ACI World: Record 9.8 Billion Airport Passengers, North America Fell

The world’s airports handled a record 9.8 billion passengers in 2025, but North America was the one region where traffic fell, down 0.7%. Airports Council International World published the figures on September 23, 2026, and its early numbers for 2026 show growth has nearly stalled, with the Middle East down sharply.

ACI World’s annual World Airport Traffic Report covers 2,817 commercial airports in more than 185 countries. For the individual rankings behind the totals, our explainer on the world’s busiest airport covers the airport that usually tops the list.

A Record Year Driven by International Travel

According to ACI World, international passenger traffic rose 6.1% in 2025 while domestic traffic grew 1.7%. Air cargo also set a record at 131.2 million tonnes, up 3.3%, and aircraft movements rose 2.0% to 103.1 million. The report covers airports that together account for about 97% of scheduled passenger traffic worldwide.

Africa grew fastest at 9.0%, followed by the Middle East at 6.5%, Asia-Pacific at 5.1%, Latin America and the Caribbean at 4.5% and Europe at 4.2%, ACI World says. The aviation trade site AviTrader reported the same regional breakdown.

North America Was the Exception

North America was the only region where airport passenger numbers fell, slipping 0.7% in 2025. ACI World points to softer domestic demand. The decline was small, but it left North America behind every other region in a year when international travel grew worldwide.

For travelers in the United States and Canada, the figure is a snapshot of 2025 rather than a forecast of crowding at any particular airport. Airports and airlines plan capacity route by route, so a small regional decline does not mean shorter lines at your home airport. Busy holiday periods and peak days can still be crowded even in a year when the regional total slips.

Growth Nearly Stalled in 2026

The early 2026 data shows a sharp slowdown. ACI World estimates about 4.7 billion passengers in the first half of the year, only 0.6% more than a year earlier. In the Middle East, traffic fell 21%, which the association attributes to the regional crisis and airspace disruption.

That second figure matters for anyone who connects through Gulf hubs on the way to Asia, Africa or the Indian Ocean. Check your routing and keep an eye on your airline’s notices, since schedules through the region have been changing. ACI World director general Justin Erbacci said long term demand for air travel remains strong and more capacity will be needed, which frames the 2026 slowdown as a pause rather than a turn.

We covered the airport level results earlier this year, when Atlanta was confirmed as the world’s busiest airport for 2025.

Limits of the Headline Numbers

The release reports global and regional totals. It does not break the North American decline down by country or airport, and it does not say how much of the first half slowdown outside the Middle East comes from specific markets. Readers looking for their own airport’s figures will need the airport’s own traffic reports, which many publish monthly.

The figures count airport passengers. Airport statistics generally count a traveler at each airport they pass through, which means the 9.8 billion figure is a measure of airport activity rather than the number of individual trips. Treat it as a gauge of how busy the world’s airports were, not how many people flew.