited “free” flight benefits, including in business class, which is awesome; however, when you’re paying $30K per year and have to pay rent, many flight attendants can’t actually afford to use those benefits
• Flight attendant pay at US airlines potentially increases a bit more over the years than at Emirates, and senior flight attendants at US carriers get significant pay increases

But in terms of quality of life, I think it’s an interesting contrast. Emirates flight attendants can live very comfortably starting from the time they start their job. Meanwhile a flight attendant at a US airline is really going to struggle for years, especially if they’re on the hook for paying rent. It’s tough.

Bottom line

Emirates flight attendants are compensated quite well, especially when you consider that they come from every corner of the globe, many from countries where good job opportunities are limited. First year Emirates flight attendants will generally be earning over $40K this year, and that’s before you consider that housing and transportation are covered, and income is tax free in Dubai.

It’s kind of wild that they’re first year pay is often higher than at US airlines, not even accounting for the fact that in the US, flight attendants are on the hook for rent, transportation, and more.

Emirates has excellent flight attendants, and that’s for good reason — working at the airline is an incredible opportunity, and it’s something that many people don’t take for granted.

Are you surprised by Emirates’ flight attendant compensation package?