California Airports Receive Top Rankings in Wall Street Journal Study
CA – San Francisco International Airport was ranked the best large airport in the United States. San Diego International was the second-best midsize airport from a recent study conducted by the Wall Street Journal. San Francisco International is best known for being oddly quiet, even during rush hour, due to strict limitations on overhead announcements and for offering yoga rooms and art exhibits. The airport rated high due to having over 80% on-time rates despite the challenges with air travel in other cities.
Los Angeles ranked sixth among the large airports, while Sacramento came first in the midsize category and San Jose third. Oakland Airport has the lowest ranking among the California airports, being 10th in the midsize category. San Diego was ranked No. 2 in the midsize category.
Newark was among the bottom for the large airports, while LaGuardia was the worst in the midsize category. The report ranked U.S. airports on 19 factors ranging from on-time performance and security waits to customer-satisfaction scores and ticket prices. Reliability carried the most weight in the rankings.
Wall Street Journal: Top 10 Best Large Airports in U.S.
- San Francisco (SFO)
- Atlanta (ATL)
- Minneapolis (MSP)
- Detroit (DTW)
- Phoenix (PHX)
- Los Angeles (LAX)
- Houston Bush (IAH)
- Las Vegas (LAS)
- Charlotte (CLT)
- Seattle (SEA)
Methodology
Wall Street Journal’s overall score considered three significant categories: reliability, value, and convenience. Each of those three categories had its own separate score, which is then used to compile the airport’s overall score.
For reliability, factors used include on-time arrival, on-time departure, flight cancellation rate, and “fast security clearance.” Factors measured under “value” include the average domestic fare, UberX cost, and on-site parking. Finally, the “convenience” metric factored in Yelp restaurant rating, maximum walking distance, and nonstop destinations.