Thanksgiving 2026: the worst time to fly, airport by airport
How early should you get there?
Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26, 2026. In each of the last two years, TSA screened the most travelers of the holiday week on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, and the fewest on Thanksgiving Day itself. Within any single day, the hour you reach security matters too: at 3 of the 8 airports in our data study, 6 AM is the worst hour of an ordinary weekday.
Which days are busiest Thanksgiving week
TSA publishes how many people it screens every day. Here is Thanksgiving week from the last two years, lined up by day so you can compare it with your 2026 dates.
| Day | 2026 date | 2024 screened | 2025 screened |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friday before (6 days earlier) | Nov 20 | 2,754,798 | 2,792,495 |
| Saturday before | Nov 21 | 2,493,313 | 2,482,593 |
| Sunday before | Nov 22 | 2,659,301 | 2,617,142 |
| Monday before | Nov 23 | 2,506,373 | 2,563,877 |
| Tuesday before | Nov 24 | 2,694,504 | 2,675,261 |
| Wednesday before | Nov 25 | 2,726,845 | 2,753,036 |
| Thanksgiving Day | Nov 26 | 1,551,896 | 1,559,165 |
| Friday after | Nov 27 | 2,377,911 | 2,392,036 |
| Saturday after | Nov 28 | 2,811,101 | 2,696,816 |
| Sunday after | Nov 29 | 3,088,836 | 3,134,613 |
| Monday after | Nov 30 | 2,829,000 | 2,893,451 |
Source: TSA checkpoint travel numbers, 2024 and 2025, checked Oct 22, 2026. National totals, all US airports. 2024 dates are Nov 22–Dec 2, 2024; 2025 dates are Nov 21–Dec 1, 2025.
What the numbers show
- The Sunday after is the peak. It was the busiest day of the week in both years. In 2025 it was the busiest day in TSA’s published daily screening data (Nov 30, 2025: 3,134,613 screened), with more than 3.13 million people screened (TSA, checked Oct 22, 2026).
- The Monday after is next. It screened more travelers than any day before the holiday in both years.
- Wednesday isn’t the busiest day before Thanksgiving. In both years, the Friday six days before Thanksgiving (Nov 20 this year) screened slightly more people than the Wednesday before the holiday.
- Thanksgiving Day is the quietest. About 1.55 million people in 2024 and 1.56 million in 2025, the lowest of the week by far.
- The Friday after is the lightest of the regular days. About 2.38 million in 2024 and 2.39 million in 2025.
The worst and quietest security hours at 8 airports
Days tell you how crowded the week is. Hours tell you when the line peaks. The table below uses the same figures as our data study. They come from BoardFlight’s history-based security-wait curve for each airport, read on two fixed sample days, Thu, Aug 13, 2026 and Sun, Aug 16, 2026. Only the 8 airports where that curve, and the schedule-based curve behind airport-page charts, passed an independent check against TSA’s published hourly checkpoint throughput are included. Times are local. Waits are modeled median minutes to clear security for a 15-minute window. “Quietest” is limited to travel hours, 5 AM to 10 PM.
| Airport | Weekday worst | Weekday quietest | Sunday worst | Airport page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin Bergstrom International (AUS) | 4 PM · 23 min | 7 PM | 11 AM · 32 min | AUS times |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | 6:45 PM · 15 min | 10 PM | 4 PM · 18 min | BOS times |
| John F. Kennedy International (JFK) | 6 AM · 30 min | 5 AM · 13 min | 12 PM · 33 min | JFK times |
| John Wayne Orange County International (SNA) | 6 AM · 15 min | 9 PM | 3 PM · 18 min | SNA times |
| Nashville International (BNA) | 12 PM · 10 min | 9:45 PM | 6 AM · 12 min | BNA times |
| Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA) | 7 AM · 20 min | 10 PM | 3:45 PM · 11 min | DCA times |
| San Diego International (SAN) | 9 AM · 39 min | 10 PM · 5 min | 6 AM · 31 min | SAN times |
| Tampa International (TPA) | 6 AM · 29 min | 10 PM | 6 AM · 29 min | TPA times |
Source: BoardFlight data study; dataset CC BY 4.0. History-based curve, sample days Thu, Aug 13, 2026 and Sun, Aug 16, 2026. No holiday effect is included in these hourly figures.
Austin Bergstrom International (AUS)
On an ordinary weekday, security at AUS is worst around 4 PM (about 23 minutes) and the shortest waits of the day come around 7 PM. Sunday is the day to plan around: the worst Sunday window, around 11 AM, runs about 32 minutes, 9 minutes longer than the weekday peak. Local note: for Thanksgiving 2025, Austin’s airport said its busiest days are typically the Friday before and the Sunday and Monday after (MySA, checked Oct 18, 2026). See AUS arrive-by times
Boston Logan International (BOS)
Logan’s weekday worst is the evening, around 6:45 PM, at about 15 minutes, and the quietest travel hour is around 10 PM. On Sunday the worst window is mid-afternoon, around 4 PM, at about 18 minutes. See BOS arrive-by times
John F. Kennedy International (JFK)
At JFK, one hour changes a lot. On an ordinary weekday the modeled wait is about 13 minutes at 5 AM and about 30 minutes at 6 AM, the worst window of the day. On the sample Sunday the worst window is around 12 PM, at about 33 minutes. For a domestic flight, JFK’s representative arrive-by times run 84 to 103 minutes on an ordinary day; a 9:00 AM departure with no checked bag means arriving by 7:17 AM. See JFK arrive-by times
John Wayne Orange County International (SNA)
SNA’s weekday peak is the first bank, around 6 AM, at about 15 minutes; the shortest waits of the day come around 9 PM. On the sample Sunday the worst window shifts to mid-afternoon, around 3 PM, at about 18 minutes. See SNA arrive-by times
Nashville International (BNA)
BNA’s weekday peak lands at midday, around 12 PM, at about 10 minutes. The quietest travel hour is late evening, around 9:45 PM. On Sunday the worst window moves to 6 AM, at about 12 minutes. Local note: on the Sunday after Thanksgiving 2025, a crash on I-40 near the airport backed up traffic badly enough that some travelers walked to the terminal (FOX 17, Nov 30, 2025, checked Oct 18, 2026). BoardFlight’s arrive-by time starts at the curb, so add your drive. See BNA arrive-by times
Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA)
At DCA the weekday crunch is early: around 7 AM, at about 20 minutes, while the shortest waits of the day come around 10 PM. On the sample Sunday the peak is lower, about 11 minutes around 3:45 PM. The Sunday after Thanksgiving is not an ordinary Sunday, so don’t count on that gap holding. DCA’s representative arrive-by times for domestic flights run 64 to 70 minutes on an ordinary day. See DCA arrive-by times
San Diego International (SAN)
On weekdays SAN’s worst security window is around 9 AM, at about 39 minutes; the quietest travel hour is around 10 PM. On the sample Sunday the worst window moves to 6 AM, at about 31 minutes. Local note: for Thanksgiving 2025 the airport expected the Sunday after to be its busiest day, with as many as 90,000 people, and flagged peak curbside hours of 4 to 6:15 AM, 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM, and 8 PM to midnight (SAN, checked Oct 18, 2026). For a domestic flight, SAN’s representative arrive-by times run 69 to 87 minutes on an ordinary day. See SAN arrive-by times
Tampa International (TPA)
At TPA, 6 AM is the hour to watch on weekdays and on the sample Sunday alike, with a modeled median of about 29 minutes; the quietest travel hour is around 10 PM. Local note: for Thanksgiving 2025, TPA expected its busiest day to be the Sunday after, with about 86,000 passengers. Tampa International Airport says its checkpoint waits are usually short, while still advising travelers to allow extra time (TPA, checked Oct 18, 2026). For a domestic flight, TPA’s representative arrive-by times run 69 to 78 minutes on an ordinary day. See TPA arrive-by times
How to plan each day of Thanksgiving week
When you plan a trip on BoardFlight for a departure from Nov 25 through Nov 29, the arrive-by time includes an allowance for Thanksgiving-week crowds. The hourly figures in the table above don’t; they describe an ordinary week.
Tuesday and Wednesday before (Nov 24 and Nov 25)
Both were busy in 2024 and 2025, but neither was the busiest day of the week. Use your airport’s weekday column above for the hour. If your airport’s worst weekday hour is early (JFK, SNA, DCA and TPA all peak at 8 AM or earlier), an early flight puts you in the heaviest window of the day. BoardFlight’s Thanksgiving-week allowance starts with departures on Nov 25.
Thanksgiving Day (Nov 26)
The quietest day of the week nationally in both years, at about 1.55 to 1.56 million travelers. Holiday flight schedules can differ, so plan with your actual departure time.
Friday and Saturday after (Nov 27 and Nov 28)
The Friday after was the lightest regular day of the week in both years. Saturday was busier: 2.81 million in 2024 and 2.70 million in 2025.
Sunday and Monday after (Nov 29 and Nov 30)
The two busiest days of the week in both years. The Sunday after was the busiest day in TSA’s published daily screening data (Nov 30, 2025: 3,134,613 screened, TSA, checked Oct 22, 2026). Use your airport’s Sunday column for the Sunday and the weekday column for Monday, and expect heavier crowds than an ordinary week on both. BoardFlight’s Thanksgiving-week allowance covers departures through Nov 29; Monday is planned as an ordinary weekday, so give yourself extra room. Check your airline’s guidance before you leave.
Before you go
- Plan with your real departure time. Plan by airport and time now, then look up your flight number once you’re within 30 days of departure. Your terminal, a checked bag, an international route, and PreCheck or CLEAR all change how early you need to be.
- Follow your airline. Bag-drop and boarding cutoffs are set by the airline, and they win over any estimate. How boarding times work →
- Leave food that pours at home. Jams and jellies, cranberry sauce, gravy and wine are commonly confiscated at checkpoints (TPA, checked Oct 18, 2026). In a carry-on, liquids, gels and aerosols must be 3.4 ounces or less per container (TSA, checked Oct 22, 2026).
- Add your drive. BoardFlight’s arrive-by time starts at the curb, not at your door.
What this page is, and isn’t
The day-by-day numbers are TSA’s own national totals from 2024 and 2025. They describe the past, not 2026.
The hour-by-hour numbers come from BoardFlight’s history-based security-wait curve, read on two ordinary sample days in August 2026. They are modeled medians, not live queue lengths, and they include no holiday effect. Only the 8 airports where both BoardFlight curves passed an independent check against TSA’s published hourly checkpoint throughput are included; the other airports BoardFlight profiles are left out of this table rather than shown with a caveat. How the check works
Trip plans are different. When you plan by airport and time, or look up a flight departing Nov 25 through Nov 29, BoardFlight adds an allowance for Thanksgiving-week crowds to the arrive-by time.
BoardFlight’s arrive-by times are planning estimates, not guarantees. Always follow your airline’s own check-in and boarding guidance.
Not flying from one of these 8?
BoardFlight profiles 61 US airports, and every one has representative arrive-by times on its airport page. Airport pages chart a schedule-based curve, which passes the independent check at 16 of the 61, so many airports not in this table do show an hour-by-hour chart on their own page. See all airports or plan your trip.
Thanksgiving travel questions
What is the busiest day to fly for Thanksgiving 2026?
Based on the last two years, expect the Sunday after Thanksgiving, November 29, 2026. It was the busiest day of the holiday week in both 2024 and 2025, and in 2025 TSA screened more than 3.13 million people that day, the busiest day in TSA's published daily screening data (Nov 30, 2025: 3,134,613, https://www.tsa.gov/travel/passenger-volumes/2025). This is a pattern from past TSA data, not a forecast.
Is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving the busiest travel day?
Not at the national level in recent years. In both 2024 and 2025, the Sunday after and the Monday after each screened more travelers than the Wednesday before, and the Friday six days before Thanksgiving was slightly busier than the Wednesday as well. In 2026 that Friday is November 20.
Is it less busy to fly on Thanksgiving Day?
Yes, nationally. TSA screened about 1.55 million people on Thanksgiving Day 2024 and about 1.56 million in 2025, the lowest total of the holiday week.
What time is airport security worst?
It depends on the airport. In BoardFlight's data study, 6 AM is the worst weekday hour at 3 of the 8 airports (John F. Kennedy International (JFK), John Wayne Orange County International (SNA) and Tampa International (TPA)). Austin's weekday peak is in the afternoon and Boston's is in the evening.
How early should I get to the airport for a Thanksgiving flight?
There isn't one number that fits every airport and every hour. Your terminal, a checked bag, an international route and the time of your flight all change it. Plan by airport and departure time on BoardFlight, look up your flight number once you're within 30 days of departure, and follow your airline's own check-in and boarding guidance.
Does BoardFlight account for Thanksgiving crowds?
Partly, and it says which part. Trip plans and flight lookups for departures from Nov 25 through Nov 29 include an allowance for Thanksgiving-week crowds. The hour-by-hour figures on this page and on airport pages describe an ordinary week and include no holiday effect. The day-by-day figures are TSA's actual national totals from 2024 and 2025.
Where do these numbers come from?
Daily totals come from TSA's published checkpoint travel numbers. Hourly figures come from BoardFlight's history-based security-wait curve, read on two sample days in August 2026, and are shown only for the 8 airports where both BoardFlight curves passed a check against TSA's published hourly checkpoint throughput. The study data is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0.
Plan your Thanksgiving trip
Pick your airport, date and departure time, and BoardFlight works backward through check-in, bag drop, security and the walk to your gate. Departures from Nov 25 through Nov 29 include an allowance for Thanksgiving-week crowds. Free, no account.