Aircraft

Cessna 172 Skyhawk: cost of ownership

A four-seat airplane flown by many flight schools and first-time owners. Figures below use the 172S as the reference model. Older 172s have different engines, so check the variant notes before using the numbers.

Where the money goes

Each line has a low, typical and high case. The typical column drives the figure above.

What each case assumes

Fuel burn

AOPA lists 9.9 gph at 75% power, best economy, for the 172S. FLYING budgets a 172 at 8 to 9 gph. Many owners cruise below 75% power.^{[1, 2]}

100LL price

National averages for September 2026: $6.67 self-service, $7.75 full-service. Prices run well above this in Alaska, Hawaii and some coastal airports.^[3]

Engine overhaul cost

FLYING cites $25,000 to $35,000 for a Lycoming O-360-family overhaul. A factory-new IO-360-L2A is listed at $86,684 plus a $26,000 refundable core charge, so replacing rather than overhauling costs far more.^{[4, 5]}

Engine TBO

Lycoming SI 1009BF (July 2026): 2,000 hours for a field-overhauled IO-360-L2A, 2,600 hours for a factory-new or factory-rebuilt engine, and 12 calendar years either way. The low-cost case uses 2,600 hours.^[6]

Propeller reserve

The 172S has a fixed-pitch prop. AOPA guidance is $0.25/hr for fixed pitch; FLYING's budget example uses $3 to $7/hr.^{[4, 2]}

Insurance

BWI estimates $1,200 to $2,500 for an owner with 250+ hours and $2,000 to $3,500+ for a pilot under 150 hours, both with $1M smooth liability. FLYING puts a personal-use 172 at $2,200 to $4,000.^{[7, 2]}

Tie-down or hangar

Low: a $65/month tie-down, the middle of our airport sample. Typical: a $450/month T-hangar, within FLYING's $400 to $600 national range. High: $835/month, a T-hangar at Essex County, NJ (KCDW) quoted by FLYING.^{[8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 2]}

Annual inspection, with typical findings

FLYING: $1,500 to $2,200 for the inspection itself and $2,500 to $4,500 total for a healthy airplane once typical findings are fixed. A neglected airplane can run $8,000 to $12,000. Airworthy found 172 inspection-only quotes from $800 to $3,600.^{[2, 13]}

How hours flown change the hourly cost

Fixed costs are spread across the hours you fly, so an airplane that sits gets expensive per hour. At 50 hours a year the typical case is $345 an hour; at 200 hours it drops to $152.

Run your own numbers

The calculator starts from the typical case. Change any field to match your airplane, airport and insurance quote.

What a Cessna 172 costs to buy

From one published guide, which describes the ranges as typical prices for airworthy aircraft in average to good condition. It names no data set, so treat these as rough. Check Vref or Aircraft Bluebook before buying.^[14]

Renting instead

Journeys Aviation in Boulder listed a 172S at $173 per Hobbs hour, wet, in June 2024. TSS Flying Club near Washington DC charged $170 per tach hour, wet, in April 2026, plus $180 monthly dues.^{[15, 16]}

Using a $175 wet rate and the typical case above, owning becomes cheaper than renting at about 147 hours a year, before loan payments, resale value and the convenience of a dedicated airplane. Compare with your own numbers.

Things to know about the Cessna 172

Which 172 the numbers fit

The figures use the fuel-injected 172S. The 172R uses the same IO-360-L2A at 160 hp. Most 1970s and 1980s 172s use a carbureted O-320 of 150 or 160 hp. For field-overhauled engines, Lycoming SI 1009BF lists 2,000 hours for the O-320-D2J and O-320-E2D and 2,400 hours for the O-320-H2AD of the 1977 to 1980 172N, so check your engine model before using the reserve figure.^[6]

The 2,600-hour TBO only covers factory engines

Lycoming's July 2026 revision raised TBO to 2,600 hours for many engines, including the IO-360-L2A, but only for factory-new or factory-rebuilt engines. A field-overhauled engine stays at 2,000 hours unless it qualifies for Lycoming's frequent-use or genuine-parts extensions. Every engine also has a 12-year calendar limit.^[6]

An engine near TBO changes the math

The engine reserve assumes you pay for the overhaul gradually. FLYING's example: a $27,000 engine with 900 hours left works out to about $30 per hour, double the typical figure here. Check engine time before buying.^[4]

Spotted a figure that looks wrong? Send a correction. Changes are logged in the data changelog.