One map, pinned from each airport’s published coordinates.
Category scores
Overall is the published weighted sum. A highlighted score is ahead; a tie stays plain.
Ease of use
25% · Wayfinding, security wait, and layout.
COS8.3+0.7
DEN7.6
Comfort & amenities
20% · Seating, Wi-Fi, cleanliness, and quiet.
COS7.3
DEN8.0+0.7
Food & retail
15% · Food and retail quality and variety.
COS7.1
DEN7.5+0.4
Ground access
15% · Transit, taxi, and parking to the city.
COS7.0
DEN8.2+1.2
Reliability
15% · Delays, cancellations, and weather resilience.
COS6.6
DEN7.4+0.8
Lounges
10% · Worth-it density and access quality.
COS6.5
DEN8.3+1.8
Best for
COS
Pikes Peak / southern Colorado trips that do not need a DEN connectionPriority Pass holders on morning departures (weekday lounge close is 14:00)Drivers who will use the $8 official long-term lotAnyone who wants five-airline COS instead of the DEN crawl
DEN
United hub connections on Concourse BA-Line downtown for $10Capital One / Centurion cardholdersOutdoor decks and free water refills
Watch out for
COS
Weekday lounge close is 14:00 — Saturday/Sunday runs to 18:00FAQ still lists Avelo and Sun Country; live airlines page is G4/AA/DL/WN/UA onlyiFly “two checkpoints + CLEAR” is fiction — official pages name one TSA and clearme.com has no COS rowMilton E. Proby night construction through mid-October 2026 (lane shifts 19:00–03:00 through 18 Sep 2026)
DEN
DEN Reserve is closed; do not follow old reservation-lane adviceUnited Clubs shut by 21:00 (A West 20:30, Club Fly 19:00)No Priority Pass lounge — Mercantile credit is issuer-dependentB and C are train-only; Admirals Club is on C, not AThunderstorms and a ~76% on-time rate
TSA about 04:00 — the lounge dies at 14:00 on weekdays
Official checkpoint opens about 04:00, two hours before the first departure. Ticket-counter copy disagrees (hours page ~2 hours; FAQ ~90 minutes). Weekday lounge close is 14:00.
One sterile concourse after one TSA
Wrong gate is a walk, not a reclear — unless you leave the sterile side. Pet relief is official at Gate 8. Lactation is across from Gate 5.
Trust the official food-and-retail cards, not a 2027 food-court rendering
Airside live names are Pikes Perk (opposite Gate 6, 04:30–16:00), Colorado Craft (07:00 until 30 minutes before last departure), Mountain Vista Grille, Red Rocks Sandwich, Hudson Nonstop, and Evolve by Hudson.
DEN
Water refillsOutdoor decksRTD A LineCard lounges on A and CFree Wi-Fi
DEN Reserve is gone
East and West Level 6 halls (17 lanes each) replaced the reservation lane on 27 Jun 2026.
A-Bridge or the train, never a walk to B/C
A is walkable after security. B and C are underground train only, one continuous ride.
PP is dining, not a lounge
Live Priority Pass at DEN is Mercantile ($28 sit-down near A39) and Golf DEN — not Capital One, Centurion, or United.
COS · One checkpoint, one short concourse, a real Priority Pass lounge that closes at 14:00 on weekdays, and $8 official long-term parking — traded against 73% on-time arrivals and a FAQ that still lists airlines that left.
DEN · DEN is a three-concourse hub with new Level 6 checkpoints, a $10 rail ride downtown, and serious card lounges on A and C — undone by a long train, early United Club closes, and no Priority Pass lounge.
