In Which?’s annual airline survey for best and worst airline rankings for 2024, Wizz Air received just one star for seat comfort and cabin atmosphere and just two stars for all other categories. This is the second year in a row that Wizz Air ended lower than Ryanair.
Wizz charges £90 in addition to the price of a roundtrip ticket for travelers who place a small luggage in an overhead locker, despite the service’s seemingly low headline price. Also, compared to other airlines, Wizz is more likely to divide up groups of passengers who don’t pay for seat preference.
With the help of Which?’s survey, you can evaluate your preferred airlines on a variety of factors, including in-flight entertainment and food and drink, boarding procedures, and cabin cleanliness. What matters even more is the support you’ll get in case something goes wrong. Air travel is inevitably fraught with delays and cancellations; nevertheless, certain airlines will provide assistance in the event of such issues, while others won’t.
Jet2 has once again been rated the UK’s best short-haul airline. It gets five stars for customer service, and while its headline fares aren’t always as low as budget rivals, it can work out cheaper when you factor in the free cabin bag allowance.
On long haul, once again the Asian and Middle Eastern airlines are far better than most of their European and American rivals. Virgin Atlantic is the notable, impressive exception. Singapore and Emirates at the top of our long-haul table stand out for spotless planes, excellent entertainment systems and friendly service. Emirates, however, has far more routes from the UK, including from Birmingham, Newcastle and Manchester. Emirates is punctual too, with three quarters of flights arriving less than 15 minutes late. The only smirch on its reputation – and of most other luxury, long-haul carriers – is its ‘no-show’ clause. Its terms give it the right to cancel your return ticket if you miss the outbound leg. That’s unfair to people who want to simply take the next flight and return as planned, so we haven’t made either airline a Which? Recommended Provider.
Jet2 scores as the best airline
Jet2 consistently ranks as a leading airline in the UK, as evidenced by passenger feedback in our surveys, demonstrating significant progress in recent years. The airline’s exceptional five-star customer service rating distinguishes it within a competitive market, particularly among budget holiday routes traditionally dominated by easyJet and Ryanair. Feedback highlights Jet2’s commitment to maintaining clean, well-kept cabins and ensuring an organized boarding process.
Eighty percent of travelers say they had no problems during their trips, indicating that most customers of Jet2 receive flawless service. When problems do occur, they are usually handled with excellent promptness and a warm disposition.
Even though Jet2’s rates might not always seem the cheapest at first, the value case is strengthened by the fact that easyJet and Ryanair don’t usually include a reasonably-sized cabin bag in the ticket price. In terms of value for money, Jet2 has received a four-star rating thanks to this and favorable customer comments.
Wizz Air scores as the worst airline
Wizz Air faced significant challenges in 2022, leading to numerous customer disputes over unpaid expenses and compensation claims. These issues persisted, with enforcement actions initiated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in July 2023 due to substantial complaints and non-compliance with passenger rights. Despite Wizz Air addressing these concerns by refunding £1.24 million in outstanding expenses, and the CAA acknowledging these efforts, feedback suggests that concerns remain.
Wizz Air receives low ratings for both customer service and seat comfort; in fact, it performs worse than Ryanair in these evaluations. Notably, of all the airlines questioned, the biggest percentage of passengers (44%), said they were having problems. Moreover, the financial consequences for passengers, specifically with regards to baggage charges, lessen its allure as an affordable choice for tourists who are carrying even a little amount of luggage.
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