Best Airlines for Passenger Experience in 2025

With summer travel in full swing, airline quality and passenger satisfaction matter more than ever. Skytrax, a global group that reviews airlines and airports based on passenger surveys and expert inspections, has named Singapore Airlines the World’s Best Airline. This is the fifth time Singapore Airlines has taken the top spot, showing just how much passengers love flying with them.

A recent study by Sparrow set out to identify the world’s top-performing airlines by examining how well they meet passenger expectations across seven key areas: passengers carried, destinations served, Skytrax rating, search volume, accident history, lost luggage rate, and passenger experience. Passenger experience, rated out of 10, was given the most weight, reflecting comfort, service quality, and in-flight satisfaction. Search volume reflects public interest and real-world engagement, showing how much attention each airline receives. All these factors were then combined to create a satisfaction score for each Airline from 0-100, ranking them from highest to lowest.

You can access the full research findings by following this link.

Singapore Airlines tops the list of airlines with the highest customer satisfaction, with a near-perfect score of 99. While serving 18.1M passengers annually, it continues to maintain a passenger experience rating of 6.9 out of 10, the best on the list. Backed by a perfect 5-star Skytrax rating and an exceptionally low baggage loss rate, the airline proves that scale doesn’t have to come at the cost of quality.

Cathay Pacific comes in second, earning a satisfaction score of 98. Closely behind Singapore Airlines, Cathay shares a lot of similarities. Both airlines have the highest Skytrax rating of a perfect 5, similar passenger experience scores, and serve 18M passengers annually. Cathay Pacific’s network is a little broader, flying to 88 destinations.

Australia’s Qantas has long been tied with safety, and now, satisfaction. Carrying 46M passengers annually and serving more than 100 destinations, it achieves a balance of volume and quality. Its 6.7 passenger experience score ties with Cathay, but Qantas has an edge in better baggage handling and an efficient global network.

Lufthansa ranks fourth in the race for highest customer satisfaction in the air. Lufthansa’s strength lies in scale, serving over 122M passengers across 195 destinations, while maintaining a passenger experience rating of 5.4 and earning four stars from SkyTrax. Its position as a key European carrier contributes to a satisfaction score of 84.

JetBlue rounds out the top 5, standing out as the top-performing low-cost carrier. It is the highest searched for airline, with over 20M queries, which explains its high passenger experience of 5.9. JetBlue is also the first so far to report zero accidents, delivering comfort and safety.

With a satisfaction score of 76, EasyJet ranks sixth. Just behind JetBlue, EasyJet also offers low-cost for high satisfaction while moving nearly double the passenger volume. SkyTrax rates this airline four stars, and it is the most sought-after airline on the list, with 39M queries a year.

British Airways lands in seventh, carrying passengers all over the world. Flying to 200 destinations with 46M annual passengers, British Airways continues to prioritize customers. It has a higher passenger experience score than the previous three airlines, showing its ability to handle many destinations and ensure a high experience score of 6.

Emirates comes in eighth, representing the luxury and the highest customer satisfaction. SkyTrax gives Emirates four stars for maintaining its global reputation and safety. Its experience rating stands at 5, and the airline’s satisfaction score of 74 reflects its scale and reliability. Over 51.9M people fly with Emirates every year.

KLM follows closely in ninth with a satistaction score of 73. KLM continues to earn traveler trust with an experience rating of 6.0. Going to 167 destinations and maintaining one of the lowest lost luggage rates in the industry, the airline combines global reach with consumer happiness. It is also a popular choice for European passengers, with 6.3M annual searches and 33M yearly passengers.

United Airlines closes out the list of carriers with the highest customer satisfaction. United stands out for its scale, flying to 373 destinations, the largest network in this list. Despite this number, United can maintain high security and reliability, reporting zero accidents as well as one of the lowest lost luggage rates. These factors contribute to United’s satisfaction score of 72.

A spokesperson from Sparrow recently commented, “Passenger satisfaction is the cornerstone of a successful airline experience. It is shaped by consistent reliability, attentive service, and a seamless journey from start to finish. Ensuring that travelers feel valued at every touchpoint, from booking to baggage claim, is essential. When an airline prioritizes these elements, it builds trust and confidence, encouraging passengers to choose its services again and again. Ultimately, delivering on satisfaction means understanding and meeting the diverse needs of travelers while maintaining the highest standards of safety and comfort throughout their journey.”