AirlineRatings.com, the world's only airline safety and product ratings website, lists the top 25 safest full-service airlines and safest low-cost airlines of 2025 from the 385 airlines it monitors. The top 25 companies have been announced.
Here are the top 25 full-service airlines of 2025, in order.
Air New Zealand
Qantas Airways
Cathay Pacific; Qatar Airways; Emirates
virgin australia
etihad airways
ANA
EVA Air
Korean Air
alaska airlines
Turkish Airlines (THY)
TAP Portugal
Hawaiian Airlines
american airlines
SAS
british airways
iberia
Finnair
Lufthansa/Switzerland
Japan Airlines
air canada
delta airlines
vietnam airlines
united airlines
AirlinesRatings.com CEO Sharon Petersen said: “Air New Zealand and Qantas are once again very close in first place, with only 1.50 points separating the airlines. Both airlines have the highest safety standards and Although they maintain pilot training, Air New Zealand has a younger fleet than Qantas, which separates them.
She added: “We tied for third place because we simply couldn't separate these airlines. From the age of the fleet to the skill of the pilots to safety practices to the size of the fleet to the number of accidents. All the way, the scores were the same.”
Compared to last year's list, the most important changes include the inclusion of Iberia and Vietnam Airlines (their first appearance on the list), and the entry of Korean Air into the top 10. Notable absences this year are Singapore Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Mr Petersen stressed that these airlines remain very safe and maintain a seven-star safety rating, but have narrowly missed out on that spot this year due to incidents that have occurred. .
Here are the top 25 safest low-cost airlines of 2025, in order.
hong kong express
jetstar group
ryanair
easyjet
frontier airlines
air asia
Wizz Air
vietjet airline
southwest airlines
Volaris
flydubai
norwegian
Vueling
jet 2
sun country airlines
waist jet
jet blue airlines
air arabia
indigo
eurowings
allegiant air
cebu pacific
zip air
sky airlines
air baltic
There was a big change compared to last year's list, with HK Express taking the top spot. The airline has had no major accidents and maintains a relatively perfect safety record. New to the list are Zipair, Jet2 and Air Baltic. A notable omission this year was Spirit Airlines, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2024 in an effort to restructure its finances and reduce debt.
How we rank the top 25 full-service and low-cost airlines
Consultation with check pilots and aviation experts supplements the following criteria to determine the world's safest airlines:
It is important to evaluate all these factors in the appropriate context. For example, if an airline with just 100 aircraft experiences 3 incidents, it would be of greater concern than an airline with 800 aircraft and 6 incidents. Additionally, financial instability within an airline can lead to significant operational challenges and automatically disqualify you as an airline candidate. Similarly, airlines found to be at fault for crashes or failing IOSA certification cannot be taken into account.
Another important factor is how incidents are managed. Incidents occur every day in the aviation industry, and the expertise of pilots and flight crews often determines whether an incident remains an incident or becomes a tragedy. The crash of JAL Flight 516 at Haneda Airport last year exemplified this, highlighting the importance of highly skilled crews and adherence to procedures. The crew effectively applied rigorous training and passengers followed safety protocols, including not leaving behind any baggage. With lesser capabilities, this incident could have led to a catastrophe. For us, incidents like this can actually strengthen the airline's safety profile.
It is also important to note that many incidents are due to manufacturing issues with the aircraft or engine, rather than operational issues. For example, on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, the door unplugged mid-flight, causing the cabin to rapidly depressurize. The investigation blamed the accident on a manufacturing defect and highlighted serious deficiencies in Boeing's quality control processes.
How safe are planes?
A recent airline safety study found that between 2018 and 2022, the global risk of death per flight was approximately 1 in 13.7 million. In comparison, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 1.19 million people will die from road accidents in 2023, which equates to more than two people dying every minute.
While these statistics support the relative safety of planes, more than 200 lives were lost in December 2024 alone, surpassing the 72 fatalities recorded by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 2023. significantly higher. Announcements such as the world's safest airlines help passengers make informed choices. .
To further help passengers make these informed decisions, Airline Ratings has teamed up with Skyscanner to launch a world-first service that allows users to search flights based on safety in addition to price and duration. introduced a flight booking platform. This innovative tool is designed to increase passenger confidence and can be accessed here.
About AirlinesRatings.com
Airlines Rating was formed by a team of aviation editors who have forensically investigated nearly every airline in the world, with the aim of providing people around the world with a one-stop shop for everything airline-related. Developed in 2012.
Over 230 airlines that carry 99% of the world's passengers have product ratings on the site. Because low-cost regional carriers and full-service carriers are very different, we have created different rating systems for each.
AirlineRatings.com, the world's only airline safety and product ratings website, lists the top 25 safest full-service airlines and safest low-cost airlines of 2025 from the 385 airlines it monitors. The top 25 companies have been announced.
Here are the top 25 full-service airlines of 2025, in order.
Air New Zealand
Qantas Airways
Cathay Pacific; Qatar Airways; Emirates
virgin australia
etihad airways
ANA
EVA Air
Korean Air
alaska airlines
Turkish Airlines (THY)
TAP Portugal
Hawaiian Airlines
american airlines
SAS
british airways
iberia
Finnair
Lufthansa/Switzerland
Japan Airlines
air canada
delta airlines
vietnam airlines
united airlines
AirlinesRatings.com CEO Sharon Petersen said: “Air New Zealand and Qantas are once again very close in first place, with only 1.50 points separating the airlines. Both airlines have the highest safety standards and Although they maintain pilot training, Air New Zealand has a younger fleet than Qantas, which separates them.
She added: “We tied for third place because we simply couldn't separate these airlines. From the age of the fleet to the skill of the pilots to safety practices to the size of the fleet to the number of accidents. All the way, the scores were the same.”
Compared to last year's list, the most important changes include the inclusion of Iberia and Vietnam Airlines (their first appearance on the list), and the entry of Korean Air into the top 10. Notable absences this year are Singapore Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Petersen stressed that these airlines remain very safe and maintain a seven-star safety rating, but they narrowly missed out on that spot this year due to incidents that have occurred.
Here are the top 25 safest low-cost airlines of 2025, in order.
hong kong express
jetstar group
ryanair
easyjet
frontier airlines
air asia
Wizz Air
vietjet airline
southwest airlines
Volaris
flydubai
norwegian
Vueling
jet 2
sun country airlines
waist jet
jet blue airlines
air arabia
indigo
eurowings
allegiant air
cebu pacific
zip air
sky airlines
air baltic
There was a big change compared to last year's list, with HK Express taking the top spot. The airline has had no major accidents and maintains a relatively perfect safety record. New to the list are Zipair, Jet2 and Air Baltic. A notable omission this year was Spirit Airlines, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2024 in an effort to rebuild its finances and reduce debt.
How we rank the top 25 full-service and low-cost airlines
Consultation with check pilots and aviation experts supplements the following criteria to determine the world's safest airlines:
It is important to evaluate all these factors in the appropriate context. For example, if an airline with just 100 aircraft experiences 3 incidents, it would be of greater concern than an airline with 800 aircraft and 6 incidents. Additionally, financial instability within an airline can lead to significant operational challenges and automatically disqualify you as an airline candidate. Likewise, airlines found at fault for crashes or IOSA certification failures cannot be taken into account.
Another important factor is how incidents are managed. Incidents occur every day in the aviation industry, and the expertise of pilots and flight crews often determines whether an incident remains an incident or becomes a tragedy. The crash of JAL Flight 516 at Haneda Airport last year exemplified this, highlighting the importance of highly skilled crews and adherence to procedures. The crew effectively applied rigorous training and passengers followed safety protocols, including not leaving behind any baggage. With lesser capabilities, this incident could have led to a catastrophe. For us, incidents like this can actually strengthen the airline's safety profile.
It is also important to note that many incidents are due to manufacturing issues with the aircraft or engine, rather than operational issues. For example, on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, the door unplugged mid-flight, causing the cabin to rapidly depressurize. The investigation blamed the accident on a manufacturing defect and highlighted serious deficiencies in Boeing's quality control processes.
How safe are planes?
A recent airline safety study found that between 2018 and 2022, the global risk of death per flight was approximately 1 in 13.7 million. In comparison, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 1.19 million people will die from road accidents in 2023, which equates to more than two people dying every minute.
While these statistics support the relative safety of planes, more than 200 lives were lost in December 2024 alone, surpassing the 72 fatalities recorded by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 2023. significantly higher. Announcements such as the world's safest airlines help passengers make informed choices. .
To further help passengers make these informed decisions, Airline Ratings has teamed up with Skyscanner to launch a world-first service that allows users to search flights based on safety in addition to price and duration. introduced a flight booking platform. This innovative tool is designed to increase passenger confidence and can be accessed here.
About AirlinesRatings.com
Airlines Rating was formed by a team of aviation editors who have forensically investigated nearly every airline in the world, with the aim of providing people around the world with a one-stop shop for everything airline-related. Developed in 2012.
Over 230 airlines that carry 99% of the world's passengers have product ratings on the site. Because low-cost regional carriers and full-service carriers are very different, we have created different rating systems for each.
