America’s 5 Most Reliable Airlines (And 5 Least Reliable) In 2023

Flying can be a headache between the general stresses of arriving on time, the discomfort of sitting for hours in a tiny seat and the fear that your baggage didn’t make it. It’s only worsened by the fact that delays and cancelations continue to become more and more common. With that, it is key to choose airlines not just for price, but on-time performance. To help you choose the best U.S. airline, we break down America’s most—and least—reliable airlines in 2023.

Here’s how the nation’s top 10 airlines rank for reliability:

1. Delta Air (Most Reliable)
2. Alaska Air
3. United Air
4. American Airlines
5. Hawaiian Airlines
6. Spirit Airlines
7. Southwest Airlines
8. Frontier Airlines
9. JetBlue Airways
10. Allegiant Air (Least Reliable)

Here’s a breakdown of how the nation’s 10 biggest airlines rank in terms of reliability:

1. Delta Air Lines (America’s Most Reliable Airline)

Dela Air Lines is not only the most reliable airline in the U.S., it far surpasses all of the other top airlines between its high on-time departure rates of 81.79 percent and its very low cancellation rate of 0.01 percent. So not only are Delta flights the most likely to leave on time, but they’re the least likely to be canceled.

On top of that, Delta is an all-around great airline. Unlike many domestic carriers, it offers amenities such as in-flight entertainment, onboard WiFi and power outlines, complimentary drinks and snacks and free checked luggage for status members and Delta card holders.

2. Alaska Airlines

Coming in at number two is Alaska Airlines with a 79.13 percent on-time departure rate. This is just a tiny bit better than United Airlines at number three with a 79.1 percent on-time departure rate. However, despite the minuscule difference, Alaska’s second place is well-deserved compared to United given that it has a 0.74 percent cancellation rate compared to United’s of 0.92 percent.

Granted, Alaska Airlines’ performance has dropped since 2019 when it had an 81.49 percent on-time performance. This is likely related to pandemic-related air travel issues as the carrier largely operates out of West Coast airports—which saw some of the most issues, such as labor shortages that lent to interruptions and air travel issues.

3. United Airlines

The third best U.S. airline for on-time departures is United Airlines. Unlike every other airline on the list, United is the only one that improved its on-time departure rate from 2010 to 2022. This indicates that while others struggled to uphold their on-time departure rates, United found a way to improve it. However, it’s worth pointing out that United has the highest cancellation rate out of the top five most reliable airlines. So while it’s improving its on-time departure rate, it has work to do on its cancellation rate.

4. American Airlines

Coming in behind Delta and United, American Airlines ranks number four as the nation’s most reliable airline. One thing to note is that while American is just slightly behind United in terms of on-time departures at 77.38 percent compared to United at 79.1 percent, American has a far better cancellation rate than United. So while United has a 0.92 percent cancellation rate—the highest rate of the top five most reliable airlines—American has a cancellation rate of 0.03%.

That said, if you’re booking a flight and happen to be debating between American and United, American is more likely to leave you waiting at your gate with a delayed flight. But United is more likely to leave you scrambling with a canceled flight.

5. Hawaiian Airlines

Hawaiin Airlines lands at number five with a solid on-time departure rate in the mid-70s. However, the carrier that will take you to America’s paradise islands, has been slipping in recent years with its on-time departure rate dropping from 87.4 percent in 2019 to 75.8 percent in 2022. While fluctuations are normal in the airline industry, this is a large drop.

It is likely in part related to the pandemic as Hawaiian Airlines operates a large number of flights out of major airports on the West Coast, which experienced even more issues than many other parts of the country. However, we’ll see how it does in the post-pandemic world.

6. Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines is the fifth least reliable airline in the country. However, it has the worst cancellation rate of the top 10 most reliable airlines at 2.58 percent.

The reason for this is that Spirit does not have a large fleet of planes or a large hub of planes on standby where it can quickly acquire a plane should the scheduled plane get held up elsewhere. So, this should equate to a high rate of late departures, but in many instances, Spirit will cancel the flight instead—likely as means of upholding its solid on-time departure rate.

For anyone who has flown Spirit, the fact that it statistically ranks as one of the most reliable airlines in America might raise an eyebrow. For example, last month I flew Spirit from Manchester, NH to Orlando, FL.

My first flight was delayed over seven hours and my return flight was delayed about an hour. As annoying as the seven-hour delay was, I nearly forgot about the one-hour upon return as I would have missed my flight had Spirit not delayed the flight, so I was very grateful for that. Luckily, I had used CLEAR to bypass Orlando MCO’s notoriously long security lines that average around one hour (and can be up to three). Had I used the standard security line, I would have missed my flight—despite Spirit’s hour delay.

Learn more about my experience with Spirit with our complete Spirit Airlines review.

7. Southwest Airlines

Southwest is the nation’s fourth-worst airline when it comes to reliability. And in my experience, it’s likely even worst than its number show. Because it uses a sneaky tactic to pad the numbers.

After dozens of Southwest flights, what I came to find is that Southwest has a tendency to overlook flights. And when it sells more tickets than it has seats, it bumps passengers off the flight—usually to whoever paid the lowest price. And of course, that’s been me a number of times.

So while I received a text hours before my flight’s scheduled departure time saying that my flight was canceled and I was rebooked to another flight (sometimes to a flight that is 24 hours after the flight I purchased), I could check the flight and see that it in fact departed on-time. That said, this is unlikely to happen to you if you’re Southwest rewards or loyalty member as airlines typically bump members last. But it’s still a bit deceptive to say that Southwest is one of the most reliable.

8. Frontier Airlines

Frontier Airlines comes in as the third least reliable airline in the U.S.—ahead of the fan-favorite JetBlue. And not only does Frontier have a slightly better on-time departure rate than JetBlue, but it also has a slightly better cancellation rate. However, that doesn’t mean that Frontier has the best in-flight experience. Though it does its job well of getting passengers from point A to point B safely and as scheduled, it’s still a no-frills airline. So don’t expect amenities like in-flight entertainment, onboard WiFi or complimentary drinks or snacks.

9. JetBlue Airways

It’s a bit surprising that JetBlue ranks as the nation’s second least reliable airline. Upon looking at past data, what we see is that JetBlue is becoming less and less reliable over the years, indicating that the airline might be facing some growing pains as it expands rapidly—including its more recent expansion into more international routes. On the other hand, JetBlue has one of the lowest cancellation rates at 0.36 percent.

10. Allegiant Air (America’s Least Reliable Airline)

Despite being a small carrier compared to the other most reliable airlines in the U.S., Allegiant Air has the unique benefit of largely operating out of smaller, regional airports. Yet, it is somehow. still the nation’s least reliable airline with an on-time departure rate of just 63.22 percent.

Most Reliable Airlines (And Least Reliable)

Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

Bottom Line: America’s Most Reliable Airlines (and Least)

When booking your next flight, consider the top five most reliable airlines in the U.S. to help ensure that your travels go smoothly and to plan. In general, Delta Air Lines is the best bet when it comes to U.S. airlines and it has a massive list of domestic and international destinations, making it a great go-to airline. For those that want a budget, no-frills carrier that will get them from point A to point B, chose Spirit or Frontier (though Spirit is rarely a bargain after adding in baggage and fees).

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