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Metro

DCA, Dulles and BWI All Rank Below Average in Customer Survey

The D.C. area’s three major airports fared poorly in customer satisfaction scores.

Dulles Airport parking AP - 25311091484350

Francis Chung/POLITICO/AP

By Kendall Staton

September 18, 2026 11:47 a.m.

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Don’t expect to see a lot of happy faces in a D.C.-area airport.

The region’s three airports each ranked below average in a new customer satisfaction survey from analytics company J.D. Power. The list is based on responses from nearly 25,000 travelers to questions about “wayfinding,” terminal facilities, airport staff and retail shops.

Airports are ranked among others of a similar size. All three in the D.C.-area were considered in the “large” category with 10 to 32.9 million annual passengers.

Locally, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport had the best ranking, though it still came in the bottom third of the list, taking spot 18 out of 24 for large airports. Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport came in right behind that in slot 19, and Washington Dulles International Airport ranked the worst of the local options at 21 on the list.

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DCA and BWI both recently completed renovation projects. Dulles is up next, with a $22.5 billion makeover spearheaded by President Donald Trump slated to begin next year.

When the project was announced, Trump called Dulles “one of the worst airports anywhere in the world” and said neither Republicans or Democrats want to “be subject to this airport because this airport is a terrible place to be.”

Reagan National Airport is still dealing with the aftermath of a fatal 2025 collision that killed 67 people and drew attention to high-density flight traffic. The runway is one of the busiest in the nation. Virginia’s senators introduced a bill to Congress proposing limiting flights at the airport to improve safety.

Author

Kendall Staton Kendall Staton is a reporter at The Washington Sun.

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