Lisbon Airport among the worst in the world

According to AirHelp's ranking, Portugal's airports are falling out of favour with critics, with Humberto Delgado Airport among the worst.

By Bruno G. Santos, in News · 10 Jun 2026, 16:03 · 4 Comments

In a list of 279 airports, Lisbon Airport ranks 274th. Among the reasons for this ranking is the high number of flights that continue to compromise the operational performance of the infrastructure; consequently, delays inherent in the aforementioned failures are also noted.

Faro Airport, in the Algarve, is the best-ranked Portuguese airport, occupying the 125th position, despite falling 7 positions from the 2025 ranking. According to AirHelp, "Faro consistently remains at the top nationally, benefiting from its lower traffic volume, which contributes to better punctuality rates."

Cristiano Ronaldo Airport in Madeira has fallen 61 places compared to 2025, now ranking 262nd due to lower scores for facilities and comfort.

On the other hand, Porto Airport has risen from 205th to 192nd place worldwide, with an improvement noted in passenger experience.

For the ranking, AirHelp considers factors such as punctuality, experience, facilities and comfort. 60% of the score is attributed to punctuality, and the remaining 40% is divided equally between the latter two criteria.

I have to agree on this. LIS is horrible. I’m a frequent flyer and work all over the world. Uses LIS several times a year and hates it every time because it’s totally chaotic and very poor in service. Build a new one ASAP and get in proper and experienced management.

By Marty from Algarve on 10 Jun 2026, 16:18

I agree … it’s

By Erik Rufer from Algarve on 11 Jun 2026, 11:04

LIS is TERRIBLE. The decision to build a new airport was taken 15 years too late. Apart from the overcrowding (which makes it even worse) it seems that airport "management" don't have a clue on making management decisions, only penny-pinching ones.
Much of the issues with LIS is that nobody in that management stands in the shoes of the customer and experiences what we have to go through.
Like the first commentator, I travel extensively and it is by far one of the worst I go through, (and that includes a number of airports in "Third World" Africa.
Even staff that do try to be friendly and assist always look harassed and pressured because of understaffing and poor coordination.
I hope Portugal does design and build a new airport to cope with todays' traffic??
They need to build an airport that anticipates what air traffic is likely to be in 2040-50, otherwise they will forever be a position of weakness and trying to play catch-up.

By Anthony Williams from Beiras on 11 Jun 2026, 11:05

I have been a frequent user of LIS for many years, flying to various destinations in Europe and Noth America. i readily admit that LIS is not the top airport in the world and I would be very hard pressed to identify that top airport. From my perspective, LIS is a very good airport from essentially all aspect related to departing from or arriving to Portugal. Over the last several years, particularly the last five years, I have noted that LIS is getting a bad rap and it keeps getting worse almost by the month. I fail to see or understand why this is so. The only possible explanation I can imagine for this LIS bashing is related to the potential new airport anticipated to replace LIS although this terrifyingly expensive project, at tax payer's expenses, does not quite seem to be a foregone conclusion. i rather believe that we are witnessing an organized movement by people who will strongly benefit financially through the construction a new airport at the expense of replacing LIS. The government will fund this project to a great if not full extent and any government project anywhere in the world makes numerous players rich. The only thing wrong with LIS is that it is not perfect, and no airport is.

By JC from Beiras on 11 Jun 2026, 16:07