Everyone has their own idea of what makes an airline “the best.” For some, it’s all about price. For others, it’s the onboard experience, the route network, or simply how confident they feel that the airline will get them where they’re going without turning the trip into a mess.
Whatever your reason, you have a favorite airline.
For us, it’s a little more complicated. We have co-brand credit cards from several airlines, but we don’t have elite status with any of them—well, we didn’t until my wife, Sharon, earned JetBlue Mosaic 1 status through the 25 for 25 promotion. Even so, we still pick airlines based on a combination of price, schedule, and overall experience. Reliability also plays a big role, especially when things don’t go according to plan.
No airline is immune to delays or operational meltdowns, but some handle them better than others.
These rankings are based on our personal experiences, with plenty of input from Sharon. Your list might look completely different, and that’s fine. Like most things in travel, Your Mileage May Vary.
1. Delta (Unchanged)
Delta is still our favorite airline, even if the company sometimes gives off a bit of a “we know we’re better than you” attitude. To be fair, they usually back it up. Their operation tends to run more smoothly than the competition, the onboard experience is generally consistent, and even when things go wrong, Delta often seems better equipped to recover than other airlines.
Living in Orlando, we have easy access to Delta’s massive hub in Atlanta, which is a huge advantage. Even if a connection doesn’t go as planned, there are usually multiple backup options to get where we need to go. That kind of route network matters when you’re trying to avoid getting stranded.
While Delta has tightened access to its Sky Clubs over the past few years, and those aren’t technically part of the airline itself, the lounges are still almost universally pleasant spaces. That same sense of polish carries over to much of the overall travel experience.
2. JetBlue (Unchanged)
JetBlue holds onto the #2 spot this year. With Sharon flying the airline so many times over the past year, this could easily have been a make-or-break test of our opinion of the carrier.
After all of those flights, we’re actually more confident in putting JetBlue here. The airline still offers one of the best onboard experiences among U.S. carriers, with free Wi-Fi, seatback screens, and a generally more comfortable cabin than most competitors.
Flying out of Orlando’s Terminal C doesn’t hurt either, as it’s one of the nicest airport terminals we regularly use.
JetBlue hasn’t had the smoothest run as a company, between route cuts, financial pressures, and the usual operational challenges. But from a passenger standpoint, our own experiences have done more to reinforce its spot near the top of the list than weaken it.
3. Alaska (Unchanged)
Alaska remains in the #3 spot, even though we still don’t fly them as often as we’d like. Every time we do, we’re reminded why so many travelers swear by them.
Their reputation for customer service and a still-strong loyalty program keeps them near the top of our list. With the ongoing integration of Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska is entering a new phase, and it’ll be interesting to see if they can maintain what makes them special while expanding their reach.
4. United (Up from #5)
United moves up to #4 this year, not because we suddenly think more highly of the airline, but because Southwest had such a tumultuous year.
Our opinion of United really hasn’t changed much. It’s still a solid, middle-of-the-pack carrier with a strong route network, but not one that stands out enough to challenge the airlines above it.
Sometimes moving up in the rankings says more about the airline below you than it does about your own improvement.
5. Southwest (Down from #4)
Southwest drops to #5 this year after a rough PR year and a near-total reversal on many of the things that used to make the airline different.
For years, Southwest stood apart from the competition. Open seating, two free checked bags, and a generally different approach to flying made the airline feel like its own thing, for better or worse. But with the airline now moving away from several of those long-standing policies, it’s becoming harder to see what really makes Southwest special anymore.
That doesn’t automatically make it a bad airline. But now that Southwest is looking more and more like every other carrier, it’s going to have to work harder to earn its place near the top of the list. If they want to be judged like a traditional airline, then they’ll also need to compete more directly on reliability, onboard experience, and overall value.
Southwest may still figure it out, but for now, all of these changes feel less like an evolution and more like the airline giving up the things that made people choose it in the first place.
6. American (Unchanged)
American once again brings up the bottom of the legacy carrier list.
Not much has changed here. Our experiences with American continue to be inconsistent, from onboard comfort to interactions with employees. It’s not that every flight is bad, but there’s enough variability that we don’t feel confident choosing them unless we have to.
The AAdvantage program still has value, especially for award redemptions, but that’s not enough to offset the overall experience. More often than not, if we’re booking American, it’s because the schedule or price leaves us with little choice—or we’re trying to use up miles.
At this point, American isn’t the worst airline we fly. But among the legacy carriers, it’s still the one we go out of our way to avoid.
7. Frontier (Up from #8)
Frontier moves ahead of Spirit this year, although that says as much about Spirit’s struggles as it does about any major improvement from Frontier.
That’s not to say Frontier hasn’t made changes. Their bundled fare options make the booking process a bit more straightforward, and the experience is at least more predictable than it used to be. You still need to pay for everything, but at least you know what you’re getting into.
Frontier remains a no-frills airline in every sense of the word. The seats don’t recline, and there’s not much in the way of onboard amenities. But if the price is right and expectations are set correctly, it can still serve a purpose.
At the end of the day, Frontier isn’t suddenly a great airline—but it’s stable enough to move up a spot this year.
8. Spirit (Down from #7)
Spirit drops a spot this year, which is a bit of a shame since we’ve actually had better experiences flying them than we ever expected.
As long as you go in with the right expectations and pay for what matters—like a better seat—the experience can be perfectly acceptable. We’ve even reached the point where we regularly include Spirit in our flight searches.
Unfortunately, the airline hasn’t had an easy time lately, and that uncertainty makes it harder to rank them any higher, even though our personal experiences have been solid.
Spirit still has a place if the price is right, but for now, it slips down the list.
9. Allegiant (Unchanged)
Allegiant still brings up the end of our list.
The airline’s limited route network and inconsistent experience make it a tough sell for us, even when the price looks appealing. It’s very much a “know what you’re getting into” kind of airline, and more often than not, we’d rather look elsewhere.
That said, Allegiant isn’t standing still. With a potential merger on the horizon, the airline could become a more meaningful player in the U.S. market. Whether that leads to a better experience for passengers remains to be seen.
For now, it’s still an airline we avoid when possible—but one worth keeping an eye on.
Final Thoughts
And that’s our updated ranking for 2026. As with every version of this list, we’ve left out some airlines with limited or highly specialized route networks. That includes Hawaiian, even now that it’s part of Alaska, since the airline is still primarily focused on flights to and between the islands.
We’ve also left off carriers like Avelo and Breeze. Sharon flew Breeze for the first time last year, but both airlines still have relatively limited point-to-point networks, which makes them harder to compare with the larger carriers on this list.
Our rankings are based on what matters most to us: reliability, a good onboard experience, and the ability to get where we need to go without unnecessary hassle. We care more about that than chasing elite status or always booking the absolute cheapest fare.
This year’s list also reflects how much the airline industry continues to change. United moved up more because Southwest had a rough year than because United suddenly became a favorite. Frontier edged past Spirit, not because it became great, but because Spirit has had a harder time lately. And American once again finds itself at the bottom of the legacy carriers.
Your priorities might be completely different, and that’s fine. That’s what makes rankings like this so personal. Like most things in travel, Your Mileage May Vary.
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