Wait times in TSA security lines vary by airport. Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Travel Bulletin analyzed average TSA wait times and passenger volumes at the 50 busiest US airports.
Passengers at New York’s JFK Airport have the longest average security wait times at 23.1 minutes.
San Antonio International has the shortest average TSA wait time at 3.7 minutes.
Is your average airport security experience a quick walk through the screening area, or does the line often snake around multiple stanchions? The answer depends on where you’re flying out of.
At the top 50 busiest airports in the US, the average security line wait time is 9.9 minutes, but TSA data shows that passengers can wait almost three times as long at some airports and as little as a few minutes at others.
The Trump administration is pushing to privatize airport security by expanding the TSA’s Screening Partnership Program (SPP), which allows airports to use private contractors for screening instead of federal TSA officers.
The push comes as the agency has faced retention and workplace challenges, exacerbated by government shutdowns in 2025 and 2026 that forced TSA officers to work without pay for weeks.
Travel website Travel Bulletin examined the 50 busiest airports in the US to determine the ones with the longest and shortest average wait times. Travel Bulletin analyzed eight weeks of wait-time estimates from the MyTSA app and passenger-volume data from the FOIA Electronic Reading Room, covering mid-June to mid-August 2026.
Passengers traveling through San Francisco and Kansas City — the only two major SPP airports among the 20 total using private screeners — spend among the least amount of time in line.
Here are the 10 airports with the shortest average TSA wait times, followed by the 10 airports with the longest average waits.
1. San Antonio International Airport — San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio International Airport. Wirestock/Getty Images
Average wait time: 3.7 minutes
2. Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport — Kenner, Louisiana (tie)
Travelers walk past empty seats at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) in New Orleans, Louisiana, US, on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. An estimated 8 million people will be flying domestically over the Christmas holiday period, a 2.3% jump from last year, AAA predicts. Matthew Hatcher/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Average wait time: 4.1 minutes
2. William P. Hobby Airport — Houston, Texas (tie)
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents check in passengers at a security checkpoint at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas on March 10, 2026. Airports across the United States are feeling the strain of a partial government shutdown causing a shortage of travel safety agents, leading to extended travel delays for air passengers. Since February 14, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees US air travel security, has had funding frozen due to ongoing disagreements between Congressional Democrats and Republicans over another agency overseen by the department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Mark Felix / AFP via Getty Images
Average wait time: 4.1 minutes
4. Kansas City International Airport — Kansas City, Missouri
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – JUNE 16: Welcome to Kansas City signage at Kansas City International Airport on June 16, 2026 in Kansas City, United States. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images) Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Average wait time: 4.2 minutes
5. San Francisco International Airport — San Francisco, California
A traveler takes a photo of a “Welcome to San Francisco” sign at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in San Francisco, California, US, on Thursday, July 2, 2026. AAA projects 5.85 million travelers will take domestic flights over July 4th week, a 0.2% increase over last year. David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Average wait time: 4.5 minutes
6. Pittsburgh International Airport — Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh International Airport. iStockphoto/Getty Images
Average wait time: 4.6 minutes
7. Southwest Florida International Airport — Fort Myers, Florida (tie)
Southwest Florida International Airport. TriggerPhoto/Getty Images
Average wait time: 5.4 minutes
7. Nashville International Airport — Nashville, Tennessee (tie)
Seth Herald/Getty Images
Average wait time: 5.4 minutes
9. Chicago Midway International Airport — Chicago, Illinois
By far the largest carrier by passenger share at Chicago Midway is Southwest. Joe Hendrickson/Getty Images
Average wait time: 5.7 minutes
10. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport — Hebron, Kentucky
TSA pre-check and Clear signage at a security checkpoint at Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) in Hebron, Kentucky, US, on Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. Travel demand in the US is unlikely to catch up to international growth in the near future, according to the International Air Transport Association. Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Average wait time: 5.9 minutes
41. Philadelphia International Airport — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Travelers wait in line at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US, on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that flight disruptions would continue across the US as the government shutdown drags into its fourth week. Ryan Collerd/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Average wait time: 12.9 minutes
42. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport — Dallas, Texas
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents process travelers at a security checkpoint at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) in Dallas, Texas, US, on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025. US air travel is starting to show signs of strain as lawmakers remain divided over a government shutdown that has stretched into its third week. Shelby Tauber/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Average wait time: 13 minutes
43. San Diego International Airport — San Diego, California
In an aerial view, airplanes are parked at San Diego International Airport’s Terminal 2 on June 30, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images) Kevin Carter/Getty Images
Average wait time: 13.2 minutes
44. Portland International Airport — Portland, Oregon
Portland International Airport. egexplorer/Getty Images
Average wait time: 13.4 minutes
45. George Bush Intercontinental Airport — Houston, Texas
People wait in line to pass through security at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on March 28, 2026 in Houston, Texas. After House Republicans rejected a Senate-passed deal to fund Department of Homeland Security (DHS) subagencies including the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Danielle Villasana/Getty Images
Average wait time: 13.6 minutes
46. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport — Atlanta, Georgia
Travelers wait in line at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) in Atlanta, Georgia, US, on Friday, March 27, 2026. The US Senate passed legislation early Friday to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, forging a path to end a lengthy partial Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Average wait time: 14.1 minutes
47. Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport — Anchorage, Alaska
Alaska Airlines jets are seen at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in Anchorage, Alaska, on May 12, 2026. Donald Trump was due in Beijing on May 13, 2026 on the first visit to China by a US president in nearly a decade, as he seeks to ramp up trade despite potential friction over Taiwan and Iran. Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images
Average wait time: 16.3 minutes
48. Newark Liberty International Airport — Newark, New Jersey
welcome to New York and Newark Liberty International Airport sign and pictures of head of the Statue of Liberty in the arrivals hall with passengers carrying bags. : aviation-images.com/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Average wait time: 17.9 minutes
49. Chicago O’Hare International Airport — Chicago, Illinois
Jim Vondruska/Getty Images
Average wait time: 20.2 minutes
50. John F. Kennedy International Airport — New York, New York
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 27: Travelers wait in line to go through security in Terminal 5 at John F. Kennedy International Airport on March 27, 2026 in New York, New York. The Senate unanimously approved funding for the Department of Homeland Security, excluding money for immigration enforcement and deportation operations. The agreement came hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would sign an order to immediately pay Transportation Security Administration officers. Travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or worked without pay during the partial government shutdown. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
