ACI World reveals best airports for customer experience in 2025
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While there are no great surprises around the winners of ACI World’s ASQ Customer Experience Awards for 2025, arguably the fact that multiple airports shared the top accolades in the different categories showed the commitment of the world’s airports to enhancing the passenger experience.
The awards covered all size of airports from the biggest to the smallest with the range of categories including the airports with the most dedicated staff and those offering the easiest journey to the most enjoyable and cleanest.
In total 100 airports worldwide were recognised for excellence in passenger experience, with 195 awards presented.
The results come amid continued traffic growth, with global passenger volumes expected to reach 9.8 billion in 2025 and projected to rise to 10.2 billion in 2026 – placing increasing pressure on airports to deliver efficient, welcoming, and high-quality experiences at scale.
“Airports are demonstrating that passenger satisfaction can continue to rise despite growing pressure,” said ACI World director general, Justin Erbacci.
“These awards reflect the collective efforts of airport teams and stakeholders worldwide.
“As we celebrate the ASQ programme’s 20th Anniversary, we recognise two decades of trusted insights and recognition that have helped airports create better and more memorable journeys. Congratulations to all the ACI ASQ Customer Experience Award winners for their unwavering dedication to passenger experience.”
HIGHLIGHTS
• Passenger satisfaction increased globally despite continued traffic growth
• Nearly 707,000 passengers surveyed worldwide, in real time
• More than half of the world’s air travellers passed through an ASQ-rated airport
• Border and Passport Control recorded the largest satisfaction gains globally
• Airport ambience and cleanliness were the strongest drivers of overall satisfaction.
“Air travel is evolving at pace, with passengers expecting more seamless and rewarding experiences than ever before,” said Pedro Alves, SITA’s senior vice president of borders, the gold sponsor of the awards.
“These awards recognise the exceptional work happening across airports every day.”
WHAT’S DRIVING CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
According to ACI World, the 2025 ASQ results show that passengers increasingly value clean, welcoming airport environments and smooth, human-centred interactions.
Improvements in Border and Passport Control, it says, highlight the critical role of frontline staff in reducing stress and uncertainty at key moments of the journey.
These findings align closely with insights from the ASQ 2026 Global Traveller Survey Report.
