Liverpool John Lennon Airport ranked best in the UK as Manchester Airport named worst - full list

Liverpool John Lennon Airport has been named the best airport in the UK and earned Which? Recommended Provider status for the second consecutive year. 

The ranking is based on customer ratings and Which? asked members to complete an online survey about their experiences of flying from and to UK airports in the last year. The results are based on almost 4,000 customer opinions, with Liverpool Airport earning a customer score of 82%.

Customers praised their experience at the airport as “first class” and gave it five stars for check-in and security queues, indicating an uncommonly hassle-free experience. One traveller said it was a “well run, efficient airport” while another lauded it as their “preferred” airport.

What were customers asked?

Customers were asked to rate queues, baggage reclaim, seating, staff, price in shops, range of shops and toilets. All were rated out of five stars.

Liverpool John Lennon Airport Which? rating

• Queues at check-in: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Queues at bag drop: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Queues at security: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Queues at passport control: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Baggage reclaim: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Seating: ⭐⭐⭐
• Staff: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Price in shops: ⭐⭐⭐
• Range of shops: ⭐⭐⭐
• Toilets: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The airport had some of the lowest security waiting times of any in the survey, with an average estimated queue of just 11 minutes, beaten by Aberdeen and Southampton, which both had average waits of nine minutes, and London City with an average wait of ten.

The general trend is that smaller airports received better ratings, with smaller queues and easy navigation.

Manchester Airport rating

On the other end of the scale was Manchester Airport, rated the worst in the UK with a customer score of just 38% for Terminal 3 and 44% for Terminal 1. Manchester’s Terminal 2 fared marginally better, but still found itself in the bottom five with a score of 50%.

However, a spokesperson for Manchester Airport said The Which? survey ‘creates a deeply flawed and misleading picture’ adding: “Not only is the Which? survey out of date, it is also based on a tiny and unrepresentative sample of the 25 million passengers who travel through Manchester airport every year.

“We surveyed 840 passengers in July and August this year, and 94% rated their overall satisfaction with the service they received as either good, very good or excellent. Since April this year, we have welcomed more than 10.4m people through Manchester Airport and 95.6% of them have got through security in under 15 minutes. Almost three quarters got through security in under five minutes and 99.8% in under 30 minutes.”

Which? Travel’s best and worst airports

1. Liverpool John Lennon - 82% customer score
2. London City - 78%
3. Southampton - 77%
4. Bournemouth - 75%
5. East Midlands - 72%
6. Newcastle - 72%
7. Glasgow International - 62%
8. Leeds Bradford - 58%
9. London Gatwick North - 57%
10. London Heathrow T4 - 57%
11. London Heathrow T5 - 57%
12. Bristol - 56%
13. Aberdeen - 55%
14. Edinburgh - 55%
15. London Gatwick South - 54%
16. London Heathrow T2 - 54%
17. London Heathrow T3 - 54%
18. Birmingham  - 53%
19. London Stansted - 51%
20. Manchester T2 - 50%
21. Belfast International - 49%
22. London Luton - 49%
23. Manchester T1 - 44%
24. Manchester T3 - 38%

Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel said: “Choosing the right airport isn’t often high on travellers’ holiday checklists, but taking the time to think about where you’re flying from can really pay dividends. We’d recommend opting for a smaller airport, as our survey shows they generally tend to perform better on queue times and customer service, giving holidaymakers the positive start to their holidays they should expect.”