Atlanta holds the crown again: the 10 busiest airports in the world handled 886 million passengers in 2025, per ACI World's annual rankings.
Quick answer: 1. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, 2. Dubai International Airport, 3. Tokyo Haneda Airport, 4. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, 5. Shanghai Pudong International Airport, 6. Chicago O'Hare International Airport, 7. London Heathrow Airport, 8. Istanbul Airport, 9. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, 10. Denver International Airport.
Atlanta is still king. ACI World's 2025 rankings — released April 2026 and drawn from more than 2,700 airports — put Hartsfield-Jackson on top with 106.3 million passengers, ahead of Dubai and a surging Tokyo Haneda. Global traffic hit 9.8 billion passengers, 3.6% above 2024 and 7.3% above 2019. The story of 2025 is Asia-Pacific's comeback: Shanghai Pudong leapt from 10th to 5th and Guangzhou Baiyun climbed back into the top 10, while North American and European hubs near saturation. This list ranks airports by total annual passengers — every boarding and deplaning passenger counted, transfers counted once.
Atlanta keeps the crown it has held almost every year since 1998, and remains the only airport above 100 million passengers. Delta's mega-hub anchors the Southeast, and like the other U.S. airports on this list, 80–95% of its traffic is domestic — a structural trait ACI flags across North American hubs.
Dubai stays firmly in second and remains the world's busiest international airport — all 95.2 million of its passengers were international. Its mid-point location between Europe, Asia and Africa keeps Emirates' long-haul machine growing.
Haneda's jump to third — up 6.7% on 2024 — is the clearest sign of Asia-Pacific's resurgence. The downtown Tokyo airport overtook Dallas/Fort Worth as rebounding inbound tourism pushed Japan's largest gateway past 91 million passengers.
American Airlines' fortress hub slips to fourth after a 2.5% dip — the steepest decline in the top 10. Even so, DFW remains the world's #3 airport for aircraft movements (743,394 takeoffs and landings) and the largest hub in Texas.
The biggest mover of 2025: Pudong leapt from 10th to 5th on a 10.7% surge — the fastest growth in the top 10. ACI credits international traffic recovery, eased visa policies and expanded connectivity as China's reopening accelerated.
O'Hare climbs on 6.0% growth and takes the year's other crown: 860,015 takeoffs and landings make it the world's #1 airport for aircraft movements, ahead of Atlanta and DFW. The two airports have alternated the top two movement slots since 1998.
Europe's busiest airport inches up just 0.7% — Heathrow is effectively full. Operating at or near maximum capacity with slot constraints, it can't absorb much more growth without major infrastructure investment, a warning ACI repeats across mature hubs.
Istanbul keeps climbing on 5.5% growth, helped by geopolitics: airspace closures and rerouted traffic funneled more long-haul connections through Turkish Airlines' hub, reinforcing the Eastern Mediterranean as a critical global corridor.
The comeback story: Baiyun rebounds to 9th from 57th in 2022, riding China's reopening with 9.5% growth. China Southern's home base is now the third Chinese airport in the global top 10.
Denver rounds out the top 10 with essentially flat traffic (+0.1%) — 82.4 million passengers at the largest hub in the Mountain West. United's growing fortress keeps it ahead of Delhi and Incheon.
| # | Name | city | iata | mainHubAirline | passengers2025 | yoyChange |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport | Atlanta, Georgia, USA | ATL | Delta Air Lines | 106.3 | −1.6% |
| 2 | Dubai International Airport | Dubai, UAE | DXB | Emirates | 95.2 | +3.1% |
| 3 | Tokyo Haneda Airport | Tokyo, Japan | HND | Japan Airlines, ANA | 91.7 | +6.7% |
| 4 | Dallas Fort Worth International Airport | Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas, USA | DFW | American Airlines | 85.7 | −2.5% |
| 5 | Shanghai Pudong International Airport | Shanghai, China | PVG | China Eastern Airlines | 85 | +10.7% |
| 6 | Chicago O'Hare International Airport | Chicago, Illinois, USA | ORD | United Airlines, American Airlines | 84.8 | +6.0% |
| 7 | London Heathrow Airport | London, United Kingdom | LHR | British Airways | 84.5 | +0.7% |
| 8 | Istanbul Airport | Istanbul, Turkey | IST | Turkish Airlines | 84.4 | +5.5% |
| 9 | Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport | Guangzhou, China | CAN | China Southern Airlines | 83.6 | +9.5% |
| 10 | Denver International Airport | Denver, Colorado, USA | DEN | United Airlines | 82.4 | +0.1% |
Ranked by ACI World's preliminary 2025 global airport rankings (released April 2026): total passengers enplaned and deplaned in calendar-year 2025, with connecting/transit passengers counted once. Figures are drawn from ACI's dataset covering 2,700+ airports; initial data may differ slightly in the confirmed July 2026 release. Ranks are ordered strictly by the passenger total, highest first.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), with 106.3 million passengers in 2025, according to Airports Council International (ACI) World's preliminary global rankings released April 2026. It has topped the ranking almost every year since 1998.
Dubai International Airport (DXB). All of DXB's 95.2 million 2025 passengers were international travelers, making it the world's busiest international airport ahead of London Heathrow (79.9 million international) and Seoul Incheon (73.6 million).
Total passengers enplaned and deplaned over the calendar year, with connecting passengers counted only once. That is why hub airports that concentrate transfers — like Atlanta and Dubai — dominate the ranking.
Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), with 860,015 takeoffs and landings in 2025 — ahead of Atlanta (807,625) and Dallas/Fort Worth (743,394). O'Hare and Atlanta have alternated the top two movement slots since 1998.
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