In 2024, roughly 1 in 5 flights in the U.S. was either delayed or canceled, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). The good news — relatively speaking — is that cancellations were far less frequent than delays. Only 1.3% of flights on U.S. airlines in 2024 were canceled, compared with 19.96% that were delayed. Still, nearly 59,000 flights were canceled overall, leaving a lot of passengers stranded at the airport — a scenario travelers look to avoid at all costs. We dug into the data to find out which major U.S. airlines had the highest (and lowest) rates of canceled flights in 2024. Check out the results below, ranked from worst to best.
10. Frontier Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights in 2024: 2.56%
Number of canceled flights in 2024: 3,252
Denver-based Frontier Airlines, an ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC), had the highest rate of canceled flights in 2024 among the 10 largest airlines in the U.S. The airline also had the highest rate of delayed flights (27.78%). So, while you may be scoring a great airfare when you fly Frontier, you’ll probably want to pack a little extra patience and flexibility when it comes time to travel.
9. Spirit Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights: 2.40%
Number of canceled flights: 3,665
Spirit Airlines joined its rival Frontier at the bottom of the rankings for canceled flights in 2024. However, because Spirit (like Frontier) is one of the smaller major airlines in the U.S., the total number of passengers affected by those cancellations was still relatively low. Spirit flew around 152,000 flights in 2024, far fewer than larger carriers like American, which operated over 1.1 million flights.
8. Allegiant Air
Percentage of canceled flights: 2.37%
Number of canceled flights: 1,664
Allegiant Air, also a budget airline, operated about half the number of flights that Spirit did in 2024, but its cancellation rate was similar. While budget carriers like Allegiant maximize their fleet utilization to keep costs (and fares) low, you may have trouble getting rebooked in the event of a cancellation, since many of their routes are operated only several times per week.
7. JetBlue Airways
Percentage of canceled flights: 1.76%
Number of canceled flights: 2,433
New York City-based JetBlue operates its largest hubs in the Northeast, which is home to some of the country’s most congested airspace and is frequently subject to air traffic control restrictions. While JetBlue wasn’t quite at the bottom of the pack for its percentage of canceled flights, it did have the second-highest rate of flight delays of any major U.S. airline. In 2024, nearly 25% of JetBlue flights arrived at their destinations late.
6. United Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights: 1.37%
Number of canceled flights: 11,286
American, Delta, and United are considered the big three “legacy” airlines in the U.S. These rivals all had similar cancellation rates in 2024, though United’s was the worst of the three — more than 11,000 flights were canceled across the airline’s expansive route network.
5. American Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights: 1.38%
Number of canceled flights: 15,774
Although American Airlines ranked in the middle of the pack for cancellation rates, it did have the highest overall number of canceled flights, thanks to the airline’s large network. (It is the world’s largest airline by passengers carried.) In terms of delayed flights, American was the worst of the big three legacy airlines, with a 76.47% on-time arrival rate in 2024.
4. Delta Air Lines
Percentage of canceled flights: 1.40%
Number of canceled flights: 13,062
While Delta fared better than most airlines for cancellations, even more impressive is the fact that the Atlanta-based airline had the second-best on-time performance among the top 10 U.S. airlines in 2024. Over 81% of the airline’s flights arrived on schedule. Many of them departed or arrived at Atlanta’s Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, Delta’s largest hub and the world’s busiest airport.
3. Hawaiian Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights: 0.80%
Number of canceled flights: 372
Travelers heading to paradise on Hawaiian Airlines didn’t have much to worry about on their journeys, either. The Aloha State’s hometown carrier canceled fewer than 1% of its flights in 2024, which amounted to only 372 flights total. The sunny Hawaiian weather also helped Hawaiian achieve the best on-time performance of any major U.S. airline, with 86.1% of flights arriving on time.
2. Alaska Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights: 0.77%
Number of canceled flights: 1,922
Alaska Airlines, which recently acquired Hawaiian Airlines, had the second-lowest cancellation rate among U.S. airlines in 2024. The airline recently launched transpacific flights from its Seattle hub for the first time; flights to Tokyo’s Narita Airport took off in May 2025, soon to be joined by flights to Seoul’s Incheon Airport later this year.
1. Southwest Airlines
Percentage of canceled flights: 0.63%
Number of canceled flights: 5,260
Southwest Airlines has been in the headlines a lot lately — mostly for its plans to charge for checked bags for the first time and to do away with its long-standing open seating policy in favor of assigned seats for a fee. But there is at least some good news for the Dallas carrier: It had the lowest cancellation rate among major U.S. airlines in 2024 — even more impressive when you take into account that Southwest operated over 830,000 flights during the year.
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