If you are planning to fly from any part of America either to North American countries or from North American countries, here is the list of best airlines in North America for this year. In this year’s ranking, Delta airlines have been ranked by Skytrax as the best airline in North America for the year 2023.
There are other airlines that made this list, this list was a result of a poll conducted by Skytrax a reliable ranking body that carried out a survey on north America airlines and how passengers feel about these airlines.
13 Best Airlines in North America Right Now [2023 Ranking]
1. Delta Air Lines
- Website: Delta Air Lines
- Number of aircraft: 898
- Hubs: Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St Paul, New York, Salt Lake City, Seattle
- Average age of fleet: 15.8
Delta Air Lines, or simply Delta, is an American airline headquartered in Atlanta. It is the second-largest airline in the world and the oldest U.S. airline still in operation.
Read Also: 12 Best Airlines in South America [Latin America]
Delta’s superb on-time performance makes it one of my top picks among North American airlines (which ranks among the best in the USA). As an added bonus, Delta has recently introduced a fantastic new Business Class product (named Delta One Suite) with a sliding door at each suite, while rivals American Airlines and United are moving away from this concept.
Both the quality of its loyalty program and the age of its fleet are areas where Delta could stand to make some upgrades (which is currently the oldest in North America).
2. Southwest Airlines
- Number of aircraft: 753
- Hubs: Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Dalles, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix
- Average age of fleet: 11.2
Since its founding in 1967, Southwest Airlines has grown to become the largest domestic airline in the United States and the largest low-cost carrier in the world, with more than 4,000 weekly departures to 100 domestic and international destinations.
Read Also: 10 Best Airlines in Caribbean Countries [& Central America]
Southwest, like Ryanair, only flies Boeing 737s (all of which have WiFi), making it the largest operator of the Boeing 737 in the world. Each of its 700 planes flies an average of six times a day. Southwest Airlines was the top U.S. domestic carrier in 2018.
The airline is preparing to launch new routes to Aloha State. Fortune magazine has recognized Southwest as one of the most admired corporations in the world.
3. WestJet Airlines
- Hubs: Calgary, Toronto, Vancouver
- Website: WestJet
- Number of aircraft: 128
- The average age of the fleet: is 10 years
The low-cost airline WestJet was founded in 1996 and has grown to become Canada’s second-largest airline, after Air Canada. The airline served over 100 destinations in Canada, the United States, Europe, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean in 2018, transporting over 25 million passengers.
Read Also: 12 Least Busiest Airports In The World Right Now
The airline has gained a reputation for innovation, wit, and service to the community over the past many decades. In order to complete its transformation into a truly premium carrier, WestJet has introduced a fantastic Business Class hard product on its Boeing 787 routes to London, Dublin, and Paris.
4. JetBlue Airways
- Website: Jetblue
- Number of aircraft: 253
- Hubs: New York, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando
- The average age of fleet: 10.2
Jetblue, the sixth largest airline in the United States, has its headquarters in the Long Island City area of the borough of Queens in New York City.
Jetblue was founded in 1999 by Brazilian-American entrepreneur David Neeleman, who modeled it after the successful model of Southwest Airlines. However, Jetblue made an effort to set itself apart by providing a better in-flight entertainment system, more legroom in the couch seats, free WiFi, and free drinks and snacks.
Read Also: 10 Best Airlines in Western Europe Right Now [2023 Ranking]
Each year, Jetblue transports over 38 million passengers to 101 destinations in the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Jetblue is still a budget airline, but their Business Class product (named Mint) is top-notch, and it’s offered on select itineraries to the Caribbean on specially modified Airbus A321.
5. Air Canada
- Website: Air Canada
- Hubs: Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Vancouver
- Number of aircraft: 186
- Average age of fleet: 13.1
Air Canada, Canada’s national airline since its founding in 1937, also operates the largest fleet and is the country’s most popular airline. Nearly 51 million passengers traveled on the airline’s direct routes in 2018, with destinations including 63 airports in Canada, 56 in the United States, and 100 airports across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, and South America.
Air Canada introduced its new “Signature Class” Business Class product last year, which featured lie-flat seats on all of its wide-body fleet, celebrity chef David Hawksworth-inspired cuisine, upscale lounges, and BMW chauffeur service at Toronto Pearson International Airport.
In North America, Air Canada is the first international network carrier to be awarded a Four-Star rating. Since its inception, Star Alliance has counted Air Canada among its ranks of founding members.
6. Alaska Airlines
- Hubs: Anchorage, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle
- Website: Alaska Airlines
- Number of aircraft: 237
- Average age of fleet: 8.4
Alaska Airlines, the United States fifth-largest airline, serves more than a hundred locations across the continental United States, Hawaii, Canada, Costa Rica, and Mexico.
The annual number of the airline’s customers is over 44 million. Unlike the other two main airlines, Alaska Airlines is not affiliated with any of the three major airline alliances. However, it has 17 codeshare partners, including those from the Oneworld, SkyTeam, and Star Alliances as well as non-affiliated carriers like Emirates.
The Seattle, Washington-based airline has consistently received high accolades from customers for its welcoming environment, helpful staff, punctuality, strong reward program, convenient extras, and guaranteed luggage delivery within 20 minutes of landing.
7. United Airlines
- Hubs: Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Newark, San Francisco, Washington
- Website: United Airlines
- Number of aircraft: 772
- Average age of fleet: 15.1
United Airlines, or simply United, began in the late 1920s when numerous different airlines merged to form a single company. More than 150 million people were transported to 355 airports around the world by the airline in 2018.
When compared to other North American airlines, United has the most extensive worldwide route network, with connections to every major continent (including Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East).
New aircraft, an excellent new Business Class offering (Polaris), wonderful lounges, better customer service, and an overall much better on-time performance have helped the airline shed its negative reputation, which had persisted since its 2011 merger with Continental. When it comes to airline alliances, United was an early participant in Star Alliance.
8. Hawaiian Airlines
- Hubs: Honolulu, Kahului
- Website: Hawaiian Airlines
- Number of aircraft: 55
- Average age of fleet: 8.9
Hawaiian Airlines, established in 1929, is the tenth-largest commercial airline in the United States and something of a niche player in the industry. Hawaiian Airlines is one of the most well-known airline companies in North America, but its primary focus is on flights between Hawaii and the rest of the world, including Asia, American Samoa, Australia, French Polynesia, Hawaii, New Zealand, and the mainland United States.
Hawaiian is the oldest US carrier and has never had a fatal accident or hull loss in its entire history. It also regularly ranks first among US airlines for on-time arrivals (thanks in part to the pleasant weather on the islands), and it has fewer cancellations, oversales, and baggage handling problems than any other US airline.
9. American Airlines
- Hubs: Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Washington
- Website: American Airlines
- Number of aircraft: 963
- Average age of fleet: 10.8 years
Following its 2013 merger with US Airways, Fort Worth-based American Airlines became the largest airline in the world in terms of fleet size, revenue, passenger volume, and destinations served.
The airline serves over 50 countries and over 6,700 local and international routes daily.
More than 200 million people, or over 500,000 each day, took advantage of the airline’s global routes and a fleet of around 1,000 aircraft in 2018. Though I always enjoyed flying with them, I’ve found that their service and reliability have declined since merging with US Airways. Oneworld is the world’s third-largest airline alliance, and American Airlines was a founding member.
10. Air Transat
Montreal, Quebec is home to Air Transat, a Canadian airline. Founded in 1986, it has grown to become Canada’s third-largest airline, after Air Canada and WestJet, with regular and charter flights to 60 locations in 25 countries. Transat A.T. Inc., the parent company of Air Transat, operates a fleet of 31 planes.
11. Aeromexico:
- Website: AEROMEXICO
- Hubs: Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey
- Number of aircraft: 71
- Average age of fleet: 7.4 years
Aeroméxico is the brand name for the Mexican national airline, Aerovas de México, S.A. de C.V. More than 90 cities across the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia are served by its regularly scheduled routes. The number of people the airline carried in 2018 was 21.88 million, up from 20.67 million in 2017.
Aeromexico’s on-time performance and in-flight service have dramatically enhanced since Delta Air Lines purchased a 49 percent share in the company. Along with Air France, Delta Air Lines, and Korean Air, Aeroméxico was a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance.
12. Spirit Airlines
Located in the Miami metropolitan area, Spirit Airlines Inc. is a significant American ultra-low-cost carrier with headquarters in Miramar, Florida. Spirit Airlines has regular service to destinations all throughout North America, the Caribbean, and South, and Central America.
13. SouthWest Airlines
- Website: Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines Co., more commonly known as just Southwest, is a significant U.S. airline and the largest low-cost carrier in the world. They have its headquarters in Dallas, Texas, and they fly to 121 different cities in the US and 10 different countries.
What Is The Most Popular Airline In North America?
American Airlines is the most popular airline in North America. In 2022, despite having a poor year, American Airlines was the largest airline in North America. The U.S. carrier’s 165.7 million passengers were more than 61 million more than those carried by United.
What Is The Best Airline To Fly Within The US?
The best airline to fly within US is the Hawaiian Airlines. Hawaiian Airlines, which has been in the top five of the World’s Best Domestic Airlines list for almost a decade, has now taken the top spot.
Who Is The Number 1 Airline In The USA?
The number one airline to fly within the US is Delta Airlines.
Conclusion
What is the safest airline in North America? If you have a choice of airline, the answer to this question is likely to ring true for anyone planning trips to, from, or within North America.
Almost weekly, a new corporation, magazine, or media outlet comes out with its own list of the best and worst airlines based on a different set of criteria and a sometimes dubious methodology.
SkyTrax, one of the most reliable surveys, ranks Delta Air Lines first. Based on my experiences (I’ve flown all of these airlines numerous times) and my own standards of quality, here is a list of my 13 favorite North American airlines (e.g. onboard product, customer service, safety, route network, and fleet).
