What the World Airline Awards are
Skytrax hosted the 2026 World Airline Awards, the most recent edition, announced at a gala ceremony on September 18, 2026, at the Langham Hotel in London. Skytrax says the World Airline Awards began in 1999.
Skytrax says it pays for the customer survey and the awards event itself, and that airlines pay nothing to be included in the survey, to attend the awards or to use the award logos.
How Skytrax says it picks winners
Skytrax says the 2026 results come from a customer survey that ran from September 2025 to August 2026.
- Voters: Customers of more than 100 nationalities took part. Skytrax does not publish a number of respondents, and respondents are not paid or rewarded.
- Questions: Customers nominate their favorite airline and rate their satisfaction, on a 1 to 5 scale, with parts of the trip at the airport and on board. Value for money has always been part of the survey.
- Airlines covered: Any airline in the world can be nominated. More than 300 airlines are included in the 2026 results.
- Weighting: Skytrax weights the data by airline passenger numbers so that airlines of different sizes are compared fairly. Online entries are screened, and duplicate or ineligible entries are deleted.
Where airlines placed in the business class award
Qatar Airways is No. 1 in the Skytrax "World’s Best Business Class Airlines 2026" ranking. Skytrax says 2026 is the thirteenth time Qatar Airways has won the "World’s Best Business Class Airline" title.
- Places 1 to 5: Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways, ANA All Nippon Airways, Hainan Airlines.
- Places 6 to 10: Turkish Airlines, STARLUX Airlines, Air France, Japan Airlines, EVA Air.
- Places 11 to 20: Emirates, Virgin Atlantic, Delta Air Lines, Qantas Airways, Lufthansa, Etihad Airways, Iberia, Malaysia Airlines, British Airways, Austrian Airlines.
Category and regional winners
Category leaders in the 2026 awards:
- Seat: Qatar Airways is No. 1 in "Best Business Class Airline Seats 2026", and Skytrax names the Qatar Airways Q-Suite as the "World’s Best Business Class Seat".
- Lounge: Qatar Airways (DOH) is No. 1 in "Best Business Class Airline Lounges 2026" with the Al Mourjan Garden Lounge at Hamad International Airport, Doha.
- Onboard catering: Turkish Airlines won "Best Business Class Onboard Catering 2026" again.
- Lounge dining: Air Canada is No. 1 in "Best Business Class Airline Lounge Catering 2026" with the Signature Suite at Toronto Pearson (YYZ).
- Comfort amenities: Hainan Airlines is No. 1 in "Best Business Class Airline Comfort Amenities 2026".
The 2026 regional business class awards went to Delta Air Lines (North America), LATAM (South America), Turkish Airlines (Europe and Southern Europe), Qatar Airways (Middle East), Ethiopian Airlines (Africa), Singapore Airlines (Asia), Qantas Airways (Australia / Pacific), Hainan Airlines (China), Air Astana (Central Asia & CIS) and Air India (India / South Asia).
Winners with nonstop flights from the US or Canada
As of October 2026, the BookMyBusinessClass timetable lists nonstop routes from the US or Canada for nine of the business class top 10: Qatar Airways (11 routes), Singapore Airlines (5), Cathay Pacific (5), ANA (3), Turkish Airlines (11), STARLUX Airlines (2), Air France (17), Japan Airlines (7) and EVA Air (3). Hainan Airlines (No. 5) is not in that timetable.
As of October 2026, the BookMyBusinessClass timetable also lists nonstop routes from the US or Canada for nine of places 11 to 20 in the ranking: Emirates (14 routes), Virgin Atlantic (11), Delta Air Lines (64), Qantas Airways (5), Lufthansa (12), Etihad Airways (2), Iberia (2), British Airways (19) and Austrian Airlines (1). Malaysia Airlines (No. 18) is not in that timetable.
Among the 2026 regional business class winners and lounge winners outside the top 20, the BookMyBusinessClass timetable, as of October 2026, lists nonstop routes from the US or Canada for LATAM Airlines (4 routes), Ethiopian Airlines (1), Air India (2), Air Canada (21) and Air New Zealand (4). Air Astana is not in that timetable.
Using an award to choose a flight
A Skytrax award reflects a passenger survey, not a promise about a given flight.
- Check the aircraft and seat: Before booking, check the aircraft type and the business class seat shown for your specific flight. A seat award does not say which seat a given route uses.
- Match the category to your trip: Seat, lounge and catering are ranked separately. Each lounge award names one airport, such as Doha (DOH) for Qatar Airways or Toronto (YYZ) for Air Canada, so a lounge award applies only if your trip passes through that airport.