Best and Worst US Airports for Passenger Pickup

by Patrick Clarke
Last updated: 7:00 AM ET, Sun September 6, 2026

California is home to some of the easiest airports for passenger pickups, according to new research from Upgraded Points.

The Austin-based travel company analyzed the 50 largest U.S. airports across nine key factors related to congestion, waiting options, parking costs, flight reliability, ground movement, pickup configuration and proximity to the city center to reveal the most and least favorable airports when it comes to picking up an arriving traveler.

John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Santa Ana, California earned the highest score, posting an 85 out of 100. SNA was propelled by the fastest average arrivals in the study, with flights landing just 9.6 minutes behind schedule on average.

Upgraded Points' study took into consideration the estimated daily arriving passengers per terminal; average cell phone lot distance from terminal; cell phone lot availability; on-time arrival rate; average short-term parking cost for 30 minutes; average taxi-in time; rideshare pickup separation; average arrival delay and distance from the city center to the airport.

California's Bay Area also fared well in the study, with Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport (SJC) and Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK) earning scores of 82 or better.

According to Upgraded Points, SJC posted the shortest average taxi-in time at just 4.3 minutes, while OAK tied for the shortest average cell phone lot distance at just 0.6 miles from the terminal.

Best US Airports for Passenger Pickup

John Wayne Airport (SNA) - 85.0
Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport (SJC) - 84.6
Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK) - 82.4
San Antonio International Airport (SAT) - 79.5
Kahului Airport (OGG) - 78.9

On the other end of the spectrum, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) earns the dubious distinction as the worst airport for passenger pickup in 2026.

DFW's dismal score of 34.1 out of 100 was the result of poor performance across the board.

"DFW is 23 miles from the combined city center used in the analysis, and its cell phone lots are an average of 2.16 miles from the terminals," says Upgraded Points. "Arriving flights were delayed by an average of 20.8 minutes, while planes spent another 13.8 minutes taxiing to the gate after landing."

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) isn't far behind, earning a score of 34.2 in large part because it was one of only two airports analyzed without a designated free cell phone lot. Plus, DCA had the lowest on-time arrival rate in the study at 67.69%.