Travelers have legitimate concerns about the potential air travel portion of their travels with the busy summer season rapidly approaching. The extremely long lines at airports and the frequent and extensive flight delays we experienced in 2023. The summer season often brings an increase in passenger volumes, leading to crowded terminals, longer queues, and potential delays.

British Airways has announced a new direct route from London Heathrow to the Cincinnati region(Opens in a new browser tab)

In the midst of the anticipation, luggage storage company Bounce conducted a timely new study, analyzing the average time it takes to get through a number of the country’s major airports, including passing through TSA security checks and passport control points—to identify the U.S. airports that currently have the longest and shortest security passenger wait times.

U.S. airports with the longest wait times

1. John F. Kennedy International Airport: Taking the top spot is New York’s JFK International Airport. The current average wait time for security is 22 minutes, 48 seconds. You will also need to spend 25 minutes, 36 seconds in passport control, for a total of 48 minutes, 24 seconds. JFK handles a lot of both domestic and international travelers as one of the busiest airports in the US. Longer lines at passport control and security checkpoints result from increased pressure on the infrastructure and staff at the airport.
2. San Francisco International Airport, California: It had a total wait time of 47 minutes, 18 seconds. SFO is a major entry point for international travel, especially from Asia and Europe. However, the large number of international travelers strains the security and passport control procedures. Similarly to this, the layout and space constraints of the airport can lead to bottlenecks and lengthen wait times.
3. Miami International Airport, Florida: The combined average wait time at Miami International Airport is 45 minutes and 54 seconds, placing it third overall. As an important hub for flights to and from Latin America and the Caribbean, MIA sees a sizable influx of visitors from abroad. This can result in longer lines at passport control.
4. Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport, Florida: The airport with the longest average wait for passport control is Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International, where the wait time is 25 minutes and 54 seconds. One of the busiest airports in the world, JFK, is just a few seconds slower than that. Passport control lines can get busy because of the large passenger volume, especially during the busiest travel hours.

U.S. airports with the shortest wait times

• 1. Baltimore/Washington International Airport, Maryland: Passengers fly through security and passport checks here with a cumulative wait time of just 14 minutes and 48 seconds. Fewer passengers could mean shorter lines at passport control and security.
• 2. San Antonio International Airport, Texas: With a total wait time of 17 minutes and 42 seconds, San Antonio comes in second. SAT, which is based in Uptown Central San Antonio, Texas, sees less passenger flow because it is not a significant airline hub. The airport predominantly handles domestic flights, which can result in shorter lines at security and passport check.
• 3. San Jose International Airport, California: It had a cumulative wait time of 18 minutes and 18 seconds, round off at the top three. Lessening wait times may be a result of the decreased passenger volume and the fact that business travelers are more familiar with the security processes.
• 4. Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey: It has the shortest three minute, six-second average security wait. Despite the fact that Newark serves as a significant hub for both domestic and foreign aircraft, the wait times for security do not reflect this. This might be the result of effective planning and construction, as well as cutting-edge security tools like CT scanners and automated screening lanes.