YouGov airline – A new YouGov survey of more than 23,000 Americans tracks airline loyalty and customer satisfaction as Spirit Airlines’ struggles collide with rising fuel costs and global conflict. Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines stand out as Americans keep shopping wit
For many travelers, the math of summer trips starts long before takeoff—often with which airline feels reliable enough to bet on. But as Spirit Airlines’ setbacks ripple through schedules and consumer expectations, brand trust is becoming its own kind of fare.
A new YouGov survey looks at which U.S. airlines Americans are most likely to consider for future travel and how they rate customer satisfaction. The findings come from the YouGov U.S. airline rankings 2026 report, based on responses from more than 23,000 Americans.
YouGov says the data was gathered between April 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, using YouGov BrandIndex, YouGov’s daily brand-tracking platform, and YouGov Profiles, its consumer-insights tool.
In a press release. YouGov America’s Senior Vice President Kenton Barello said that airlines remain heavily scrutinized because operational performance. pricing. loyalty programs. and customer experience shape brand perception in real time. He also said brands that consistently deliver reliability. value. and trust tend to strengthen consideration and loyalty in a competitive market.
Spirit’s troubles, cost pressure, and what Americans do next
The survey points to a shifting landscape for travelers as Spirit Airlines faces strain tied to its own operational performance and as rising fuel costs and global conflict squeeze summer flyers.
In the same window of planning, Americans still show clear brand loyalty. When asked which airlines they would consider booking with in the next 12 months, the “Big Four”—Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines—ranked high for “most considered.”
Delta Air Lines led the group at the top, followed by American Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines in that order. The report also found these four carriers ranked high for quality and value.
With Spirit Airlines out of the picture, the survey says Frontier Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and JetBlue Airways are poised to meet customer demand for affordable flights.
Delta’s jump, Southwest’s value, and the narrowing margin
Delta Air Lines emerged as a clear customer favorite in Americans’ perceptions of quality. It was also the most considered airline for 2026, with 49.5% of Americans saying they would book with the Atlanta-based carrier.
That figure marks a 4.6% increase from last year—the largest jump among all other airlines included in the rankings.
Southwest Airlines followed closely behind Delta for overall consideration. The airline scored highest in perceived value and is likely to fill the gap left by Spirit Airlines, according to the report. Southwest also sits just two spots below Delta in customer satisfaction.
The survey’s list of the 10 most considered airlines for the next 12 months was:
Delta Air Lines, 49.5%
American Airlines, 49.2%
United Airlines, 47.5%
Southwest Airlines, 36.2%
JetBlue, 23.6%
Alaska Air, 16.6%
British Airways, 15.8%
Emirates, 12.3%
Air France, 11.5%
Lufthansa, 11.2%
Global leaders still set the satisfaction benchmark
While Americans’ planning appears to cluster around the dominant U.S. brands, customer satisfaction tells a different story. The top 10 global airlines for customer satisfaction in the report were led by international carriers.
The list included Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, Qantas, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Alaska Air, Lufthansa, British Airways, and Hawaiian Airlines.
Taken together, the survey shows a market where pricing and reliability matter—but where the brands Americans trust most for their next trip don’t always line up with the global carriers that score highest on satisfaction.
YouGov survey airline rankings 2026 Delta Air Lines Southwest Airlines Spirit Airlines customer satisfaction airline brand loyalty rising fuel costs global conflict Frontier JetBlue
Spirit is cooked then lol.
I swear every time I hear about Spirit it’s always delays or cancellations. But isn’t this just because people remember the bad stuff more? Like my cousin tried them once and said it was fine, so idk.
Delta leading doesn’t surprise me, they always act like they’re the “real” airline. But the article says fuel costs and global conflict too, so how much of that is actually Spirit’s fault? Sounds like everything is everybody’s fault except maybe the passengers lol.
I saw the headline and thought it was like Spirit vs Delta battle trust?? Like people “bet on” reliability before they even fly. Isn’t loyalty programs kind of fake though, you get points and then they change the rules. Also 23,000 Americans is a lot but still, it’s not like they questioned me, so I’m not convinced.