While it can be hard to quantify what makes for a good airport experience and whether passengers who pass through the terminals are left satisfied, consumer data analytics firm J.D. Power publishes an annual ranking in which it assigns airports across the U.S. a score on a 1,000-point scale based on factors such as terminal facilities, experiences with airport staff and general ease of travel.
This year, Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport came out on top with, at 684, the highest score among the major airports in the country. The study divides airports into the categories of mega, large and medium with the major category requiring passenger traffic of more than 33 million per year.
There is no “small” category given that it would include hundreds of tiny regional airports; the baseline to be included in the study is annual passenger traffic of at least 4.5 million passengers.
Newark, O’Hare rank as airports with the least satisfied travelers in the U.S. (again)
The major hubs with the least-satisfied travelers in 2025 were Newark Liberty and Chicago O’Hare International with the score of 585 for each. Both consistently rank at the bottom year after year due to factors like aging infrastructure, high rates of cancelations and, in the case of Newark, a poor traveler experience that begins with heavy congestion around the airport.
Newark was the airport with the least-satisfied in 2024 while Minneapolis-St. Paul also retained its position as the best.
Related: The worst major airport in the U.S. is the same one as last year
In the large category, Tampa International and Portland International and came out as the best airports in the country with respective scores of 715 and 708 while Philadelphia International landed at the bottom with 596.
Among medium airports, Charleston International topped the list with a score of 712 while Cleveland International landed at the bottom with 597. In general, total scores were higher than in 2024 even for low-ranking airports as many followed through with renovations and projects to improve their infrastructure.
“Efforts are finally starting to pay off”: J.D. Power on rising airport satisfaction
J.D. Power also found that signs and effective wayfinding systems played a significant role in passenger satisfaction overall as ease of finding one’s gate results in customers who are more likely to rate other factors more highly.
Satisfaction with food, beverage and retail programs grew by eight points from 2024 to 2025 while J.D. Power also calculated that travelers who rated an airport as “perfect” spend an average of $47.60 while those who said it was “just O.K.” spent $27.38.
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“For the better part of the last decade, nearly every airport, from the largest international
hubs to midsized airfields, has undertaken a significant capital improvement project aimed at streamlining passenger flow, adding attractive food and beverage options and improving overall passenger experience,” Michael Taylor, managing director of travel, hospitality and retail at J.D. Power said in a statement on the rankings. “On the whole, those efforts are finally starting to pay off in the form of higher overall passenger satisfaction scores.”
The full results of the survey can be found here.
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