Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is the top-ranked “mega” airport in North America according to new customer satisfaction rankings released by the marketing firm J.D. Power.
While overall satisfaction is down thanks to increased travel after the pandemic and worker shortages, there were a few stops for air passengers that performed well.
In some of the study’s key findings, J.D. Power notes that crowds are back to pre-pandemic levels. More than half (58%) of airport travelers describe the airport terminal as severely or moderately crowded, nearly in line with 2019 when 59% of travelers said their airport was severely/moderately crowded.
Inflation is also affecting air travel with nearly a quarter of respondents saying they avoided food or beverage purchases at the airport because they were too expensive.
The other major issue at airports is parking. A shortage of space has caused satisfaction with surface parking lots to decline 45 points from 2021. Meanwhile, 14% of travelers say parking was more expensive than they expected, up from 12% in 2021 and 11% in 2019.
“In some ways, this is a return to normal as larger crowds at airports tend to make travelers more frazzled,” J.D. Power’s travel intelligence lead Michael Taylor said in a statement. “But in cases where parking lots are over capacity, gates are standing room only and restaurants and bars are not even open to offer some reprieve, it is clear that increased capacity in airports can’t come soon enough.”
The study ranked airports based on six factors: terminal facilities; airport arrival/departure; baggage claim; security check; check-in/baggage check; and food, beverage and retail.
Mega airports are defined as those with 33 million or more passengers per year; large airports with 10 to 32.9 million passengers per year; and medium airports with 4.5 to 9.9 million passengers per year.
For the actual rankings, Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport ranks highest in passenger satisfaction among mega airports with a score of 800. San Francisco International Airport (796) ranks second while Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (791) and John F. Kennedy International Airport (791) each rank third in a tie.
Tampa International Airport ranks highest among large airports and Indianapolis International Airport ranks highest among medium airports.
The lowest ranked airports in each category were Newark Liberty (mega), Philadelphia (large) and Hollywood-Burbank (medium).
Mega Airports
1. Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) — 800.
2. San Francisco International Airport (SFO) — 796.
3. (tie) Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) — 791.
3. (tie) John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) — 791.
5. Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) — 790.
6. Orlando International Airport (MCO) — 786.
7. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) — 782.
8. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) — 778.
9. Miami International Airport (MIA) — 770.
10. Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) — 768.
Large Airports
1. Tampa International Airport (TPA) — 846.
2. John Wayne Airport (SNA) — 826.
3. Dallas Love Field (DAL) — 825.
4. (tie) Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) — 813.
4. (tie) Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) — 813.
6. Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) — 804.
7. (tie) Portland International Airport (PDX) — 803.
7. (tie) William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) — 803.
9. San Antonio International Airport (SAT) — 802.
10. Sacramento International Airport (SMF) — 798.
Medium Airports
1. Indianapolis International Airport (IND) — 842.
2. Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) — 839.
3. (tie) Jacksonville International Airport (JAX) — 826.
3. (tie) Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) — 826.
5. Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport (MKE) — 824.
6. Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ) — 819.
7. Palm Beach International Airport (PBI) — 816.
8. Ontario International Airport (ONT) — 813.
9. Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF) — 809.
10. Ottawa International Airport (YOW) — 806.
See the full list and methodology from J.D. Power here.
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