Not all airports feel the same.
Some are calm, quiet, and surprisingly pleasant. Others feel like chaos wrapped in construction, traffic, crowds, and delayed flights.
When I went to what was the smallest commercial airport I had ever seen, I noticed there was a certain atmosphere about the whole place. It was generally quiet. Nothing was rushed. Heck, even the TSA officers were pleasant! 😉
I visited the small airport in Nantucket late last summer, when I was gaining my JetBlue Mosaic 1 status by visiting 25 airports the airline services. It had the same kind of feel – a little slower paced, a lot more calm, etc.
Compare that to when you go to a big, busy airport like JFK, ATL or LAX, and well, that’s a whole different vibe. Lots of crowds, lots of hustle and bustle. Lots of stress.
So obviously, some airports in the U.S. are more stressful than others. But which are the MOST stressful?
Last month, Travel & Leisure (T&L) revealed the world’s most stressful airports, ranked. From T&L:
Heading to the airport is never stress free, but some terminals are more panic inducing than others.
They used the study from travel technology company Mozio, which has operated a global ground transportation search and booking platform for the past 15 years.
How the rankings were calculated (methodology)
According to Mozio:
We analysed data from the 20 busiest airports in the U.S. by passenger traffic, according to the FAA.
Each airport was given a normalised score out of 10 based on the following factors:
Flight delay performance
The percentage of flights that departed within 15 minutes of scheduled time at each airport, sourced from TranStats.
Airport parking costs
The standard daily parking cost at each airport, sourced from official airport websites, is the on-site short-stay or terminal parking rate. Where multiple parking options are listed, the most comparable standard daily parking rate was used.
Distance from the airport to the city centre
The driving distance between the airport terminal and a recognised central landmark, such as the main train station, city hall, or central square, was calculated using Google Maps.
The same comparable date and time were used for each airport, taking the quickest route possible if there were multiple options. If the distance was given as an estimated range, the midpoint was taken.
This data was collected on 19.03.2026. We used the time it takes to get from the airport to the landmark.
Finally, we created a normalised score out of 10 for each factor, and then calculated a combined overall ‘airport stress score’.
The 3 most stressful airports in America
3. Tie: John F. Kennedy International Airport & Newark Liberty International Airport
Airport stress score: 7.19 out of 10
JFK, located in Queens, NY, was the 6th busiest airport in the country in 2025. Although it has a decent record of flights taking off within 15 minutes of schedule (78.3%), the throngs of people (let’s face it, on top of the “New York attitude”) make things super stressful. Mozio also said that parking costs $70 per day, and the drive to Times Square takes about 56 minutes, with even longer rides when there’s heavy traffic (I grew up in NYC – there’s a LOT of heavy traffic).
EWR, in Newark NJ, has less passenger volume (it was “only” the 14th busiest airport in 2025). But its on-time performance is lower (76.2%) and parking is still a crazy $70 per day. The drive to Penn Station takes about 31 minutes.
2. LaGuardia Airport
Airport stress score: 7.54 out of 10
Completing the triad of airports in the great metropolitan NYC area is LGA, also located in Queens. It costs a whopping $80 to park – the highest daily rate of any airport in the study. 26.3% of its flights depart late, and it takes 54 minutes to drive to Times Square (without heavy traffic. With traffic? Fuggetaboutit.
1. Chicago-O’Hare International Airport
Airport stress score: 8.42 out of 10
According to Mozio, ORD got the distinction of being the most stressful airport in the country. More than 25% of its scheduled flights fail to depart on time. Parking costs $43 per day and the drive to Chicago Union Station takes just about an hour.
Here’s a link to Mozio’s study, which also includes the ten least stressful airports in the country.
The rest of the top ten
Rounding out the top ten most stressful airports were:
4. DEN
5. Tie: FLL and DFW
6. LAX
7. Tie: DTW, IAH and MIA
Compare this to Condé Nast’s study
The funny thing is that earlier this year, Condé Nast Traveler (CNT) reported on a similar study, that one from Australia-based travel insurance company iSelect. Theirs was for the most stressful airports in the WORLD, not just the U.S.
It was interesting to see how the “world” study compared to this “U.S.” study, since 3 out of 4 airports mentioned in the U.S. study were in the “Top 5” of the “world” study.
Of course, “stressful” is somewhat subjective.
Some travelers are perfectly fine navigating giant airports with packed terminals, long walks, traffic jams, and constant delays. Others break into a cold sweat the second they see a TSA line wrapping around the terminal.
Still, it’s hard to argue that airports like JFK, LaGuardia, Newark, and O’Hare aren’t consistently…a lot.
Meanwhile, smaller airports often remind travelers that flying doesn’t always have to feel like an Olympic endurance event.
At least until your flight gets delayed there, too. 😏
But honestly, the fact that all three major NYC-area airports made the list feels less like a surprise and more like a confirmation of what travelers have been screaming into the void for years.
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