I flew a big-name airline and a budget competitor across the Atlantic. The low-cost option is worth it if you follow the rules.

Both airlines have seatback screens loaded with content, power ports, and headrests — the latter a must for me to be comfortable. That’s about it for Norse.

The low-cost carrier’s seatback pocket was big enough for a water bottle and laptop but lacked Virgin’s two smaller pockets (not a big deal, but notable for organizing purposes).

Virgin also includes a pillow, a blanket, and headphones. Norse passengers who forget wired headphones must pay $6.50 for a set. A “comfort kit” stocked with a blanket, a neck pillow, earbuds, and an eye mask costs $9, or passengers can request just a blanket for $6.50.

The aviation enthusiast in me loved the plane-following system on the seatback screen, which allowed passengers to see the A350’s surroundings in real time via an outside camera.

Norse’s system wasn’t as unique.

Meals cost extra on Norse, and I only paid for one. Virgin’s basic ticket still included two, but I found one meal kept me full enough for the eight-hour trek.

The first meal on Virgin was a breakfast box with a sandwich, a granola bar, and yogurt. Lunch was a chicken dish with cheese, salad, and pudding.

Norse’s meal was chicken, bread, chocolate pudding, and a non-alcoholic drink. The low-cost carrier also lets passengers order meals and drinks from the seatback screen.

I always carry wired headphones regardless of airline because they are typically uncomfortable or scratchy. I also brought a jacket, my own water, a protein bar snack, and a tablet with pre-downloaded content — though Norse’s movie options were perfectly fine.

The blanket on Virgin was appreciated, though, because it was designed with wings to drape over your shoulders so it doesn’t fall off when sleeping.

I can imagine travelers who don’t want to worry about bag size and bringing their own meals might prefer Virgin’s model to Norse. It’s simply an easier experience.

Virgin’s well-established network means it flies several times daily to London and can connect to nearly every corner of the globe, giving passengers more choice. For example, I opted for Virgin on the outbound because I could take a daytime flight, which helps me better battle jet lag.

Norse, by comparison, only has red-eyes to London — but it also offers nonstops to several other European cities from New York, and with no layover. This includes Athens, Berlin, Oslo, Paris, and Rome.

Its point-to-point network also flies nonstop to Europe from Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, and Miami. And, although less robust than most mainlines, Norse can connect to even more cities on both sides of the pond via its partnerships with low-cost carriers like easyJet and Spirit Airlines.