For nervous fliers who grip their armrests at every bump, the reassurance that air travel is the safest mode of transportation often falls flat. While no ranking can eliminate in-flight jitters, the annual list of the world’s safest airlines from Airline Ratings offers a helpful guide for those seeking extra peace of mind in the skies.Annually, aviation experts from the site evaluate nearly 400 airlines based on various safety criteria, including serious incidents over the past two years, overall incident rates, recent fatal accidents, regulatory audits, fleet age and size, pilot training standards, and financial stability.ALSO READ: Fasten your seatbelts. These are the world’s 10 most turbulent flight routesThat last category might sound irrelevant, but “financial instability within an airline can lead to significant operational challenges, automatically disqualifying it as a candidate” for the list, according to Airline Ratings CEO Sharon Petersen.25 safest low-cost airlinesAirline Ratings’ report analyzes the safety credentials of low-cost carriers around the world, an aviation category which gets its own annual list. This year, IndiGo secured the 19th spot on the list.ALSO READ: Have travel anxiety? These seats on an aircraft have the highest fatality rateFive budget carriers from the US were included in the top 25: Frontier (number 5), Southwest (9), Sun Country (15), JetBlue (17), and Allegiant Air (21), which made the list again after being cut in 2024. Spirit Airlines, which has consistently ranked on the list for several years, was left off of the 2025 edition due to its recent bankruptcy filing.ALSO READ: Long weekends in 2025 & where to travelThe first place low-cost ranking went to Hong Kong Express, a newcomer debuting on this year’s list. The fast-growing airline, which is a subsidiary of Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific, hasn’t “had any serious incidents and maintains a relatively flawless safety record,” according to Airline Ratings. Other newbies joining the ranks this year are Japanese carrier Zipair (23), UK airline Jet2 (14), and Latvian carrier Air Baltic (25).Hong Kong ExpressJetstar GroupRyanaireasyJetFrontier AirlinesAirAsiaWizz AirVietJet AirSouthwest AirlinesVolarisflydubaiNorwegianVuelingJet2Sun Country AirlinesWestJetJetBlue AirwaysAir ArabiaIndiGoEurowingsAllegiant AirCebu PacificZipAirSKY AirlineAir BalticTop 25 safest airlines in the worldAir New ZealandQantasCathay Pacific; Qatar Airways; EmiratesVirgin AustraliaEtihad AirwaysANAEVA AirKorean AirAlaska AirlinesTurkish Airlines (THY)TAP PortugalHawaiian AirlinesAmerican AirlinesSASBritish AirwaysIberiaFinnairLufthansa/SwissJALAir CanadaDelta AirlinesVietnam AirlinesUnited Airlines