Number of airline passengers per year in United States

United States: Number of airline passengers per year was 941.56 million in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
941.56 million
Change on year
up 10.4%
World rank
1st
of 183 countries
All-time high
941.56 million
in 2023
All-time low
163.45 million
in 1970
Years of data
54
1970–2023

Number of airline passengers per year in United States, 1970–2023

200.0M400.0M600.0M800.0M1.0B197019962023

Source: International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for number of airline passengers per year in United States is 941.56 million, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 54 years on record.

The figure is up 10.4% on the previous year and up 26.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of airline passengers per year in United States peaked at 941.56 million in 2023 and was at its lowest, 163.45 million, in 1970.

That places United States 1st out of 183 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 54 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 219.35 million 163.45 million 313.62 million 10
1980s 365.90 million 281.09 million 454.20 million 10
1990s 528.61 million 452.02 million 634.37 million 10
2000s 672.46 million 589.00 million 744.30 million 10
2010s 798.13 million 720.50 million 926.74 million 10
2020s 707.51 million 369.50 million 941.56 million 4

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 2 China 619.22 million compare
  2. 4 India 180.42 million compare

See the full ranking of 183 places →

More reference data data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of airline passengers per year in United States?
Number of airline passengers per year in United States was 941.56 million in 2023, according to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest number of airline passengers per year recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 941.56 million in 2023.
What is the lowest number of airline passengers per year recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 163.45 million in 1970.
How does United States rank for number of airline passengers per year?
United States ranks 1st out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
Is number of airline passengers per year rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 26.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United States data come from?
The figures come from International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of airline passengers per year. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Number of airline passengers per year
Source
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
183 places, 7,925 data points, 1970–2023
Last refreshed

This represents the total rather than unique passenger activity: this means a person who makes multiple trips is counted multiple times.