Every route, against an X-ray

Standard flights at 35,000 ft in the solar conditions of August 2026, from CARI-7:

Flight	Dose	Chest X-rays (0.1 mSv)	Dental X-rays
JFK → HKG	61.1 µSv	0.61	12
HKG → JFK	60.1 µSv	0.6	12
DXB → JFK	51.6 µSv	0.52	10
LHR → LAX	48.7 µSv	0.49	9.7
JFK → DXB	46.4 µSv	0.46	9.3
LAX → LHR	43.4 µSv	0.43	8.7
SFO → SIN	42.4 µSv	0.42	8.5
SIN → SFO	39.1 µSv	0.39	7.8
LHR → ORD	36.2 µSv	0.36	7.2
LAX → NRT	35.2 µSv	0.35	7
SIN → LHR	34.6 µSv	0.35	6.9
CDG → JFK	31.9 µSv	0.32	6.4
ORD → LHR	31.2 µSv	0.31	6.2
LHR → JFK	31 µSv	0.31	6.2
NRT → LAX	30.9 µSv	0.31	6.2
LHR → SIN	30.8 µSv	0.31	6.2
LAX → SYD	28.5 µSv	0.28	5.7
SYD → LAX	28.5 µSv	0.28	5.7
JFK → CDG	27.3 µSv	0.27	5.5
JFK → LHR	26.5 µSv	0.27	5.3
JNB → LHR	22.3 µSv	0.22	4.5
JFK → SFO	21.9 µSv	0.22	4.4
LHR → JNB	21.6 µSv	0.22	4.3
GRU → JFK	20.7 µSv	0.21	4.1
JFK → LAX	20.2 µSv	0.2	4
JFK → GRU	20.1 µSv	0.2	4
DXB → LHR	19.2 µSv	0.19	3.8
SFO → JFK	18.5 µSv	0.18	3.7
LAX → JFK	17.2 µSv	0.17	3.4
LHR → DXB	16.5 µSv	0.17	3.3
SYD → SIN	15.9 µSv	0.16	3.2
SIN → SYD	14.9 µSv	0.15	3
ATL → LAX	14.2 µSv	0.14	2.8
LAX → ATL	12 µSv	0.12	2.4
LAX → HNL	11.9 µSv	0.12	2.4
JFK → DFW	11.1 µSv	0.11	2.2
HNL → LAX	10.5 µSv	0.1	2.1
DFW → JFK	9.41 µSv	0.094	1.9
JFK → MIA	7.32 µSv	0.073	1.5
MIA → JFK	6.94 µSv	0.069	1.4
LGA → ORD	5.93 µSv	0.059	1.2
ORD → LGA	4.87 µSv	0.049	0.97
LAX → SFO	1.89 µSv	0.019	0.38
SFO → LAX	1.69 µSv	0.017	0.34

Why some sources say "a few chest X-rays"

Published doses for a chest X-ray depend on the exam. A single front (PA) view is about 0.02 mSv; the usual exam, front and side views together, is about 0.1 mSv (Mettler et al., Radiology 2008; RadiologyInfo, from the American College of Radiology and the Radiological Society of North America). Against a single view, the New York to London flight is about 1.3 X-rays. FlightDose uses 0.1 mSv, the figure in its app, so the two can never disagree.

Bigger medical doses, for scale

Spine X-Ray: 1.5 mSv, about 57 New York to London flights.
Head CT Scan: 2 mSv, about 75 New York to London flights.
Chest CT Scan: 7 mSv, about 264 New York to London flights.
Abdomen CT Scan: 8 mSv, about 302 New York to London flights.
Full Body CT Scan: 10 mSv, about 377 New York to London flights.
Cardiac CT Angiography: 12 mSv, about 452 New York to London flights.
PET/CT Scan: 14 mSv, about 528 New York to London flights.
Bone Scan: 4.4 mSv, about 166 New York to London flights.
Barium Enema: 8 mSv, about 302 New York to London flights.

Medical exposures have a direct benefit to the patient and aren't counted against any dose limit; flights add to the radiation you receive from nature, about 3.1 mSv a year in the United States (NCRP Report No. 160). How flight doses are calculated.

Sources

Mettler FA, Huda W, Yoshizumi TT, Mahesh M. Effective doses in radiology and diagnostic nuclear medicine: a catalog. Radiology 2008;248:254–263.
RadiologyInfo.org (ACR and RSNA). Radiation dose in X-ray and CT exams.
FlightDose app comparison table: /data/v1/comparisons.json.

Every flight, in X-rays you can picture

FlightDose translates each flight's dose into dental X-rays, chest X-rays, days of background and CT scans, and keeps the total.

FlightDose calculates your exact flight.

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Is a flight more radiation than an X-ray?