Aircraft

Cirrus SR22: cost of ownership

A four-seat composite single with a whole-airplane parachute (CAPS) and a 310 hp Continental engine. It costs far more per hour than a 172 or an Archer, mainly from insurance, the six-cylinder engine and the parachute repack. Figures use a used, normally aspirated SR22; the turbocharged SR22T is not covered here.

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

E3 Aviation Association gives 16.5 gph at 75% cruise and 12.5 to 15 gph at 65% power lean of peak. PlanePHD lists 16.4 gph. The typical case uses 15 gph, the top of the lean-of-peak range.^{[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

No dated price list for an IO-550-N field overhaul was found. Low: Gann Aviation's posted IO-550-N overhaul price of $54,900, which assumes a repairable crankcase, crankshaft and cylinders and carries no date. Typical: a Continental factory-rebuilt IO-550-N43 for the SR22 at $64,241 from Air Power. High: a factory-new IO-550-N7 for the SR22 at $69,661. Both Air Power engines also carry a $22,000 refundable core charge.^{[4, 5, 6]}

Engine TBO

Continental SIL98-9E (August 2015): 2,000 hours and 12 years for an IO-550-N with a serial number below 1006000, and 2,200 hours for serial 1006000 and later. Add 200 hours if the engine consistently flies 40 or more hours a month. The low-cost case uses 2,200 hours.^[7]

Propeller reserve

No SR22-specific propeller overhaul price was found. The SR22's prop is governed, so the low case uses AOPA's $1/hr guidance for a constant-speed prop. Typical and high use FLYING's $3 to $7/hr budget example, written for a 172.^{[8, 9, 10]}

Insurance

BWI gives $3,000 to $10,000+ a year for high-performance piston aircraft such as the SR22. E3 lists $3,500 to $5,500 for an instrument-rated pilot with 1,000+ hours and 250+ in type, on an $850,000 SR22 G6. The typical case uses the top of that experienced-pilot range; a low-time pilot without Cirrus training pays far more (see the note below).^{[11, 1]}

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. E3 budgets $4,800 to $12,000 a year to hangar an SR22.^{[12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 9, 1]}

Annual inspection, with typical findings

E3 budgets $3,500 to $6,500 a year for an SR22 annual; the typical case is the midpoint. For comparison, Rexair Maintenance in Naples, FL listed a $4,805 flat rate for the SR22 inspection alone in July 2024, with parts and repairs extra, so a busy annual can exceed the high case.^{[1, 17]}

Fees and subscriptions

E3 budgets $2,500 a year for an SR22's database subscriptions, against $300 to $700 for all fees in FLYING's 172 budget. Memberships and other fees come on top.^[1]

Parachute (CAPS) repack reserve

CAPS needs a repack every 10 years. E3 puts the parachute and rocket motor swap at $14,000 to $18,000 at a Cirrus service center, or $1,600 a year amortized. The cases spread $14,000, $16,000 and $18,000 over 10 years.^{[1, 2]}

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 $576 an hour; at 200 hours it drops to $258.

Run your own numbers

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

What a Cirrus SR22 costs to buy

Ranges by generation from one published guide, which names no data set, so treat them as rough. PlanePHD models a typical value of $318,000 across SR22s as of March 2026, which the calculator uses as its starting price. Check Vref or Aircraft Bluebook before buying.^{[1, 2]}

Renting instead

Aero Atlanta Flight Center's March 2026 rate sheet lists an SR22 G6 at $670 an hour: a $505 club rate plus $165 for consumables, with $15/hr more for non-members. Rental SR22s are mostly late-model airplanes, so this compares owning a used SR22 with renting a much newer one.^[18]

Using a $670 wet rate and the typical case above, owning becomes cheaper than renting at about 41 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 Cirrus SR22

Budget for the parachute repack before you buy

CAPS needs a repack every 10 years, plus periodic service of its line cutters. E3 puts the repack at $14,000 to $18,000 at a Cirrus service center, and PlanePHD notes it costs more on airframes built before 2004. Check when the repack is next due: one coming up soon is a fair point to raise on price.^{[1, 2]}

The engine serial number sets the TBO

Continental SIL98-9E gives the IO-550-N 2,000 hours if its serial number is below 1006000 and 2,200 hours from 1006000 on, with a 12-year limit either way. At the typical $64,241 rebuilt-engine price, the extra 200 hours lowers the reserve from about $32 to $29 an hour. FLYING estimates $20 to $30 an hour for an SR22 engine reserve.^{[7, 5, 8]}

Cirrus time drives the insurance quote

E3's example premiums for an $850,000 SR22 G6 run from $3,500 to $5,500 for an instrument pilot with 1,000+ hours and 250+ in type, up to $12,000 to $18,000 for a private pilot under 200 hours with no instrument rating and no Cirrus time. A private pilot with 300+ hours who has completed Cirrus transition training (CSIP) is shown at $8,000 to $11,000.^[1]

A composite prop adds a 6-year calendar limit

The standard prop on the normally aspirated SR22 has been a three-blade metal one. Hartzell's composite replacement for the SR22 and SR22T lists a 2,400-hour or 6-year TBO, so a low-time owner may reach overhaul on the calendar first.^{[19, 10]}

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