Which airlines in the US are the worst and best: 2023 ranking

On April 19, personal finance website WalletHub published a rating of US airlines. WalletHub analyzed 2022 flight data from the US Department of Transportation. The rating included 11 airlines, including two regional carriers. Writes about it Business Insider.

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Regional carriers were included because they make up at least 1% of domestic scheduled flights, said Jill Gonzalez, an analyst at WalletHub.

The nine national airlines are chosen based on the highest passenger revenues, Gonzalez said.

WalletHub ranked each airline on 14 metrics in four categories. The first category (baggage and departures) was divided into 50 sub-categories that included canceled flights, delays, baggage mishandling and denied boarding reports. The second category (incidents involving animals) - up to 5 points.

In the third category, 15 points were allocated for comfort and cost of flight, which were divided into five subcategories, including legroom, entertainment options, Wi-Fi accessibility, free drinks and price.

The last category was safety, with a score of 30, which took into account the number of deaths and injuries in aviation accidents and the number of aviation accidents - the data is measured from 2017 to 2022.

The total number of possible points is 100.

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“Typically, we were scoring based on common sense: the best value of each indicator was given the full number of points, the worst was given zero points, and the intermediate values ​​were given a proportional score relative to these endpoints,” Gonzalez explained.

11 southwest Airlines

• Delays: 3,49/18
• Denied boarding: 2,95/15
• Price: 2,79/10
• Overall score: 23,39/100

WalletHub ranks Southwest as the worst airline in the US for the second year in a row. It performed poorly in almost every category except those related to comfort, including legroom, entertainment options and Wi-Fi accessibility. Southwest is the only airline to score zero in two safety-related categories, meaning there were at least 2017 death and at least 2022 injuries on its flights between 1 and 50.

Airline rating website Skytrax has certified Southwest as a four-star airline. On customer review site Skytrax, it has an average rating of four out of 10 out of over 1700 reviews. His recent reviews are mixed.

One passenger on the airline in April wrote that Southwest's "seats were like rocks" and their return flights were delayed, forcing him to wait six hours for his flight to Orlando, Florida. But another passenger who flew with this airline in April had a much better experience. He praised Southwest for the smooth flight of the pilot, whom the passenger called "patient and kind" for taking photos with his children.

10. Frontier airlines

• Delays: 1,13/18
• Denied boarding: 0/15
• Price: 8,21/10
• Overall score: 45,13/100

The Frontier received good scores in two safety-related categories, meaning that accidental deaths or injuries were exceptionally rare. But the airline performed poorly in categories related to comfort, including legroom, entertainment options, Wi-Fi accessibility and free drinks - zero points on all of these measures.

Skytrax has certified Frontier as a three-star airline. On the Skytrax passenger review website, she has an average rating of two out of 10 based on 3100 reviews. His recent reviews are mostly negative.

One passenger flying with the airline in April complained that Frontier required passengers to "size bags before boarding" and said he felt harassed by staff. Another passenger flying on a connecting route in April echoed these complaints, writing that Frontier has "zero customer service" and uses "predatory practices" in baggage pricing.

9. American Airlines

• Delays: 6,29/18
• Denied boarding: 6,77/15
• Price: 1,79/10
• Overall score: 47,06/100

The American scored well in comfort-related categories, including legroom, entertainment, and free drinks. But in terms of animal-related incidents, American scored 0,26 out of five. That is, the proportion of lost, injured or dead animals transported by the airline was relatively high.

Skytrax has certified American as a three-star airline. On the Skytrax passenger review website, the airline has an average rating of two out of 10 based on 5400 reviews.

One of the passengers who flew with this airline in April left a negative review, writing that his suitcase was damaged and he was not compensated for this. But another passenger had a positive experience flying with American, praising the airline for a smooth ride and great ticket discounts.

8 Envoy Airlines

• Delays: 10,57/18
• Denied boarding: 0,62/15
• Price: 0/10
• Overall score: 52,25/100

Envoy Airlines is one of two regional airlines listed on WalletHub. Envoy scored well in comfort-related categories including legroom, entertainment and fleet age, meaning its aircraft are relatively new. But Envoy has the lowest score for baggage mishandling reports, at zero out of nine possible points. This means it has the highest percentage of lost, damaged and delayed luggage of any airline on the list.

The airline is a regional carrier for American Airlines and operates only business jets. It is not listed or rated on Skytrax.

On airline review site Airlines Inform, Envoy has mixed reviews with an average rating of 2,63 out of five. One of the passengers who flew with this airline in May 2022 left a positive review about the airline, writing that "the flight was on time, we had a drink and a snack." Another passenger who made five flights with Envoy in December 2022 said he had no issues with any of the flights.

7. JetBlue Airways

• Delays: 0/18
• Denied boarding: 13,72/15
• Price: 3,82/10
• Overall score: 55,46/100

JetBlue scored highly in comfort-related categories including legroom, entertainment and Wi-Fi accessibility. But the airline scored the lowest in terms of delays, zero out of 18 possible, meaning it had the highest percentage of flight delays among the airlines on the list.

Skytrax has certified JetBlue as a four-star airline. On the Skytrax passenger review site, she has a customer rating of three out of 10 out of more than 1400 reviews.

Recent reviews of JetBlue are mostly negative. One passenger who flew with the airline in April lamented that the staff were "unprofessional, obnoxious and just plain lazy." Another passenger flying from Jamaica to New York in April said he had a "terrible experience" because his flight was delayed and that the low ticket prices weren't worth it.

6. Hawaiian Airlines

• Delays: 2/18
• Denied boarding: 14,91/15
• Price: 3,81/10
• Overall score: 57,14/100

The Hawaiian scored well in comfort-related categories, including legroom, entertainment, and free drinks. But the airline scored a low score of zero out of five in the animal incident category. That is, among the airlines on the list, it had the largest number of animals that died, were injured or were lost during transportation.

Skytrax has certified Hawaiian as a three-star airline. According to passenger review site Skytrax, she has a rating of five out of 10 based on 500 reviews.

Recent reviews are mostly negative. One passenger flying a domestic route with the airline in April was distressed as he "experienced delays and flight cancellations for several days." Another passenger who flew business class in March said he experienced a "big change in quality" and the airline doesn't have friendly service or flexible bookings.

5. Alaska Airlines

• Delays: 9,18/18
• Denied boarding: 12,67/15
• Price: 3,72/10
• Overall score: 59,03/100

The Alaska scored well in comfort-related categories, including legroom and entertainment. But the airline has the lowest score — zero out of eight possible — for the number of canceled flights. This means that of all the airlines on the list, Alaska has the highest percentage of flight cancellations.

Skytrax has certified Alaska as a three-star airline. On Skytrax's passenger review website, the airline has an average rating of four out of 10.

One passenger who traveled with the airline in April was unhappy that the premium seats were "very narrow and not worth the extra cost". Another passenger who flew in March had a better experience thanks to the flight attendants who “pretty tried to make us feel comfortable.”

4. United airlines

• Delays: 8,46/18
• Denied boarding: 14,71/15
• Price: 2,38/10
• Overall score: 62,83/100

United scored well in comfort-related categories, including legroom, entertainment, and free drinks. But the airline had one of the lowest scores in the accident category. United scored just 0,46 out of six in this category.

Skytrax calls United a three-star airline. She has an average score of 3 out of 10 from over 4400 reviews on the Skytrax passenger review site.

Recent reviews are mixed, with one passenger who flew in April praising United for its "excellent service" and noting that he wants to continue booking with the airline in the future. Another passenger, who arrived in the US in April from Trinidad and Tobago, said he had problems with a connecting flight. He warned other travelers not to take United flights because they would "never make it on time".

3 Skywest Airlines

• Delays: 7,84/18
• Denied boarding: 12,26/15
• Price: 5,48/10
• Overall score: 63,71/100

Skywest is another regional airline on the list, serving short haul flights for American, Delta, Alaska and United. While the airline scored highly in categories including denied boarding (i.e. it handled overbooked flights well), it performed poorly in comfort-related categories including legroom and entertainment options.

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Skytrax has not officially rated Skywest. According to its passenger review site, it has a rating of 7 out of 10 based on 38 reviews, but no new reviews have been received since 2013.

On the general review site Customer Service Scoreboard, Skywest has mixed reviews. One passenger who arrived in January 2022 lamented that it was the worst trip he had ever experienced because the flight attendant was "rude and resentful". Another passenger said the airline was "understaffed" with "old planes".

2. Spirit Airlines

• Delays: 8,11/18
• Denied boarding: 7,14/15
• Price: 8,29/10
• Overall score: 66,57/100

Spirit performed well in WalletHub's safety criteria with an excellent score for fatal injuries in plane crashes. This means the Spirit has had no fatalities due to aircraft related issues.

Skytrax has certified Spirit as a 3 star low cost airline. On passenger review site Skytrax, the airline has a rating of two out of 10 out of 4700 passengers.

Spirit has mostly negative reviews online from passengers. One of them, who flew economy class in April, said that due to the cancellation of the airline flight, he, his wife and their 2-year-old son were stuck in Las Vegas (Nevada). Another passenger flying with the airline in April complained about a four-hour flight delay and said he would never fly Spirit again.

1. Delta Airlines

• Delays: 10,04/18
• Denied boarding: 15/15
• Price: 1,79/10
• Overall score: 66,79/100

WalletHub named Delta the best US airline for the second year in a row. Delta did well in several categories, including a top-notch Denied Landing score, meaning the airline handles overbooked flights well.

Skytrax certified Delta as a 3-star airline. On the Skytrax customer review site, the company has a rating of 4 out of 10 based on over 2700 reviews.

Passengers have mixed opinions about the airline. One passenger who traveled on a Delta flight in April lamented that customer service was "rude and unhelpful" and noted that a fragile item that staff forced him to check in was damaged. Another passenger, who flew first class in April, said the flight attendants were "attentive and friendly" and that she enjoys flying with the airline.

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