We’ve all been there. You’re at the Philly airport when the gate attendant makes the dreaded announcement — your flight is delayed. It’s a storm, or perhaps a mechanical issue.
Whatever the reason, now you’ve got to spend who knows how long exploring the halls of PHL to pass the time. But whether that wait feels like smooth sailing or purgatory hinges on your experience at the airport itself.
A recent survey from AirHelp, a company that helps passengers secure compensation for flight delays, cancellations and travel disruptions, recently ranked PHL as the third-worst airport in the United States based on service quality, on-time performance, claims processing, amenities, customer satisfaction, and food and shopping options.
PHL ranked just behind Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood (Fla.) Airport and Newark Liberty Airport, which were named the second-worst and worst performers, respectively. In contrast, Salt Lake City Airport claimed the top spot as the best overall.
So, excuse us as we ask, what gives? If you’ve been to Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson or New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong airports, you know that Philly isn’t that bad.
The key thing in the rankings, apparently, was on-time performance. It was a huge factor, making up 60% of the score. PHL reportedly had a total score of 7.41 and an on-time performance rating of 7.6, with 76% of on-time flights. In comparison, Salt Lake City received an overall score of 8.29 with 83% of flights on time.
While the overall score is less than a point difference from what’s reported to be the best, AirHelp noted that “even a single point can indicate that one airport is more efficient and more traveler-friendly than another.”
“We take every ranking that comes out seriously,” said Heather Redfern, the Philadelphia International Airport’s public affairs manager. Still, she was a bit at a loss on how to adjust a score whose main factor, she said, was outside of the airport’s control.
“They put 60% in on-time performance, and that’s not something that the airport is responsible for,” Redfern explained. “Nobody can help the weather … we’re in the busiest air spaces in the world, not only the country. You have flights from here to Chicago, Denver, Dallas, and there’s weather there that could impact flights getting here and getting back out again.”
AirHelp’s Chief Legal Officer, Eric Napoli, agreed, noting that there are many factors that can result in a flight delay.
“Air travel is a complex ecosystem with lots of different players,” he said. “Air traffic control will put certain restrictions on the number of flights that come in and go out.”
And the weather in 2025, Redfern noted, has been especially bad.
“Within the past I would say, three or four weeks, we’ve had several ground stops for flights headed to PHL because of thunderstorms,” she said.
Passing the time at PHL
Flight delays may not be completely in an airport’s control, but Napoli said he hopes people will use the report to help them plan future trips.
“We believe in the importance of travel, and we know how frustrating travel could be, so we also want people to understand these are some of the toughest airports to fly [in and out of],” he said, adding that knowing that there is a high likelihood of delay can be helpful.
“And once you know that you have this situation – through Salt Lake City, I’m covered, but through Fort Lauderdale I’ll probably have a delay once – I can recognize the potential delay. I can be a little bit more relaxed, and I can plan around it,” he said.
Tyler Donaghy, a software engineer based in Philadelphia, recounted his own travel nightmare through PHL and what he liked and disliked about the airport’s offerings for stranded travelers.
“One time, it had been snowing, and then I had a Frontier [Airlines] flight, which is terrible, and I had to wait because they just kept delaying it with the weather,” he said. “So I was in the Philly airport for like 15 hours.”
Donaghy said he was put off by pricey food options in the airport and described the overall experience as “fine.” However, he is excited about one recently added amenity.
“The good part for me is that they recently added this Chase Sapphire Lounge, and I have the card, so that actually has been a lot better.”
The Chase Lounge is one of two new lounges in the airport. American Airlines also recently opened their new Flagship Lounge and Admirals Club. Plus, the airport has opened several new restaurants in the past year.
“Our concessions partner, Marketplace PHL, has a new ‘found it in Philly’ theme that they’re doing with a lot of their restaurant additions,” Redfern explained. In the last year, they’ve opened:
- Sabrina’s in Terminal C
- Elixir Coffee in the B/C food court area
- Oyster House and Federal Donuts & Chicken, opened in the last two months
“So that really gives passengers a taste of Philadelphia, even if they’re just connecting,” she said, adding that PHL is always trying to improve, especially with an anticipated spike in air and foot traffic for next year’s big events, including the 2026 FIFA World Cup, baseball’s All-Star Game and the country’s 250th anniversary.
“There’s always things that we can work on and make better,” she said. “We listen to things. We look at the customer feedback we received through email and social media or just talking to people in the terminals.”
‘It’s not good, but it’s not that bad’
Redfern hopes that the AirHelp survey won’t stop passengers from connecting through PHL.
“I think if people really just invest the time instead of just going off of a ranking, they’ll see what we’re doing here and that there’s a lot going on,” she said. ”They should try PHL, instead of just dismissing us without even looking into the airport.”
Mother-daughter travelers Jenny Incitti and Ceci Taylor said they were pleased with their PHL experience when arriving to visit family. They traveled in from Denver.
“We saw exactly where we needed to go to get our Uber to my nephew’s house,” Incitti said. “And there were good places to eat in the airport.”
The pair stopped at an airport bar, and ordered beers and fries loaded with bacon and cheese.
“There was a ball machine by the baggage claim,” Taylor said. “I loved that.”
Certainly, the “Celestial Balldergarten” might just be the best entertainment the Philly airport has to offer.
Kelly Carr, a Philly native who lives in Florida, flies about once a month and regularly visits family in the city.
“I think it’s definitely outdated, even though they’re trying to upgrade it,” she said of the airport. “They’ve got some new restaurants. The B and C renovated those terminals, but it just feels dirty a lot, like it just kind of has a grimy feel to it.”
Carr said that she was especially dismayed by the bathrooms.
“You can kind of tell how nice an airport is from how they keep their bathrooms, and it’s kind of gross from that standpoint,” she said.
Redfern said that the airport is currently working to update the bathrooms at PHL.
“We’re in the middle of a multi-year restroom renovation program, and we just finished Phase 5 of that, so we’ve opened eight reconstructed restroom sets – a men’s room, a women’s room and a companion care restroom,” she said. “We started Phase 6, and that’ll be 8 more restrooms that will open up next year.”
Even though Carr had some tough words about PHL, ultimately she didn’t think it should rank so low, especially compared to AirHelp’s second-worst rated airport.
“Fort Lauderdale. That is the worst airport in the world,” she said. “I’ve been in worse than Philly. Poor Philly. It’s not that bad. I’d say it’s not good, but it’s not that bad.”
Here are the survey’s best and worst lists, with their AirHelp score:
10 Best
- Salt Lake City Airport – 8.29
- Los Angeles Airport – 8.09
- Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport – 8.07
- Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson Airport – 7.97
- Portland Airport – 7.96
- Nashville Airport – 7.93
- Chicago Midway Airport – 7.93
- Austin Bergstrom Airport – 7.9
- Houston William P. Hobby Airport – 7.9
- Honolulu Daniel K Inouye Airport – 7.89
10 Worst
- Newark Liberty Airport – 7.25
- Fort Lauderdale Hollywood Airport – 7.38
- Philadelphia Airport – 7.41
- Detroit Metro Airport – 7.59
- Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport – 7.59
- Dallas Fort Worth Airport – 7.62
- New York La Guardia Airport – 7.63
- Tampa Airport – 7.65
- Boston Logan Airport – 7.66
- Chicago O’Hare Airport – 7.68
For the full report, visit: https://www.airhelp.com/en/airhelp-score/
