Flight Check

SEA Airport Complaints — Which Airlines Have the Most Issues

Complaint rates for 9 airlines operating at Seattle-Tacoma International in Seattle.

Weighted Avg Rate

3.7/100K

Airlines Tracked

9

Top Issue

Customer Service

vs. Industry

55% below

Airline Complaint Rates at SEA

Ranked by DOT complaint rate per 100,000 passengers. Rates reflect each airline's nationwide complaint data, contextualized by their presence at Seattle-Tacoma International.

1Frontier Airlines(F9)
23.2/100K
5,879 total complaintsTop issue: Refunds
2Spirit Airlines(NK)
12.9/100K
4,480 total complaintsTop issue: Flight Problems
3JetBlue Airways(B6)
10.5/100K
5,182 total complaintsTop issue: Flight Problems
4American Airlines(AA)
7.9/100K
12,808 total complaintsTop issue: Baggage
5United Airlines(UA)
6.9/100K
11,156 total complaintsTop issue: Flight Problems
6Delta Air Lines(DL)
4.1/100K
7,139 total complaintsTop issue: Flight Problems
7Hawaiian Airlines(HA)
3.7/100K
872 total complaintsTop issue: Flight Problems
8Alaska Airlines(AS)
2.5/100K
1,828 total complaintsTop issue: Customer Service
9Southwest Airlines(WN)
1.5/100K
3,165 total complaintsTop issue: Baggage

Source: DOT Air Travel Consumer Report, 2024. Rates are nationwide per-airline figures.

Monthly Complaint Trend at SEA (2024)

3.7
Jan
3.5
Feb
3.5
Mar
3.5
Apr
3.5
May
4.0
Jun
4.2
Jul
4.2
Aug
3.5
Sep
3.5
Oct
3.5
Nov
3.9
Dec

Weighted average complaint rate per 100K passengers by month. Red bars exceed the industry average (8.2).

Top Complaint Categories at SEA

Customer Service47%
Flight Problems39%
Baggage13%
Refunds1%

Weighted by airline flight volume at SEA. Categories reflect the most frequently reported issue type for each airline.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which airline gets the most complaints at SEA?

Frontier Airlines has the highest complaint rate among airlines operating at Seattle-Tacoma International at 23.2 per 100,000 passengers. However, complaint rates reflect the airline's nationwide performance, not issues specific to SEA.

What is the overall complaint environment at SEA?

The weighted average complaint rate for airlines at Seattle-Tacoma International is 3.7 per 100K passengers, which is 55% below the industry average of 8.2 per 100K. The most common complaint category is customer service.

How do I file a complaint about an experience at SEA?

If your complaint is about an airline, file with the DOT at airconsumer.dot.gov or use Flight Check's Disruption Desk (flightcheck.live/disruption-desk) to generate a complaint letter and check what you're owed. For airport facility issues (parking, terminals, security lines), contact the airport authority directly.

Does SEA cause more airline complaints than other airports?

Airport-level complaint data from the DOT is reported by airline, not by airport. The data shown here reflects the complaint rates of airlines that operate at SEA, weighted by their flight volume. Airports with more low-cost carriers tend to have higher aggregate complaint rates.

Compare Other Airports

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Source: DOT Air Travel Consumer Report, January–December 2024. Complaint rates are per-airline nationwide figures weighted by flight volume at SEA.