Flying economy usually means accepting a few things: a tight seat, a tiny bag of pretzels and an armrest you’ll be fighting your neighbour for. But one Canadian airline keeps showing travellers it doesn’t have to be that way.
USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for 2026 are out, and for the third year in a row, the title of best economy class went to Porter Airlines.
The Toronto-based airline beat out some of the biggest names in the world, including Singapore Airlines, Delta and Cathay Pacific. Air Canada and WestJet, meanwhile, didn’t make the top 10 at all.
A three-year winning streak
First established in 2006, Porter has been climbing this list for a while. It ranked seventh in 2021 and third in 2023, before taking the top spot for the first time in 2024. It held on to first place last year, and now it’s done it again.
In its write-up, USA Today calls Porter “a bit of a hidden gem in the North American aviation industry,” pointing to its comfortable seats, snacks and drinks, including local wine and beer.
Porter has made a point of leaning into the economy experience. The airline doesn’t have middle seats on any of its flights, and passengers get complimentary snacks, plus beer and wine served in real glassware. Porter flies across Canada and the U.S., including out of Montreal.
How the ranking works
The airlines in the running were first nominated by a panel of travel experts, then readers voted for their favourites.
There’s even a Montreal connection on this year’s panel. Melanie Reffes, a Montreal-based travel writer who pens the “From the Window Seat” column for The Suburban, was one of the experts who helped choose the nominees.
The world’s best economy class airlines for 2026
- Porter Airlines
- Air New Zealand
- JetBlue
- Cathay Pacific
- SWISS
- Singapore Airlines
- Southwest Airlines
- Alaska Airlines
- Delta Air Lines
- United Airlines
There was plenty of movement on the rest of the list this year. Air New Zealand climbed from fourth to second, while Southwest, last year’s runner-up, slipped to seventh. SWISS, Alaska Airlines and United were all new additions, while Turkish Airlines, American Airlines and Air France dropped out of the top 10.
AI tools may have been used to support the creation or distribution of this content; however, it has been carefully edited and fact-checked by a member of MTL Blog’s Editorial team. For more information on our use of AI, please visit our Editorial Standards page.