Anyone who’s flown during the last couple of years will know that airports in the USA are getting busier than ever. In 2024, TSA screened a record 904 million passengers, 5% more than in 2023. On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, TSA had the single busiest day in its history, screening 3.1 million travelers. But which were the busiest airports in the USA?
Thanks to records from aviation data experts OAG, we can now reveal that the 10 busiest airports in the USA together offered almost 432 million seats between them. A seat is defined as a single seat for sale on a flight of any length. It doesn’t mean that seat was filled, but serves as a good yardstick for how busy an airport has been. Nevertheless, with the Bureau of Transport Statistics recording an average load factor of 83.4% in 2024, the majority of those seats would have been occupied.
The busiest airport in the USA in 2024 was Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson (ATL), with almost 63 million seats on offer across the year. In fact, Atlanta was the busiest airport in the world in 2024, 2.5 million seats ahead of its next nearest competitor, Dubai International.
Three other USA airports were amongst the top 10 busiest airports in the world in 2024, namely Dallas, Denver and Chicago. All four airports had more seats for sale in 2024 than they did in 2023, although only Dallas and Denver have exceeded their pre-pandemic (2019) capacity.
Stay with us as we take a look at the busiest airports in the USA in 2024, and what you need to know about them.
The busiest airports in the USA – the full list
According to the OAG data, Atlanta was the busiest airport in the USA in 2024, followed by Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver International and Chicago O’Hare. Los Angeles International came in fifth, New York’s JFK in sixth and Sin City’s Las Vegas Harry Reid in seventh.
Rounding out the top 10 are Charlotte Douglas, which has grown an impressive 11% in the last year alone, plus Orlando and Miami. Hover or tap on the chart below to see more information on each airport.
1. Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Seats in 2024: 62,743,665
Apart from the pandemic year of 2020, Atlanta Airport has been the busiest in the USA (and indeed the world) every year since 1998. As it approaches its centenary year, ATL continues to push the boundaries of what a very busy but very well managed airport looks like.
The airport has regularly been voted a passenger favourite, winning ‘North America’s Best Airport’ in the Business Traveler awards two years in a row, and being named best airport over 40 million passengers by Airports Council International. Last year, it handled 108.1 million passengers, the second highest in its history, just behind the 110 million of 2019.
Atlanta serves more than 150 domestic and 70 international destinations, connecting the US to over 40 countries. Its terminal complex stretches over 6.8 million square feet and houses a total of 192 gates.
As well as being the busiest airport by both scheduled seats and passenger traffic, Atlanta links three of the top 10 busiest domestic routes in the US. That includes the busiest route overall – Atlanta to Orlando (MCO), with almost 3.5 million seats offered – and the eighth and ninth busiest, Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and New York (LGA).
2. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
Seats in 2024: 51,516,707
Dallas/Fort Worth was the second busiest airport in the USA in 2024 by available seats, with almost 52 million. It’s still a good 11 million behind Atlanta though, demonstrating just how big and busy that airport really is.
DFW has seen some significant growth in the past few years. Since 2019, capacity at the airport has increased 18%, and has risen 7% over the last year alone. The airport broke ground on a new passenger terminal in late 2024, signalling its intentions to continue on a growth trajectory.
While many other airlines have added service to DFW, such as Fiji Airways with its new service from Nadi, a good deal of its growth has stemmed from American Airlines. It continues to expand, launching flights to Tokyo in June 2024, and placing a huge order for new aircraft in March to support future growth.
For Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, this year looks set to bring more flights and new airlines. In 2025, Cathay Pacific will begin a connection from Hong Kong in April, while Taiwanese carrier EVA Air will launch nonstop flights to Dallas from its home in Taipei towards the end of the year.
3. Denver International Airport
Seats in 2024: 49,218,244
Not all of the busiest airports in the USA have managed to grow since the pandemic. Atlanta, Chicago and Los Angeles are all still below their 2019 capacity, but other airports have come roaring back. Denver International is one of the fastest growing airports in the US today, having increased capacity by a staggering 24% since 2019.
In the last year alone, Denver has added 5% more capacity to offer a total of almost 50 million seats for sale. It served 82.4 million passengers in 2024, the most in its 30 year history.
The airport has seen some new routes in 2024, including Turkish Airlines launching a nonstop flight to Istanbul. This route, at over 5,300 nautical miles, has dethroned United’s Tokyo Narita flight as the longest service out of Denver. Like Atlanta, Denver Airport is home to some of the busiest routes in the US, including fourth busiest to Phoenix and 10th busiest to Las Vegas.
Denver has room to grow further. It’s the biggest airport in the US by some margin in terms of landmass, and the third-largest airport in the world. Coming in 2025, United is adding several new connections across North America, and launching an exciting new route to Rome. Equally excitingly, Lufthansa will upgrade its Munich service to an A380 from the end of April.
4. Chicago O’Hare International Airport
Seats in 2024: 46,992,360
Chicago O’Hare hasn’t experienced the same growth as Dallas, and remains 7% beneath the capacity it had to offer in 2019. Nevertheless, the airport has added 8% more seats in 2024 to become the fourth busiest airport in the US.
O’Hare is at one end of the seventh busiest domestic flight route in the US, connecting Chicago to New York’s La Guardia airport. In 2024, 3.1 million passengers flew this route. The airport’s busiest travel period was over Thanksgiving, where 1.8 million passengers used the airport, 11.4% more than in 2023.
The airport is eyeing expansion and has already completed works to increase capacity at Terminal 5 and a concourse expansion at Terminal 3. It is now beginning work on the ‘O’Hare Global Terminal (OGT)’, where Terminal 2 currently stands, adding over three million square feet of internal space and 50 new gates.
5. Los Angeles International Airport
Seats in 2024: 45,509,963
Los Angeles has been a gateway to the world for decades, but despite being one of the busiest airports in the USA, it remains one of the slowest to recover from the pandemic hit. Compared with 2019, the airport had 12% fewer seats available in 2024, and despite handling over 76 million passengers, it’s still a way off its 2019 peak of 88 million.
Nevertheless, it’s still an incredibly busy airport, and a highly contested hub between the US ‘big three’ airlines. Delta has a marginally larger share of passengers at the airport at 19.8%, while United and American both account for around 15% of passenger traffic. Southwest is the fourth largest airline, with almost 10% of the annual passenger share.
The top route from LAX is, believe it or not, London Heathrow (LHR). As well as American and United, the route is served by the two UK majors, BA and Virgin Atlantic. More than 1.6 million passengers a year fly to London from LA. Other routes attracting in excess of a million annual flyers include Seoul, Taipei, Tokyo and Guadalajara.
Airport authority Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is investing $30 billion in LAX to overhaul the facilities ahead of the 2028 Summer Olympics. Renovations have been completed at several terminals and are underway at others, while two new terminals, Concourse 0 and Terminal 9, are in the planning stages.
6. New York John F Kennedy International Airport
Seats in 2024: 38,150,327
The iconic JFK airport retains its spot as one of the busiest airports in the USA this year, surpassing its 2019 capacity by a modest 1%. It also topped its pre-pandemic passenger numbers for the first time in 2024, screening 63.3 million, compared to 62.6 million in 2019.
The busiest domestic route from JFK is the transcontinental hop over to Los Angeles. Served by American, Delta and JetBlue, some 1.4 million passengers took the trip in 2024. But by far the busiest route out of the airport is in the other direction, to London Heathrow. Almost 2.5 million passengers travel across the Atlantic from JFK each year.
The Port Authority responsible for the airport is in the midst of a $19 billion transformation of JFK. The project includes adding two huge new terminals, modernizing existing terminals and adding more than four million square feet of extra space.
7. Las Vegas Harry Reid International Airport
Seats in 2024: 35,586,378
Las Vegas Harry Reid is one of the better-recovered airports on our list. Although capacity grew by just 1% between 2023 and 2024, those 35.6 million seats represent growth of 19% since 2019. Handling 58.4 million passengers in 2024 was a new record for the airport, and solidified its position as the seventh busiest airport in the USA.
LAS is a major market for Southwest Airlines, with the carrier holding a 40% market share at the airport. Spirit has over 15%, while Delta, American and United have to be content with less than 10%. Traffic here is mainly domestic, with its top route to LAX used by 1.4 million people a year. Denver, Dallas and Seattle are also important connections from Sin City.
Clark County has backed a plan that will see the airport expanded and modernized in the coming years. Under the proposal, the number of airport gates will be expanded from 39 to 65, ground transportation will be improved and passenger experience improved.
8. Charlotte Douglas International Airport
Seats in 2024: 35,228,663
Of all the busiest airports in the USA, Charlotte has seen the most substantial growth in the past year. From 2023 to 2024, the airport added 11% more seats to its operation, taking it 19% above its pre-pandemic capacity.
Much of that growth has been delivered by American Airlines, which accounts for almost 70% of the traffic out of CLT. Spirit, Delta and United have around a 2% market share, while Southwest has just 1.5%. But the airline has a good variety of carriers too, with a presence from Frontier as well as regional carrier Contour Airlines.
International connections are growing too. Lufthansa flies from Charlotte to Munich, and Volaris to Guadalajara, while Air Canada provides a connection to Toronto. The most popular international destinations include Cancun, London and Punta Cana, while Orlando, New York and Dallas are the most in-demand domestic routes.
Airport improvement works kicked off in 2015 under ‘Destination CLT,’ which has already seen terminal expansions, new roadways and interior renovations. Work is ongoing to renovate the lobby, streamline security and remodel the ticketing area. Outside the airport, the FAA has built a new 367ft control tower, the second tallest in the USA, and discussions around a fourth runway are ongoing.
9. Orlando International Airport
Seats in 2024: 34,269,851
Orlando Airport actually shrank in 2024, offering 1% fewer seats than it did during 2024. Nevertheless, it has had an impressive recovery and growth, operating at 18% higher capacity in 2024 than it did pre-pandemic.
Southwest Airlines is the top carrier at this airport, accounting for 24% of the passenger traffic. Delta and Spirit each have 14%, while Frontier and American have around 12%. Domestic destinations are popular from MCO, particularly to Atlanta, which sees 1.4 million passengers a year.
Soon to land in Orlando will be Air France, with a four-times-a-week service to Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG). In March 2025, Discover Airlines launched a connection to Munich, and Iberia will be starting flights from Madrid later in the year. Frontier, Spirit, Breeze and Southwest Airlines will add several new domestic destinations for the summer schedule, too.
10. Miami International Airport
Seats in 2024: 32,391,050
Miami has leaped into the top 10 busiest airports in the USA thanks to its incredible post-pandemic growth. Its current capacity of over 32 million seats is 27% higher than it was in 2019, and 7% higher than last year. MIA handled almost 56 million passengers throughout the year, 10 million more than in 2019.
The top carrier here is American Airlines, with 57% of the passenger traffic. Delta and Spirit have fairly large operations, while Southwest and United carry around 1.5 million passengers a year out of MIA. Top domestic destinations include Atlanta, New York and Dallas, while internationally London is the most popular, followed by Bogota and Panama.
Miami International is projected to process 77 million passengers by 2040. To meet this anticipated demand, the airport has embarked on a $9 billion improvement plan, which should conclude in 2035. This includes renovating existing facilities and expanding into new ones, including developing a Concourse K to open in 2029.
