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| Best US airlines of 2024 |
| by Brian Kelly |
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People always ask me what the best airline is, but it’s impossible to answer off the top of my head because there are so many factors to judge. At the end of the day, I think the best airline for you is one that gets you where you want to go the most efficiently and at the best price. But at The Points Guy, we also factor in things like loyalty, customer service and innovation.
This is the sixth year we’ve released our annual report on the best U.S. airlines, and we’ve ranked the top 10 U.S. airlines using the following four categories and weighted scores. All data points for the 2024 report were based on flights operated during the 12-month period that ran from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2023.
- Reliability (30%)
- Experience (25%)
- Cost and reach (20%)
- Loyalty (25%)
Here are this year’s top 10 rankings and how they compare to (2023).
- Delta Air Lines (1)
- Alaska Airlines (3)
- United Airlines (2)
- American Airlines (4)
- Southwest Airlines (5)
- JetBlue (7)
- Hawaiian Airlines (6)
- Allegiant Air (9)
- Spirit Airlines (8)
- Frontier Airlines (10)
This year, the major change is that United dropped from No. 2 to No. 3. United does really well in the categories of route network and loyalty, although we’ll see if that remains true since the airline has been devaluing its loyalty program this year. Where it has room for improvement is reliability — there were some groundings, operational issues and aircraft delays.
The question is, can United innovate and get a quality product that’s like Delta’s and perform on time? If the airline can — and it remains unmatched with its international network — I can see United one day definitely getting back to No. 2 and even potentially No. 1. But please, United, fix your inflight food.
People always ask me which airline I fly, and since I’m based in New Hope, Pennsylvania, I have equal choices to fly out of Philadelphia or Newark. I much prefer Newark due to its proximity to Manhattan for work. I tend to fly United based on convenience, except when I fly internationally.
To cross the Atlantic, I prefer Virgin Atlantic and Air France. I recently flew Virgin Atlantic on the A330-900neo in the Retreat Suite, which was fabulous. Check out my reel on the experience with Dean. To cross the pond in business class, I think the Virgin Atlantic products, lounges and crews are great. I just avoid the 787 since it’s so outdated — look for the A350 or the A330-900neo. Those are the way to go, followed by Air France’s spectacular new A350 business-class suite with closing privacy doors.
Crossing the Pacific, I flew Japan Airlines’ first-class suite a few months ago, and its business-class suite is excellent, so I would give the edge to JAL for transpacific travel.
Overall, my favorite airline is Emirates. Flying first class on the A380 is such a smooth ride, and it has a shower on board. The height and comfort of the aircraft are also a plus. Connecting through Dubai is pretty easy, although it isn’t my favorite airport as I’ve found it to be crowded and there are lengthy walks between terminals. Emirates does not have good ground service for its first-class passengers like Air France and other airlines do, but the loyalty program is pretty generous in releasing award space.
Domestically, if I have to fly from New York to Los Angeles, I do like flying JetBlue Mint. The seats do need to be redone — they are a little cramped, and the padding needs updating — but the food is wonderful.
At the end of the day, I like to see airlines competing for our business. If you want to see more, you can check out the CNBC “Last Call” clip from earlier this week when I revealed this year’s rankings.
Have a great weekend,
BK
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| Photo Credit: WYATT SMITH/THE POINTS GUY. |
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