What’s old is new again as two of our long-standing favorite airline products won our 2026 TPG Awards for best domestic and international business class.
The Delta One suites took home the prize for best business class on a U.S. carrier, while it was Qatar Airways’ elegant Qsuite that won the top honor for best international business class.
Here’s why each of these premium products won ... and which other new and forthcoming business-class seats are nipping at their heels.
Best International Business Class: Qatar Airways Qsuite
Qatar Airways once again nabbed the top honors for its phenomenal Qsuite, which has been a favorite among flyers since it debuted way back in 2017.
Why does this suite continue to dominate? It comes down to both the architecture of the suite itself and the amenities upon which passengers can rely.
The Qsuite was revolutionary when it sailed into the skies nearly a decade ago and continues to be so for a few reasons. First, each Qsuite is extra roomy at 39 inches wide and 103 inches long. That’s a lot of personal space — and we mean personal, since these suites sport sturdy closing doors to block noise and activity from the aisle.
With handsome silver and purple finishes, the seats also recline to 78-inch lie-flat beds and have 21.5-inch entertainment screens loaded with the airline’s signature Oryx One content library. Certain center blocks of seats can even be transformed into double or quad configurations for families and colleagues flying together, which makes them among the most innovative fixtures in the air.
But the Qsuite experience also excels in terms of its soft amenities. Namely, passengers can dine on demand whenever they like throughout the flight, and the wine and spirits menus include sophisticated selections like Charles Heidsieck and Duval-Leroy Champagnes. The amenity kits are also from high-end French brand Diptyque, and passengers on long flights can ask for sets of comfy pajamas.
One final reason why TPG loves Qatar Airways' Qsuite? The suite is available on a large proportion of the airline’s long-haul fleet, including Airbus A350s and many Boeing 777s, and is regularly bookable via Qatar Airways’ own Privilege Club frequent flyer program, which uses Avios as its currency, as well as several partner programs, including British Airways Club, American Airlines AAdvantage and Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards.
While the current Qsuite is the original design, we did get a sneak peek in 2024 at the updated version Qatar Airways plans to install on its Boeing 777Xs. Needless to say, we can't wait for the newer design to go into service, as we suspect the updated Qsuite will topple the current one from its throne.
Best US Airline Business Class: Delta One
Originally introduced in 2016, Delta One is another multiyear TPG Award winner for best business class on a U.S. airline.
You can currently find the suite aboard the airline’s Airbus A350-900s and on its Airbus A330-900neos. Those aboard Delta Air Lines’ Boeing 767-400s offer classic suite-style fixtures but without the closing privacy doors you’ll find on the A350s and the A330-900neos.
Depending on the aircraft, Delta One seats are 20 1/2 to 22 1/2 inches wide and recline to lie-flat beds measuring up to 80 inches long. Their entertainment screens are 18 to 18 1/2 inches diagonally and stocked with hundreds of hours of entertainment.
Delta One passengers are currently treated to cushy Missoni bedding and fancy Missoni amenity kits packed with Grown Alchemist skin care products. The airline has also recently upped its Champagne game, serving Taittinger on board, as well as menus by celebrity chefs like José Andrés.
The one downside is that there are few ways to book Delta One suites without having to redeem an exorbitant number of Delta SkyMiles (and awards booked with partner points and miles are almost nonexistent), but you can sometimes find a few sweet spots when originating outside the U.S.
What we’re excited about next
As mentioned above, each of our winners continues to excel after being around for nearly a decade, but a host of recently introduced and soon-to-fly new business-class seats might soon overtake them.
In mid-2025, American Airlines introduced its new Flagship business-class suites — also with closing doors and more personal space per passenger, plus up-to-the-minute technology — aboard some Boeing 787-9s. There are even fancier and roomier Flagship Suite Preferred seats at the front of the cabin that will go for a premium.
In December, American Airlines also unveiled updated business-class suites aboard its Airbus A321XLRs, which will be in service on premium transcontinental routes before taking on some transatlantic crossings.
Speaking of A321s with gorgeous, new business-class cabins, we were also pretty blown away by the ones Etihad Airways revealed last summer, which are deployed on short- and medium-haul routes.
For its part, United Airlines showed off its next iteration of business class last May. The new "Elevated" Polaris business class will appear aboard new Boeing 787 Dreamliners that will also include business-class-plus Polaris Studio suites in the bulkheads. The latter will have enough room for two passengers to dine together, as well as huge 27-inch 4K entertainment screens with Bluetooth pairing and exclusive amenities and dining. The regular Elevated Polaris seats will feature sliding doors and 19-inch entertainment screens, plus a stylish new palette of navy blue with wood paneling.
One of our favorite new business-class suites of late came in the form of Cathay Pacific’s Aria Suite, which debuted on some of the carrier’s intra-Asia routes, as well as from Hong Kong to London; it also now flies to Vancouver, British Columbia, and San Francisco. These beauties, complete with closing doors, have an understated palette of cream, taupe and brown that complements the luxurious Bamford bedding and amenity kits, not to mention 24-inch 4K entertainment screens.
We are also eagerly anticipating the new business-class suites Qantas has installed on its forthcoming Airbus A350-1000s, with which it plans to operate its long-awaited “Project Sunrise” flights from Sydney to both London and New York.
Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways will bring a version of its ballyhooed The Room business-class suites, which are currently only found aboard some of its Boeing 777-300ERs, to some Boeing 787 Dreamliners as well. And Singapore Airlines has hinted at its forthcoming Airbus A350 business-class refresh, though that might still be some time off from now.
So, there’s a lot to look forward to if you’re flying up front! And you can bet that we are scouring the internet for award redemption opportunities so that we can be among the first to bring you reviews of these exciting new business-class seats and cabins. Stay tuned!
Every year, the TPG Awards honor excellence in credit cards, loyalty programs and travel. Please click here to read more about our winner-selection process and methodology for the 2026 TPG Awards.
