F-35 vs F-22: Which Stealth Fighter Is Better?

The F-22 Raptor is the better air-to-air fighter and the F-35 Lightning II is the better all-round combat aircraft. The F-22 is faster, climbs higher, turns harder and is generally regarded as stealthier; the F-35 has newer sensors, carries more kinds of weapons, costs less and exists in far greater numbers.

They were built for different tasks a decade apart, and the US Air Force flies them together. This F-35 vs F-22 comparison sets out where each one leads and why the question of which is better has no single answer.

F-35 vs F-22 specifications

Which is faster and more agile?

The F-22, by a wide margin. Two engines give it about 70,000 lbf of thrust for an aircraft not much heavier than an F-35, so it can cruise at around Mach 1.8 without afterburner. A missile launched from that speed and from above 50,000 ft flies considerably further than the same missile launched from a slower, lower aircraft.

Its engine nozzles move up and down to vector thrust, which lets it point its nose at very low airspeed and recover from manoeuvres that would leave other jets out of control. The F-35 has no thrust vectoring, a top speed of Mach 1.6 and weaker sustained turning, as set out in how fast the F-35 is. In a close-range fight between the two the F-22 would normally hold the advantage.

Which is stealthier, and which sees more?

The F-22 is generally judged to have the smaller radar signature from more directions. US officers have used a marble for the F-22 and a golf ball for the F-35 as rough comparisons. The F-35’s stealth is easier to maintain, because more of its radar-absorbing material is built into the skin, a point covered in how F-35 stealth works.

On sensors the positions reverse. The F-35 was designed 15 years later around sensor fusion. It has all-round infrared cameras, a built-in targeting system and a helmet display, none of which the F-22 had when it entered service. The F-22 is now being fitted with infrared search pods and a helmet sight to close the gap. The F-35’s data links also share more with other aircraft; for years the two types could not exchange data directly at all. The details are in F-35 sensors.

How do their weapons and roles differ?

The F-22 carries eight air-to-air missiles internally, twice the F-35’s current load, and its 20 mm gun has more than twice the ammunition. For strike it is limited: two 1,000 lb bombs or eight Small Diameter Bombs, and it has no built-in targeting sensor of the F-35’s kind.

The F-35 carries 2,000 lb bombs internally, has a far longer list of cleared and planned weapons, and is certified for the B61-12 nuclear bomb. It is also the one that can hunt air defence radars, attack ships once new missiles arrive in 2027 and operate from carriers and small decks. The list is in F-35 weapons.

What about cost and numbers?

Here the F-35 wins clearly. An F-35A costs about $92 million in the latest lots and about $42,000 an hour to fly. The F-22 cost roughly $150 million each to build by the end of production, several times that if development is included, and costs about $68,000 an hour, as shown in how much an F-35 costs.

Numbers matter more than either figure. Production of the F-22 was stopped at 195 aircraft, and US law bars its export, which is the subject of our profile of the F-22 Raptor. Fewer than 150 are combat-coded at any time. More than 1,375 F-35s have been delivered to 20 countries, and the line is still running.

So which is better?

For winning control of the air against enemy fighters, the F-22. For almost everything else, the F-35. The US Air Force uses them as a pair: F-22s clear the sky and F-35s find and destroy targets on the ground while passing data to everyone else.

The F-22 will not be upgraded forever. Its replacement is the Boeing F-47, due to fly in 2028, which we cover in our F-47 guide. The F-35 will serve alongside it for decades. For background on the Lightning II, see what the F-35 is.

Frequently asked questions

Is the F-22 better than the F-35?

In air-to-air combat, yes. It is faster, more agile and carries more missiles. The F-35 is better at strike, sensing and sharing data, and is far cheaper.

Which is faster, the F-35 or the F-22?

The F-22. It reaches about Mach 2.25 and cruises supersonically without afterburner. The F-35 is limited to Mach 1.6.

Which is stealthier?

The F-22 is generally regarded as stealthier from more angles. The F-35’s stealth is easier to maintain.

Why did the US stop building the F-22?

Cost, and the absence of a peer air threat in 2009 when the decision was made. Production ended at 195 aircraft.

Can other countries buy the F-22?

No. US law has banned its export since 1998. The F-35 is the stealth fighter the United States sells.

Would an F-22 beat an F-35 in a dogfight?

Usually, in a close-range turning fight. At long range the outcome depends more on who detects whom first.