These airlines are getting worse at baggage handling

Air travel can be exciting for many and stressful for some—but one thing no one wants to experience is losing track of luggage while trying to reach a final destination.

Many airlines are making efforts to improve luggage service. However, travelers can do several things to ensure their bags arrive at their location without incident or help recover misplaced luggage.

Tile used Department of Transportation data to identify the airlines mishandling more luggage than they did a year ago, comparing statistics from the summer travel season in 2023 and 2024.

There is good and bad news about the luggage that gets mishandled—meaning lost, damaged, delayed, or stolen—while in transit. The number of bags mishandled is low relative to the number of people traveling. According to the Department of Transportation, the approximately 876,000 bags that airlines mishandled during the summer of 2024 were less than the amount mishandled in the summer of 2023 by 20,000 bags. At the same time, three of the largest U.S. airlines—American, Alaska, and Delta—had more trouble getting bags to their destinations in 2024 than in 2023. They ranked first, second, and fourth worst ranks, respectively.

The data uncovered that the larger the airline, the worse the luggage service. Though United showed improved service, it ranked third among worst baggage handling. The other improving airlines included Hawaiian and JetBlue, a discount airline. Allegiant, another discount airline, came in 10th place in 2024.

Regardless of an airline’s baggage service status, travelers can be proactive in aiding their luggage to get to their destination smoothly by booking nonstop flights or flights with minimal layovers. Additionally, CNN writer Forrest Brown advises travelers to opt for discount airlines with better baggage handling services, arrive at the airport early, or take their luggage as a carry-on.

Also, people should consider photographing their luggage and packed items before traveling and using airline tracking. Another option is slipping a GPS or Bluetooth tracker into your luggage to help electronically pinpoint its location with your phone.

If travelers have lost track of their luggage and have confirmed it’s missing, Harrison Pierce, in an article for Travel + Leisure, suggests filing a missing baggage report with the airline to begin the retrieval process. The Department of Transportation has set reimbursement for lost, damaged, or delayed bags at $3,800 for domestic flights and $1,700 for international, depending on the airline.

Keep reading to learn which three airlines are worsening regarding luggage handling—and which three are improving.

Rob Carr // Getty Images

Worsening airlines

American Airlines Network
– Mishandled bags: 296,570 (10.1 per 1K bags)
– Overall rank: #1 worst at baggage handling
– Change from 2023 season: +36,684 (+0.7 per 1K bags)

Alaska Airlines Network
– Mishandled bags: 62,515 (7.6 per 1K bags)
– Overall rank: #2 worst at baggage handling
– Change from 2023 season: +8,922 (+1.1 per 1K bags)

Delta Air Lines Network
– Mishandled bags: 159,524 (5.9 per 1K bags)
– Overall rank: #4 worst at baggage handling
– Change from 2023 season: +5,067 (+0.1 per 1K bags)

Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle // Getty Images

Improving airlines

United Airlines Network
– Mishandled bags: 146,907 (7.4 per 1K bags)
– Overall rank: #3 worst at baggage handling
– Change from 2023 season: -38,741 (-2.1 per 1K bags)

Jetblue Airways
– Mishandled bags: 13,511 (3.9 per 1K bags)
– Overall rank: #3 best at baggage handling
– Change from 2023 season: -10,501 (-2.0 per 1K bags)

Hawaiian Airlines
– Mishandled bags: 5,427 (3.2 per 1K bags)
– Overall rank: #2 best at baggage handling
– Change from 2023 season: -3,030 (-2.0 per 1K bags)

Story editing by Carren Jao. Additional editing by Kelly Glass. Copy editing by Kristen Wegrzyn.

This story originally appeared on Tile and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.