The World’s Busiest Airports

In many areas of the United States it’s spring break. For many, that means heading to the airport for what is still the public’s fastest form of transportation. No matter whether you’re headed to sunny climes or on a business trip, if you have a connection to make, you have a high likelihood of passing through one of these airports. The 30 busiest in the world are mapped below, explorable by total passengers and country.

View World’s Busiest Airports in a full screen map

A full 40% of these busiest airports are in the United States. Many of these top airports are major hubs for major airlines, leading to a lot of traffic. Delta pioneered the hub and spoke system in the 1950s with what is still its main base of operations in Atlanta. It is still the busiest airport in the world.

Los Angeles’ LAX is the hub for multiple airlines and is popular for international destinations. Both United and American Airlines use Chicago O’Hare as a hub. Dallas, the fourth-largest US airport (and ninth overall), is also American’s home base.

Other US airports in the top 20 include Denver (#17) and New York’s JFK (#18).

Outside of the US, China has the most airports in the top 30, with four. Beijing is the second-busiest overall, and Hong Kong rounds out the top 10. Germany is the only other country with multiple airports on the list: Frankfurt (#11) and Munich (#30).

Only three continents are represented by the 30 busiest airports: North America has 12 of them, Asia has 11, and seven are in Europe. Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Indonesia is the only airport in the southern hemisphere to make the list of busiest airports.

Air travel continues to grow, overall and at most of these top airports. Istanbul (#12) has seen an 11% increase in travelers over the last year. Seoul (#24) and Shanghai (#19) have increased by 9.7% and 7.6% respectively.

As you plan your travel, either now or in the future, consider these top airports as you put together your itineraries.