Complimentary Food and Beverage, Staff Interactions Drive Guest Satisfaction with Airport Lounges

American Express Centurion Lounge and Capital One Lounge Rank Highest in Overall Customer Satisfaction

• 45% of airport lounge guests are there to escape crowded airport terminals
• Complimentary food and beverage is top airport lounge benefit
• Lounge overcrowding negatively influences satisfaction

TROY, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With the price of a bottle of water in a U.S. airport now routinely topping $5, and airports more crowded than ever, air travelers have increasingly made the airport lounge the destination before the destination. According to the JD Power 2026 U.S. Airport Lounge Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, 39% of travelers are turning to airport lounges as a respite from high-priced food and beverage options in the airport terminal and 45% are using the lounges to escape crowds in the terminal.

“The airport lounge has become an oasis for travelers, but that oasis can sometimes become a mirage when lounges are overcrowded and people need to wait in line to gain access,” said Andrea Stokes, hospitality practice lead at JD Power. “With air travel demand as high as ever, the airport lounge customer experience is being challenged by crowded facilities and food and beverage offerings that do not always live up to expectations. As this segment of the airport economy continues to grow, it will be critical for lounge operators and their partners to continue to find ways to delight guests with higher quality food and beverage, and happier staff.”

Following are some key findings of the 2026 study:

• High-priced food and beverage in terminal drives lounge demand: The highest ranked benefit of lounge access is complimentary food and beverage, followed by comfortable seating. A total of 39% of lounge visitors say they visited the lounge due to the high cost of airport food and beverage.
• Some room for improvement on food and beverage: When asked to evaluate the quality of airport lounge food and beverage offerings, more than half (52%) say it was better than expected, while 44% say it was in line with what they expected and 4% say it is worse than expected, highlighting an opportunity for lounge operators to remain diligent when it comes to both food quality and variety.
• Staff plays major role in lounge experience: Staff service is a key component of overall lounge satisfaction, and the majority of lounge guests (77%) say they experience welcoming staff. However, just half of guests view lounge staff as happy (52%) and/or knowledgeable (51%).
• Overcrowding negatively affects guest satisfaction: Nearly half (46%) of guests say the lounge they use most often is usually moderately or severely crowded. Overall satisfaction scores among guests who say the airport lounge was “not at all crowded” is 833 (on a 1,000-point scale). That score falls to 589, a decrease of 244 points, when guests say the airport lounge is “severely crowded.”

Study Rankings

American Express Centurion Lounge and Capital One Lounge rank highest in customer satisfaction with a score of 771, in a tie. Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club (764) ranks third.

To view the complete visual rank charts, visit: http://www.jdpower.com/pr-id/2026081

The U.S. Airport Lounge Satisfaction Study measures customer satisfaction with airport lounges in the United States across eight core dimensions (in order of importance): value of experience; staff; food and beverage; cleanliness/upkeep; amenities; ease of accessing lounge; ambiance and Wi-Fi service. The 2026 study is based on responses gathered from 2,991 travelers who visited a U.S. airport lounge in the past year. The study was fielded from April through June 2026.

For more information about the U.S. Airport Lounge Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/airport-lounge-satisfaction-study.

About JD Power

JD Power delivers mission-critical data, analytics and intelligence that help businesses improve customer experience and operational performance with confidence and clarity. Using proprietary, comprehensive data–including millions of consumer interactions and authoritative automotive datasets–combined with advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and deep industry expertise, JD Power enables leaders to respond to market shifts, make smarter decisions and drive measurable performance improvements.

As an objective source of deep insight into real-world customer interactions with brands and products, JD Power provides the independent intelligence organizations need to anticipate change, strengthen customer engagement and advance growth. Learn more at JDPower.com.