For decades, the Boeing 737 family held the title of the world's best-selling commercial passenger jet. However, this is changing as Airbus has surpassed Boeing in several areas, including becoming the largest airplane maker with about 60% of the market share. The Airbus A320 family is on track to become the most delivered commercial passenger jet in history.
As of June 2025, Boeing has delivered a total of 12,134 aircraft from its 737 family, while Airbus has delivered 12,097 from its A320 family. This leaves only a gap of 37 units between them. Despite Boeing's head start with the first flight in 1967 and service entry in 1968, compared to Airbus' A320 which first flew in 1987 and entered service in 1988, Airbus is catching up quickly.
The Boeing 737's deliveries have been impacted since the crashes involving the MAX models in 2018 and 2019. These incidents were linked to design challenges due to its older design meant for smaller engines. In contrast, the A320 was designed later with larger engines in mind.