Dulles International Airport recorded the highest rate of passenger growth among the nation’s 50 largest airports in 2025, according to new federal data.
The 13,859,735 enplanements for the year represented a 6.6% increase from 2024, based on preliminary figures reported this week by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Chicago O’Hare International Airport had the second-highest growth rate among the top 50, up 5.5% to 40,680,735 enplanements, while San Francisco International saw the third-highest growth rate, up 4.7% to 26,251,850.
The growth spurt at Dulles ranked the airport 22nd busiest in the nation last year, up from 24th in 2024.
Asked for comment on the new rankings, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) referred FFXnow back to a statement from February, when it posted 2025 air-traffic figures:
“Notably, new airlines Royal Jordanian and Contour inaugurated nonstop Dulles service, and six new destinations joined the airport’s global lineup. Strong growth continued for United Airlines, which refers to the current period as the ‘Decade of Dulles’ because of its expansion plans at the airport.”
While Dulles was up, Reagan National Airport recorded a 5.9% decline — to 12,003,594 enplanements — in its 2025 passenger count. For 2025, National ranked 28th busiest nationally, down from 26th in 2024, according to the preliminary federal data.
At Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, enplanements were down 7.2% to 12,274,134, and its ranking fell from 23rd to 26th.
For 2025, the busiest airports in the nation were:
- Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International: 51,459,786 enplanements, down 2% from 2024
- Dallas-Fort Worth International: 41,297,009, down 2.5%
- Chicago-O’Hare International, 40,680,735, up 5.5%
- Denver International: 39,976,695, down 0.1%
- Los Angeles International: 36,497,303, down 3.4%
- John F. Kennedy International: 30,792,806, down 2.1%
From 2024 to 2025, O’Hare and Denver flipped the third and fourth positions.
Rounding out the top 10 were Orlando International, Harry Reid International (Las Vegas), Miami International and San Francisco International. San Francisco returned to the top 10, while Charlotte-Douglas International Airport fell out, dropping to 11th.
Last year was the busiest in the history of Dulles, which opened in 1962. The airport’s passenger total was aided by expansion of United Airlines, its dominant carrier, as well as growth in international service among a host of carriers.
In September, the airport is expected to open Concourse E, a 14-gate midfield terminal to support United’s operations.
MWAA officials are also developing longer-term expansion plans, which could include enhancements bringing annual capacity to 45 million enplanements or 90 million total passengers by the end of this century. An alternate proposal to accelerate renovations, reportedly supported by the Trump administration and United, targets a 2034 finish.
