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North America's busiest airports ranked by seat capacity for August 2025

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North America's busiest airports ranked by seat capacity for August 2025
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Chicago O'Hare International Airport | Official Website

Every day, airports across North America handle thousands of flights, connecting travelers to domestic and international destinations. The volume of operations varies widely, with some airports functioning as major hubs that operate continuously and serve as important connectors for passengers and cargo.

The latest data from OAG, measured by the total number of available airline seats for August 2025, provides insight into which North American airports are the busiest. This metric considers all seats on both domestic and international flights arriving at or departing from a given airport, reflecting each facility's overall capacity and connectivity.

Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) in Georgia continues to lead as the busiest airport in North America and globally by available seat capacity. "Atlanta has continuously ranked as one of the busiest airports in the world when measured by passenger traffic, which has been contributed to by the immense presence, the hometown airline, Delta Air Lines plays at the airport. The airport is home to the SkyTeam carrier, which has its global corporate headquarters here." American low-cost carriers such as Frontier Airlines, Southwest, and Spirit also have significant operations at ATL. For August 2025, OAG reports more than 5.4 million available seats at Atlanta.

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Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) ranks second in North America this year with over 4.6 million available seats—a rise from third place last year. The airport operates four terminals with a combined total of 215 gates and serves numerous airlines including United Airlines, American Airlines, Lufthansa, British Airways, JetBlue, and Spirit Airlines. O'Hare features eight runways—more than any other civilian airport worldwide—and maintains a robust cargo network.

Denver International Airport (DEN) is third on the list with more than 4.3 million available seats this August. DEN covers 33,531 acres—making it the largest airport in the Western Hemisphere by land area—and features six operational runways including North America's longest public runway at 16,000 feet. Denver serves as a hub for United Airlines as well as low-cost carriers Southwest and Frontier.

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) follows closely behind Denver with over 4.3 million available seats but drops to fourth place compared to last year’s ranking. DFW covers 17,207 acres—second only to Denver in size—and features six terminals serving 224 passenger gates. American Airlines accounts for over two-thirds of DFW’s operations according to Bureau of Transportation data; this figure rises further when including subsidiary Envoy Air.

Other metrics such as passenger traffic numbers—including those connecting through an airport—as well as aircraft movements and freight volumes can also be used to assess an airport's activity level.

Globally outside North America, Dubai International Airport (DXB) leads with more than 5.3 million international passengers expected this August due largely to Emirates’ extensive network. Tokyo Haneda Airport (HND), Istanbul Airport (IST), and London Heathrow Airport (LHR) also rank among the world's busiest based on seat capacity offered.

These rankings underscore not only each airport’s scale but also their economic impact through job creation, trade facilitation, logistics support, tourism promotion, and provision of critical air connectivity for both leisure and business travel needs.

Organizations Included in this History
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