This year’s Digital Airport Index North America captures the digital performance of the region’s top 50 airports. There have been many developments since we first started assessing digital trends in 2017. There are also some interesting differences between digital airport trends in North America compared to Europe.

In North America, airports are becoming more digital friendly and savvy. Through the introduction of additional online communication channels, real-time information and commerce offerings such as online shopping and interactive maps, many of the airports surveyed are proactively engaging their customers. Automation, biometrics and self-service offerings also saw large growth amongst airports, a trend that began before the pandemic, and will likely continue to escalate as airports react to passenger needs and expectations.

96% of airports already provide some form of automated passport control (compared with 50% in Europe).

96% of airports already provide self-service check-in (compared with 50% in Europe).

Over half of airports already provide self-service drop-off (compared with 50% in Europe).

Website design has gone through a lot of developments. Modern websites are responsive and work well (or best) on mobile.

We found that 78% of North American airport websites were responsive.

We also looked at the websites regarding accessibility. With digital tools, it should be easy to provide inclusive design—design that gets everybody on board.

While 90% of airports had an accessibility section on their website, only three out of five of the websites themselves were considered to be accessible by Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

The transition to digital for airport commerce is slow. While 80% of airports offer an interactive shopping catalogue, only seven airports offer ‘shop and collect’ services, and only six airports offer delivery of goods to the gate (either food or goods). With the rise of touchless experiences post-pandemic, we expect this service to grow in popularity.

Communicating with passengers through social media has become the standard. Nearly all North American airports have an Instagram account; 47 have a Facebook account, which allows communication via Facebook Messenger.

We foresee a future where this integration of social media and airport communication will be expanded to provide additional services, such as ordering food, as is the norm in other regions such as Asia.

Since we first published our findings in 2017, there have been some major shifts in rankings amongst North American airports. This is likely driven by changes in digital trends overall, with significant expansion of self-service offerings, automation and interactive services. E-commerce has also grown across the majority of airports, though there is still a lot of room for improvement in seamlessly connecting online and in-person experiences, such as delivery of food and goods to gate. Lastly, social media continues to be a core element of airports’ digital presence: Instagram, Facebook and chatbots help airport communicate with passengers and visitors.

Minneapolis−Saint Paul, previously in the middle of our rankings, has climbed to the top of the survey. Other notable improvements include LAX and HOU in the runner-up spot, both previously ranked in the bottom half, as well as both Newark and LaGuardia, which now places all major New York airports amongst the top rankings. In addition to JFK, mainstays like DFW, DEN, YYZ, and SFO have remained in the Top 3 rankings across the years. Previously top-ranked airports that are now absent from the top of the list include Orlando, Chicago O’Hare, Boston Logan and Fort Lauderdale. Congratulations, MSP!