Top US Airlines for 2024 – The Points Guy

Summer travel is in full swing, and that means one thing (besides school ending, barbecues, and crowded flights to Europe): It’s time to announce TPG’s Best Airline for 2024.

This year’s rankings coincide with summer travel anticipated to hit its peak since 2019, potentially even reaching an all-time high.

Hundreds of thousands of Americans will be searching for airline tickets and considering factors such as price, service, reliability, and frequent flyer points and miles.

Every traveler has individual preferences, but we frequently get asked one particular question more than others: Is there a single airline in the U.S. that stands out as the best? Is there one carrier that excels in all the aspects that matter most to travelers?

Annually, we gather numerous objective data points to evaluate how the 10 largest U.S. airlines balance reliability, cost, experience, and value. Our aim is to employ a fair and impartial method to assess how these airlines compare for the typical consumer.

The analysis for this year is finished, and we have the results ready for you. Continue reading to find out how your airline ranked in this year’s ratings.

Top American Airlines for 2024

1. Delta Air Lines
2. Alaska Airlines
3. United Airlines
4. American Airlines
5. Southwest Airlines
6. JetBlue
7. Hawaiian Airlines
8. Allegiant Air
9. Spirit Airlines
10. Frontier Airlines

Continue reading for our comprehensive analysis and methodology — and to discover what propelled Delta to the top of our rankings for the sixth consecutive year.

General rankings and main insights

Here’s a summary of this year’s overall scores, highlighting the top- and bottom-performing categories for each airline. We’ll also provide last year’s rank for each airline (listed in parentheses).

All data is based on the 12-month period from January 1 to December 31, 2023, except for customer satisfaction. Because of a reporting delay due to the U.S. Department of Transportation updating its complaint tracking methodology, this information is only available for the five-month period from January 1 to May 31, 2023.

Important conclusions drawn from this year’s analysis include:

• Delta has achieved victory for the sixth consecutive year. The Atlanta-headquartered airline has once again secured the highest ranking. Notably, Delta excelled in only one specific category: punctuality. (It also tied with Allegiant for the best performance in the involuntary bumps category.) Nevertheless, Delta’s steady performance across all categories — except for cost-effectiveness — resulted in it being the overall top choice.
• There were no major surprises compared to the previous year. Alaska and United exchanged places, as did JetBlue and Hawaiian, along with Allegiant and Spirit. However, no airlines moved multiple positions up or down, indicating there were no significant gains or losses compared to last year. In summary, 2023 was characterized by relative stability and ongoing recovery from the final post-coronavirus-lockdown disruptions.
• Certain airlines showed improvement over their 2022 performance, while others saw declines. A number of airlines experienced a drop in their scores compared to the previous year: Delta (-0.57), United (-1.57), Hawaiian (-5.80), Spirit (-4.44), and Frontier (-5.39). On the other hand, some airlines achieved better overall scores: Alaska (+3.84), American (+1.01), Southwest (+2.25), JetBlue (+1.70), and Allegiant (+6.32). However, none of these changes were significant enough to alter an airline’s position by more than one spot in the rankings.
• Consumer complaint data doesn’t provide a complete picture. The U.S. Department of Transportation usually publishes data on several metrics with a three-month lag. Nevertheless, in mid-year, the agency postponed the reporting of customer complaints due to an increase in the volume of complaints compared to pre-pandemic levels. Therefore, the agency aims to overhaul its processing methods for this information. Data was only available up until May 2023, which means the customer satisfaction score does not account for passengers’ experiences in the latter part of the year, which includes the peak summer and holiday travel periods.

How did these airlines end up in their respective positions in the rankings? Continue reading for a detailed examination of each category we used to create these rankings, as well as the weight assigned to each category. The complete methodology is available at the end of the report.

Top US airlines for dependability

Many factors contribute to the complete air travel experience, starting from searching for flights right through to collecting your luggage from the baggage claim and exiting the airport. Ultimately, however, an airline’s primary responsibility is to transport you to your destination as close to the promised schedule as possible.

As a result, operational reliability constitutes the most significant category in our rankings, accounting for 30% of our overall evaluation. We assess five factors under the scope of reliability.

• Punctuality: The rate at which flights on the airline experienced delays
• Cancellations: The rate at which flights on the airline were canceled.
• Involuntary Denied Boardings (Bumps): The rate at which an airline prevents a passenger from boarding an overbooked flight against their wishes.
• Frequency of mishandled baggage by the airline: How often an airline incorrectly handles a piece of checked luggage.
• Wheelchairs/scooters: The rate at which an airline mishandled a mobility aid.

The outcome revealed an unexpected victor for some: Allegiant. It achieved the highest scores across the five metrics of the category. The complete reliability rankings are as follows:

1. Allegiant
2. Delta
3. Alaska
4. Southwest
5. Hawaiian
6. United
7. American
8. JetBlue
9. Spirit
10. Frontier

The ultra-low-cost airlines—Allegiant, Spirit, and Frontier—often have a generally poor reputation for reliability and onboard experience. Nevertheless, Allegiant provides a reason to reassess this perception, as its cumulative 2023 reliability score was the highest in the industry. Although Allegiant’s on-time performance was lacking (ranking seventh out of 10 on our timeliness scale), it excelled in the other four categories under the overall reliability umbrella.

Among the 10 airlines we monitored, Allegiant had the fewest flight cancellations, reducing just 782 out of its 115,539 flights in 2023 (representing 0.68% of its operations). Alaska Airlines was close behind, canceling 2,849 out of its 385,945 flights (or 0.74% of its scheduled flights). Conversely, Frontier had the highest cancellations, with 3,774 out of its 177,542 scheduled flights being canceled (equating to 2.13% of its operations).

Allegiant achieved the highest score for not involuntarily bumping any passengers, with a total of zero. It tied with Delta.

On the other hand, Frontier was by far the worst in performance, with a staggering denial boarding rate of 35.06 per 100,000 passengers, totaling 10,123 out of 28,872,300 travelers. To provide context, the next poorest performer was American, with 5.57 involuntary denied boardings per 100,000 passengers.

Allegiant’s baggage-handling operations are evidently efficient as well. While free checked bags are not offered — and even carry-on luggage incurs a fee if booked under the base fare class — Allegiant still excelled by recording the lowest rate of lost or damaged bags at just 1.89 per 1,000 checked bags. On the other hand, American Airlines had the highest number of mishandled bags, with 7.61 per 1,000 checked bags.

Allegiant’s excellent performance extended to handling wheelchairs and mobility scooters as well. The Las Vegas-based airline mishandled checked wheelchairs at a rate of 0.37 per 100, whereas Spirit had the highest mishandling rate with 5.35 wheelchairs mishandled per 100 checked by passengers.

Top US airlines for the travel experience

Dependability is crucial, yet the in-flight experience is often the primary consideration for many when determining the “best airline.” For numerous travelers, the availability of onboard snacks, meals, or entertainment can significantly enhance or detract from their travel experience.

At TPG, we also highly value travel experiences, which we have assigned a weight of 25% in our total score, right after reliability. The travel experience score considers four factors:

• Cabin amenities: Discover what awaits you on board, such as Wi-Fi, seat pitch/width, and in-flight entertainment.
• Lounges: The extent and quantity of an airline’s lounges, as well as how cost-effective it is to gain access to them
• Family: The quality of service an airline provides for families flying with children
• Customer satisfaction: The frequency with which passengers file complaints to the DOT regarding the airline

Alaska claimed the highest honor overall, with the complete category rankings as shown below:

1. Alaska
2. Delta
3. American
4. United
5. JetBlue
6. Hawaiian
7. Southwest
8. Spirit
9. Allegiant
10. Frontier

Dividing the results by subcategory, JetBlue emerged as the leading airline for cabin features — consistently maintaining this position for the past two years. The New York-based airline excels in this area, significantly because it offers free Wi-Fi on all its flights. Additionally, JetBlue provides seatback entertainment screens and boasts the largest average economy seat size among all U.S. airlines.

In contrast, Alaska earned top marks for its domestic lounges, an essential feature for many frequent travelers. Despite having only nine of its own lounges, Alaska Lounge+ members can access numerous additional lounges across the U.S. This includes more than 40 American Airlines Admirals Clubs, several United Club locations, and a handful of third-party lounges.

Alaska also secured the highest ranking for customer satisfaction, bearing in mind the previously noted caveat: Customer complaint data was available only for the initial five months of the preceding year. The airline also earned the top position for its family travel experience, which is evaluated based on several elements, including early boarding, baggage fees, onboard snacks, and inflight entertainment.

As expected, the ultra-low-cost airlines ranked lowest for overall experience. Their scores were negatively impacted by cramped seating arrangements, additional fees—which also affected their family experience ratings—and the absence of lounges.

Top American Airlines for Affordability and Coverage

Before considering reliability or the travel experience, you first need to determine which airlines serve your desired destination and the cost of their tickets.

We aim to determine which airlines have the optimal combination of cost and coverage in this category, which examines the expected airfare prices and typical additional fees. Our assessment also considers the extent of each airline’s domestic route network. This category contributes 20% to the overall score and takes into account these three factors:

• Number of domestic airports an airline serves in its route network
• Affordability: The distance you can travel by air relative to the amount you spend, derived from financial data provided by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
• Additional charges: The average amount a standard traveler spends on luggage and modification/cancellation fees.

The cost and reach category presents some intriguing aspects. Ultra-low-cost airlines are undeniably the cheapest option; however, they come with numerous high ancillary fees. Additionally, their route networks tend to be smaller compared to those of legacy carriers.

Who achieves the best balance? Here are our findings:

1. Southwest
2. United
3. American
4. Delta
5. Alaska
6. Allegiant
7. Spirit
8. Hawaiian
9. JetBlue
10. Frontier

It’s not unexpected that Southwest comes out on top here. Although Southwest serves approximately half the number of domestic cities compared to the three largest legacy carriers — American, Delta, and United — it still boasts an extensive route network. This is particularly notable when compared to other low-cost carriers such as Spirit and Frontier, as well as East Coast-centric JetBlue and West Coast-focused Alaska.

However, Southwest stands out when it comes to fees. The airline does not impose change or cancellation fees. While other major airlines have significantly reduced these fees from their pre-pandemic rates, they still charged more on average for additional costs than Southwest did in 2023.

Southwest is well-known for permitting each passenger to check two bags at no extra cost. However, if a passenger checks more than two bags, an additional fee is required. Consequently, in 2023, Southwest did generate some income from baggage fees, but the overall amount was significantly less than what other airlines amassed.

In 2023, Southwest averaged only 43 cents in fees per passenger. This amount is much lower than the $6 to $9 in fees per passenger that American, Delta, and United earned last year. Southwest also compared favorably against ultra-low-cost airlines, which compensate for lower ticket prices with additional fees. Spirit and Allegiant earned nearly $27 in fees per passenger, while Frontier collected an impressive $40 per passenger.

Certainly! Here is the reworded text:

Certainly, if you manage to travel with minimal luggage and sidestep the additional fees, budget airlines prove to be the most economical. Frontier earned $118 in fare revenue for every 1,000 miles flown domestically per passenger, with Spirit closely following at $118.13. Allegiant, however, was considerably higher at $159.38.

As expected, the traditional airlines were the priciest. Delta was ranked lowest in affordability, averaging $302.50 in fare revenue for every 1,000 passenger miles traveled. American Airlines followed with $279.03. Out of the “Big Three” carriers, United was the most cost-effective at $261.76. Southwest, which is somewhat a hybrid between a traditional airline and a budget carrier, had an average fare revenue of $191.74.

Top US airlines for frequent flyer programs

The last category for our rankings is loyalty, an important subject for both TPG staff and readers. This was given a weight of 25% and comprised of two specific factors:

• Frequent flyer program: The value of an airline’s loyalty program is determined by TPG’s valuations, elite status, cobranded credit cards, partner airlines, and expiration policies.
• Availability of awards: The ease and value of redeeming your rewards during peak travel periods.

Just like the previous year, United emerged victorious. Below are the complete results:

1. United
2. American
3. Alaska
4. Delta
5. JetBlue
6. Southwest
7. Hawaiian
8. Spirit
9. Frontier
10. Allegiant

The race at the top was tight, but United emerged victorious with the highest rating for rewarding frequent flyers. The airline has the largest number of redemption and earning partners and provides four consumer credit cards. American came in a close second, followed by Alaska.

Delta, which came in second place last year, dropped to fourth place. This decline is partly attributed to the high mileage prices it charges for award flights and recent changes to its elite status program that have been poorly received by many loyal customers.

Budget airlines typically underperformed in this regard; they were limited by their smaller number of partners, inflexible or fixed mile values, inadequate award availability, and/or restrictive mile expiration policies.

Methodology

The Best Airline rankings by TPG are determined using scores from four main categories, each containing various criteria. The data for the 2024 report was collected from flights that took place over the 12-month span from January 1 to December 31, 2023.

A detailed explanation of the methodology and the utilized data for each is provided below:

Reliability (30%)

• Punctuality (using information on postponed flights from the Department of Transportation)
• Data on flight cancellations from the Department of Transportation (DOT).
• Unintentional denials of boarding (utilizing data on involuntary denied boardings from the DOT)
• Luggage (utilizing information on mishandled luggage from the Department of Transportation)
• Wheelchairs and scooters (based on mishandled baggage data from the DOT)

Experience (25%)

• Cabin amenities (referencing data from SeatGuru and the inflight services listed on each airline’s website)
• Lounges (utilizing data regarding the quantity of lounges, the number of cities, and the membership cost for each relevant lounge network)
• Family travel (evaluated on a scale from 0 to 5, taking into account boarding processes, available perks, and onboard food and entertainment options)
• Customer satisfaction (utilizing data on complaints from the Department of Transportation)

Cost and reach (20%)

• Network of routes (calculated using the monthly average number of domestic cities served by each airline according to data from the DOT)
• Affordability (utilizing financial data from BTS)
• Fees for baggage alteration (utilizing financial data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics)

Loyalty (25%)

• Frequent flyer program (utilizing data from our monthly valuations, elite status analyses, and each airline’s official website)
• Availability of awards (utilizing real-time inventory of awards for favored domestic routes across three separate time frames)

For all benchmarks, the initial scores from the data were transformed into scaled scores ranging from zero to 10. Typically, the lowest-performing carrier received a score of zero, while, when feasible, a “perfect” airline was given a score of 10. For instance, Allegiant and Delta both achieved a score of 10 for involuntary bumps, as they had zero (or nearly zero) incidents in the previous year.

Nevertheless, in situations where perfection couldn’t be clearly defined, the top-performing airline was awarded a score of 10.

By utilizing scaled scores instead of a basic ranking system, we effectively “graded” each airline in comparison to the others. Consequently, the score for each airline on each specific element represented a numerical indication of how it performed relative to the lowest-scoring carrier.

For example, Alaska had the lowest number of DOT complaints in the initial five months of the year, closely followed by Delta (2.94 per 100,000 passengers compared to 3.70).

We standardized these figures by comparing them to the performance of the lowest-ranked airline (Frontier, with 38.76 incidents per 100,000 passengers) and the ideal score of 0 incidents per 100,000 passengers. The resulting scaled score conversion yielded a “grade” of 9.24 out of 10 for Alaska and 8.09 out of 10 for Delta.

Next, each individual score was adjusted according to the given percentages to calculate the final cumulative score presented in the table.

Final thoughts

Selecting a flight and airline for your upcoming journey involves various factors. While cost is important, so are factors like dependability, the rewards you can accumulate, and the in-flight passenger experience. Naturally, no single airline will satisfy the preferences of every traveler, so the significance of each consideration varies for each person.

Nevertheless, our report employs objective data and a balanced weighting that we believe best represents an equitable and comprehensive overview for a diverse group of travelers.

For the sixth consecutive year, Delta has been recognized as TPG’s Best Airline for 2024.

Delta’s success demonstrates that excelling in every single aspect isn’t always necessary. Instead, it’s crucial to perform competently across all areas and distinguish oneself by providing a consistent and dependable product overall.

Delta has upset some of its frequent flyers with adjustments to its rewards program, and according to our analysis, it has the highest fares in the U.S. Nonetheless, the airline’s reliability, performance, features, and overall experience collectively help maintain its leading position.