A Midwest airport once again takes the top spot among North America’s largest hub airports, surpassing the well-known Coastal airports serving New York and Los Angeles.
Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport tops the large airport category for the third consecutive year, according to JD Power’s latest 2026 ranking of North America’s Best Airports.
The same survey found that Tampa International Airport and Charleston International Airport also received top honors in their respective size categories.
“Minneapolis does a lot of things well,” Gary Leff, a Texas tourism expert and author of the blog “View From the Wing,” told Fox News Digital.
“Transiting passengers can enjoy ample amenities without leaving security,” Leff said. “The airport for local passengers is relatively close to both city centres, with light rail access.”
Leif said passengers in Minneapolis may have to walk a long way between gates, but he said it would still be manageable.
The airport scored 684 points on JD Power’s 1,000-point scale.
Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport ranked second among large airports with a score of 663, followed by Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (642).
Tampa ranked first among large airports with a score of 715, followed by Portland International Airport (708 points) and Dallas Love Field (698 points).
Charleston leads the midsize airport category with 712 points, ahead of Ontario International Airport (705 points) and Indianapolis International Airport (695 points).
“Tampa is very well organized, even though you have to travel from hall to hall,” Leif said.
Charleston is not overbuilt, so getting through the airport is easy, he said.
“What’s the point of an airport? An airport is a place that you can arrive at, go through and leave quickly. You’re flying, you’re trying to get somewhere very efficiently. The best airports are the ones that help you do that,” Leif said.
Overall passenger satisfaction improved across all three airport categories.
Troy, Miss.-based J.D. Power said all of the top-ranked airports have recently completed or are about to complete multi-year capital improvement projects.
“Overall, these efforts are finally starting to pay off, with overall passenger satisfaction scores being higher,” Michael Taylor, managing director of travel, hospitality and retail at JD Power, said in a statement.
However, Leif warned travelers not to be swayed by the high-end decor.
“The central terminal at New York’s LaGuardia Airport is a beautiful facility…but it’s still…a relatively difficult airport to get through,” Leif noted.
Leff wasn’t surprised that New York and Los Angeles fell short.
Leif considers San Francisco International Airport and Washington, D.C. National Airport to be among the best airports in the country because of their proximity to the city and ease of navigation.
The study identified clear signage and easy navigation as key drivers of satisfaction.
Food, beverage and retail items improved, rising 8 percentage points from the same period last year.
The company said the North American Airport Satisfaction Study, now in its 21st year, measures passenger experience in seven areas: convenience of airport travel, trust in the airport, terminal facilities, airport staff, the experience of departing from or traveling to the airport, food, beverage and retail, and the experience of arriving at or departing from the airport.
JD Power said it defines large airports as those that handle at least 33 million passengers per year, large airports as those with an annual passenger throughput of 10 million to 32.9 million, and medium airports as those with an annual passenger throughput of 4.5 million to 9.9 million.
The 2026 study is based on 24,710 complete surveys of U.S. and Canadian residents who passed through at least one U.S. or Canadian airport.