Citation CJ3 price: what the Cessna jet costs

What is the price of a new Citation CJ3?

Zero-hour, the most recent generation is the Citation CJ3 Gen2, the updated version of the CJ3+ (Aviation Week, Oct 2023). In the Jet Tracker catalog, the CJ3+ is listed as out of production since the Gen2 entered service: its price in the table below is the catalog's last new reference, not a current offer. Textron negotiates price case by case, so the values are list prices and public guides, not a factory quote.

Source: B&CA Purchase Planning Handbook Q1 2026, Aviation Week (CJ3 Gen2, checked on Sep 28, 2026) and Jet Tracker, model catalog, queried Oct 11, 2026 (CJ3+, estimate). At launch, in October 2023, the published base price of the Gen2 was $10.99 million (Aviation Week, Oct 2023). Premium interior, connectivity and extra avionics easily raise the final value. The full model pages are Citation CJ3 Gen2 and Citation CJ3+.

The FAA certified the CJ3 Gen2 in October 2025 (Textron Aviation, Oct 2025), and Textron announced entry into service and the first delivery in January 2026 (Textron Aviation, Jan 2026).

How much does a used Citation CJ3 cost?

This is where most of the supply is. The price of a used CJ3 changes with the year, the hours, the maintenance pedigree and the equipment. The listings monitored by Jet Tracker that publish a price fall in this range:

Source: Jet Tracker, public listings monitored worldwide, queried Oct 11, 2026.

The spread of the CJ3+ ($4.95M to $10.2M) with only three listings with a price shows why that median is just a hint. By year-of-manufacture range, the CJ3 data is thin:

Source: Jet Tracker, public listings monitored worldwide, queried Oct 11, 2026.

Jet Tracker does not have a 12-month series of median asking prices or a time-to-sell figure, so it does not measure the trend of this market.

What makes the price of a Citation CJ3 go up or down?

Two CJ3s from the same year can have very different prices. The factors that weigh the most, according to brokers and market listings:

• Total hours and cycles. It is the number 1 metric: a 2010 with 2,300 hours is worth far more than another with 5,500. High-time aircraft usually take a discount in the negotiation.
• Engine maintenance program. Williams International, maker of the CJ3's FJ44 engines, runs an engine maintenance program, TAP Blue (AIN, Oct 2019); check on each unit whether the engines are enrolled. An engine outside the program requires an overhaul reserve, and the buyer discounts that in the negotiation.
• ProParts (airframe). A Textron Aviation program that covers parts for airframe and avionics systems, with a monthly payment based on hours flown. Listings usually say whether the aircraft is enrolled.
• Maintenance records. Complete, easy-to-audit records increase the buyer's confidence and, as the market reads it, support the asking price.
• Avionics. The classic CJ3 left the factory with Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21, and the CJ3+ swapped the system for the Garmin G3000 (AOPA, Sep 2014). As the market reads it, newer avionics count in your favor in the negotiation.
• Interior and paint. A recent cabin retrofit and fresh paint can add hundreds of thousands of dollars to the value and speed up the sale.
• History. No damage history, a single owner, private operation and recent major inspections are differentiators the market pays for.

On a used CJ3, maintenance pedigree weighs as much as the year: as the market reads it, a 2008 with engines in a program, an enrolled airframe and complete records tends to sell better than a 2011 with fragile documentation.

Citation CJ3 new vs used: comparison table

Source: Jet Tracker, public listings monitored worldwide, queried Oct 11, 2026, and model catalog (estimate). By median asking price, the used CJ3 costs a little more than half of the catalog's last new CJ3+ reference, with the same airframe and engine family. The difference pays for a younger age and more modern avionics, and the buyer of the used aircraft takes on checking the history.

Where does the Citation CJ3 fit in the Citation family?

The Citation family runs from the entry-level jet to the super-midsize. The CJ3 occupies the middle of the light line:

• Below: Citation M2 and Citation CJ2+, smaller. In the current line, Textron Aviation gives the M2 Gen2 a cabin 3.35 m long and a range of 1,550 nm, against 4.78 m and 2,040 nm for the CJ3 Gen2, with the same cabin width (1.47 m).
• In the same range: Citation CJ3+, the CJ3 Gen2 (the direct evolution) and the rival Embraer Phenom 300.
• Above: Citation CJ4, bigger and faster; then come the midsize jets.

In the Jet Tracker catalog, the CJ3+ has a range of 2,040 nm, a cruise of 416 kt and a cabin for up to 9 passengers (7 typical). Our operating cost estimate for the CJ3+ is $2,910 per hour at 400 hours a year: $2,076 per hour variable plus $333,750 per year fixed, with fuel at the current price in the Southeast. It is an estimate from the cost engine (version canonical-2026-09), not a measurement of Brazilian operations. The comparison between the CJ4 and the Phenom 300, the two neighboring models, is in Phenom 300 vs Citation CJ4.

Source: Jet Tracker, model catalog and canonical cost engine (canonical-2026-09), queried Oct 11, 2026.

How much the CJ3 weighs in the Brazilian fleet

On Oct 11, 2026, the RAB had 48 aircraft of the Citation CJ3 family in operation in the executive segment (RBAC 91 and 135): 19 CJ3, 29 CJ3+ and no CJ3 Gen2. That puts the family 5th among light jets, behind the Phenom 300 (120), Beechjet 400/Hawker 400 (90), Citation CJ1 (81) and Learjet 45 (58), and ahead of the Citation CJ2 (37).

Six states account for 33 of the 48. The state is the operator's in the registry (failing that, the owner's): the RAB does not publish where the aircraft is based. Read it as aircraft registered in the name of operators in each state.

The model page, with an updated fleet, is at Citation CJ3.

What decides the purchase

From what the listings show, the used CJ3 concentrates supply around $5 million asked. The used CJ3+ has shallow data (three listings with a price), and a new one requires a direct quote from the factory: the CJ3 Gen2 lists near $11.7 million typically equipped. In any range, check hours, engine program and ProParts before closing, because that is what separates a good deal from a maintenance liability.