These Are the Best Travel Apps, According to J.D. Power

The travel app with the highest customer satisfaction score is World of Hyatt. That’s according to the first-ever U.S Travel App Satisfaction Study from J.D. Power. And according to the report, there’s much room for travel apps in general to improve.

Overall, average scores for three travel groups—hotels, online travel agencies (OTA), and rental car companies—are at 849 on a 1,000-point scale. And the overall score for airline apps (840) falls below scores for such financial groups as credit cards (874) and retail banking (867). Scores are based on “the key variables that influence customer choice, satisfaction and loyalty,” as measured by: clarity of information provided; ease of navigation; overall appearance, speed of screens loading; and range of services/activities.

The Best Travel Apps Overall

J.D. Power also found a substantial range of scores within each travel category (more on them below). The stand-outs were:

• World of Hyatt (867)
• Orbitz (866)
• JetBlue (864)
• National Car Rental (860)

The Best Airline Apps

JetBlue is tops, with a score of 864, but Southwest is close behind, at 861, and Alaska is next at 849. It’s not surprising; those three lines seem to be or near at the top of most airline ratings. Delta, at 844, is still above the airline average of 840, dragged down by American at 823 and United at 815, which had the lowest satisfaction score in the entire travel group. Satisfaction with airline apps seems to follow the pattern of overall scores.

The Best Hotel Apps

World of Hyatt tops the list, at 867, followed by IHG at 855; the next three are closely bunched with Hilton Honors at 853, Marriott Rewards at 852, and Wyndham Rewards at 848, also close to the group average of 849. The bottom of the list includes Choice at 841 and Best Western to Go at 839. The list also includes Starwood, at 827, still independent at the time of the study but no longer a separate brand from Marriott.

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The Best Online Travel Agency (OTA) Apps

Orbitz ranks on top, at 866, followed by Priceline, at 859. Expedia at 847 and Travelocity at 844 are close to the group average of 849. CheapOair, at 827, scores lowest of the group.

The Best Car Rental Company Apps

National, at 860, and stablemate Enterprise, at 854, share top places. Hertz, at 844, is close to the group average of 844; followed by Avis at 841 and Budget at 826.

Overall, you might think that a difference of, say, the 12 points out of 1,000 that separate second place Southwest from third place Alaska, is not statistically significant. But Power does, in fact, consider those small differences important enough to warrant the rankings and evaluations.

More from SmarterTravel:

• 27 Best Apps for Solo Travelers
• 8 Best Health Apps for Travelers
• 12 Best Travel Gadgets for Any Trip in 2019

Consumer advocate Ed Perkins has been writing about travel for more than three decades. The founding editor of the Consumer Reports Travel Letter, he continues to inform travelers and fight consumer abuses every day at SmarterTravel.