Ranked: The 17 Worst Travel Annoyances On A Plane

What bothers you most when you're flying? Armrest hogs? Aggressive recliners? Stinky seatmates? Genfare — a company that works with transportation companies to update and improve systems for collecting transit fares — decided to get to the bottom of things. In a new study of 2,000 Americans who fly at least twice per year, the company identified the 17 top travel annoyances for airline passengers. The survey also looked at trains and automobiles.

“Getting from point A to point B has never been easier, thanks to technology. However, we all know that the one aspect we can’t always control is the bad travel behavior of fellow passengers," says Tara Farnsworth, director of marketing at Genfare. "We were curious to find out which of these travel annoyances tops the list not just for airline travel, but also for the traveling and commuting we do on a daily basis.”

The survey also got the definitive answers to some other travel topics that plague us. The majority of survey respondents (64%) agree that it’s o.k. for passengers to take their shoes off, though taking your socks off isn't as acceptable. Only 20% approve of going barefoot on a flight.

How do you deal with an annoying passenger? Putting on headphones tops the list , at 35%, according to the survey, while 27% tell the flight attendant, 25% sit quietly and only 11% confront the person.

In addition to the published study, we also got Genfare to break out how women feel about travel behavior versus men — and the results might surprise you. “Men and women have a lot in common when it comes to airline annoyances. The top airline annoyance for both is having their seat kicked, and they're similarly annoyed by body odor and crying children," says Farnsworth. "However, women are slightly more annoyed by inattentive parents, and having their seat pulled back or leaned on, while they're more tolerant of snoring and drunk passengers than men.”

Read on: This is the list of 17 most annoying inflight travel habits, ranked in order, as well as the breakout for women and the list of annoyances for public transportation and ride-sharing services.

Ranked: 17 Airplane Travel Annoyances, Overall

1. Getting Seat Kicked - 54%
2. Crying Baby/Child - 27%
3. Body Odor - 26%
4. Talkative Passenger - 23%
5. Inattentive Parents - 21%
6. Drunk Passenger - 18%
7. Getting Your Seat Pulled Back or Leaned on - 17%
8. Snoring Passenger- 15%
9. People Rushing to Get off Plane as Soon as it Gets to the Gate - 15%
10. Passenger Reclining Seat - 15%
11. Putting Feet up or Between Seats - 13%
12. Bringing Smelly Food on Flight - 11%
13. Man-Spreading (a.k.a sitting with legs wide apart) - 7%
14. Passenger Removing Shoes or Socks - 6%
15. Bright Screens on Phones or iPads During Nighttime Flights - 3%
16. Non-Service Dogs - 2%
17. Dressing Sloppy (ie. wearing pajamas/sweatpants on flight) - 1%

What Bothers Women: Airplane Travel Annoyances

And here's the list of what bugged women the most, ranked in order. We also listed the percentage of men who said each habit was annoying, just for perspective:

1. Getting Seat Kicked - 57.51% for women; 51.13% for men
2. Body Odor - 26.28% for women; 26.40% for men
3. Crying Baby/Child - 24.83% for women; 31.63% for men
4. Talkative Passenger - 23.63% for women; 23.78% for men
5. Inattentive Parents - 22.18% for women; 20.93% for men
6. Getting Your Seat Pulled Back or Leaned on - 20.73% for women; 12.49% for men
7. Drunk Passenger - 15.70% for women; 21.76% for men
8. People Rushing to Get off Plane as Soon as it Gets to the Gate - 15.70% for women; 15.10% for men
9. Passenger Reclining Seat - 15.36% for women; 14.98% for men
10. Putting Feet up or Between Seats - 15.10% for women; 11.18% for men
11. Snoring Passenger - 12.63% for women; 19.02% for men
12. Bringing Smelly Food on Flight - 11.26% for women; 11.89% for men
13. Man-Spreading (a.k.a sitting with legs wide apart) - 8.53% for women; 4.88% for men
14. Passenger Removing Shoes or Socks - 7.08% for women; 6.66% for men
15. Bright Screens on Phones or iPads During Nighttime Flights - 4.01% for women; 2.97% for men
16. Non-Service Dogs - 2.30% for women; 2.97% for men
17. Dressing Sloppy (ie. wearing pajamas/sweatpants on flight) - 1.11% for women; 2.26% for men

Ranked: Top Public Transportation Annoyances, Overall

Public transportation (think buses, trains, etc.) also has its share of annoyances. Here's the list of the worst.

1. Talking Loudly on the Phone - 54%
2. Body Odor - 41%
3. Playing Music Without Headphones - 29%
4. Taking up Seat(s) with Bags - 28%
5. Not Giving up Seat for Elderly - 22%
6. Blocking the Exit Door(s) - 19%
7. Talkative Passenger - 18%
8. Facetiming Without Headphones - 18%
9. Putting Legs or Feet up on Seat - 16%
10. Eating Smelly Food - 15%
11. Man-Spreading (a.k.a. sitting with legs wide apart) - 11%

Ranked: Ride-Sharing Annoyances, Overall

Are you someone who takes Uber and other ride-sharing services? Genfare also looked at what bothers people in ride-sharing situations.

1. Aggressive Driving - 44%
2. Driver Talking on Phone - 32%
3. Dirty/Messy Car - 31%
4. Braking Too Hard or Accelerating Too Fast - 29%
5. Talkative Driver - 28%
6. Driver's Music - 25%
7. Driver Holding Their Phone/Not Using a Phone Dock  - 20%
8. Driver Eating - 13%
9. Driver Asking You to Rate Them Well - 12%
10. Driver Asking for a Tip - 10%
11. Driver Not Using GPS to Navigate - 9%
12. Old Car/Mechanical Issues - 8%
13. Driver Promoting Other Job or Another Business - 7%
14. Driver Giving You a Bad Rating - 5%