Which airline should you fly on your next big trip? A new report from a major consumer analytics firm offers some answers.
JetBlue, Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines were the winners in JD Power’s annual ranking of the top North American airlines.
The survey polled customers over the past year about their experiences in each of the key cabins – from first- and business-class to premium economy and coach. And there were some surprises in 2025.
After finishing as the runner-up a year ago, JetBlue dethroned Delta Air Lines as the top finisher in the front cabin, propelled by its lie-flat Mint offerings the carrier flies on transatlantic and select domestic routes
However, Delta held its spot in the premium economy poll. And Southwest Airlines was again the top finisher in the main cabin as it concluded another year with the lowest restrictions and fees for coach passengers — though it’s worth watching how the Dallas-based carrier fares as its new bag fees and assigned seating policy take effect.
Here’s how the major North American airlines fared in JD Power’s new rankings.
Business/first-class
- JetBlue (score of 738)
- Delta (724)
- Alaska Airlines (709)
- United Airlines (690)
- Air Canada (686)
- American Airlines (684)
Average score: 700
This year’s results saw JetBlue leapfrog Delta — meaning, the two carriers have traded places in JD Power’s rankings among customers for who flew in premium accommodations over the past year. JetBlue’s Mint product certainly is one of the best offered by a North American airline, and particularly notable for its food and beverage offerings inflight.
Daily Newsletter
Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter
Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts
We should point out that JetBlue also plans to bolster its premium offerings over the coming year with a new lounge product, set to debut by the end of the year at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) — followed by another at Boston Logan International Airport (BOS). Mint flyers will be able to access those new outposts.
JetBlue also has a new domestic first-class cabin in the works for its planes that don’t currently offer Mint.
Premium economy
Here’s how the premium economy rankings shook out this year:
- Delta (score of 717)
- JetBlue (699)
- Alaska (691)
- United (652)
- American (650)
- Air Canada (616)
- Westjet (614)
This was the third straight year Delta won the premium economy category — helped, no doubt, by its long-haul Premium Select cabin.
You may notice, there were a number of airlines listed that don’t have bona fide, international-style premium economy sections (including JetBlue, which made serious gains in this year’s rankings).
It appears JD Power also included extra-legroom accommodations for this ranking — which means JetBlue’s Even More Space (now branded “Even More“) product bested even carriers that have a true premium economy recliner product on long-haul aircraft, like American and United.
Economy/basic economy
And finally, the coach rankings:
- Southwest (score of 694)
- JetBlue (663)
- Delta (662)
- Alaska (645)
- Allegiant Air (636)
- United (603)
- American (597)
- Air Canada (561)
- Westjet (537)
- Spirit Airlines (526)
- Frontier Airlines (520)
We’d be remiss to point out that Southwest’s finish in the top spot for economy rankings came before the carrier’s new checked bag policy takes effect. That’s planned for May 28, alongside a handful of other changes like lower Rapid Rewards earning rates for lower-level fares and expiring flight credits.
That said, the carrier will soon debut a new extra-legroom section for A-List elite status members and certain cardholders.
Frontier again finished in the last spot, even as that carrier revamped some of its product offerings in hopes of winning over more customers.
Methodology
To compile its rankings, JD Power polled more than 10,000 customers between March 2024 and March 2025. To be eligible for the survey, customers had to have flown on a major North American carrier within the previous month.
JD Power surveyed customers on seven factors: airline staff, digital tools, ease of travel, level of trust, on-board experience, pre- and post-flight experience, and value for the price paid.
The firm noted overall customer satisfaction made gains versus the year prior, but noted concerns about demand could loom large for the airline industry this next year.
“Airlines will likely have a tougher year this year, economically, but the key to their longer-term success will be how well they manage economic headwinds without compromising on customer experience,” said Michael Taylor, JD Power’s senior managing director of travel, hospitality, retail and customer service, in a statement.
Looking ahead
Meanwhile, stay tuned for TPG’s Best Airlines Report later this spring, when we release our annual data-driven rankings of the top U.S. carriers. Delta finished in the top spot last year.
Related reading:
