# Thanksgiving 2023 air travel: how US airports and states did

Source: Passenger Index, https://passengerindex.com/web/holidays/thanksgiving-2023/ (CC BY 4.0). Updated 2026-10-20.

TSA screened 17,282,982 passengers nationwide over the Thanksgiving 2023 travel period (Tue, Nov 21 – Mon, Nov 27, 2023), up 10.7% from 15,612,784 over the same period a year earlier. The busiest day was Sunday, November 26, with 2,908,785 screenings, the most TSA had ever screened in a single day.



## Key facts

- **Travel period:** Tue, Nov 21 – Mon, Nov 27, 2023
- **TSA screenings:** 17,282,982 (+10.7% YoY)
- **Busiest day:** November 26, 2023: 2,908,785 (all-time record)

## Day by day, nationwide

| 2023 | Screened | Year earlier | Screened | YoY |
|---|--:|---|--:|--:|
| Tue, Nov 21 | 2,647,461 | Tue, Nov 22, 2022 | 2,370,351 | +11.7% |
| Wed, Nov 22 | 2,741,610 | Wed, Nov 23, 2022 | 2,465,337 | +11.2% |
| Thu, Nov 23 | 1,547,419 | Thu, Nov 24, 2022 | 1,426,195 | +8.5% |
| Fri, Nov 24 | 2,199,057 | Fri, Nov 25, 2022 | 1,984,980 | +10.8% |
| Sat, Nov 25 | 2,605,387 | Sat, Nov 26, 2022 | 2,336,633 | +11.5% |
| Sun, Nov 26 | 2,908,785 | Sun, Nov 27, 2022 | 2,639,616 | +10.2% |
| Mon, Nov 27 | 2,633,263 | Mon, Nov 28, 2022 | 2,389,672 | +10.2% |

## By state (departing passengers screened, 3 significant figures)

| State | Departing screened | YoY | Busiest airport |
|---|--:|--:|---|

## By airport (departing passengers screened, 3 significant figures)

| Code | Airport | State | Departing screened | YoY |
|---|---|---|--:|--:|

## How it is measured

The Thanksgiving travel period is the Tuesday before Thanksgiving through the Monday after (7 days), the period TSA itself reports. It is compared with the same period a year earlier (Tue, Nov 22 – Mon, Nov 28, 2022). National figures are TSA's published daily checkpoint totals (tsa.gov). Airport and state figures add up TSA's FOIA hourly checkpoint throughput files; they count departing passengers screened, not arrivals or connecting passengers, so they run below airport-reported totals. An airport is included only when TSA's files are complete for it on every day of both periods (0 of 0 reporting airports); nothing is estimated. International arrivals are passengers processed by US Customs and Border Protection at the airports it monitors. Full definitions: methodology. Cite as: Passenger Index, "Thanksgiving 2023 air travel: how US airports and states did", https://passengerindex.com/web/holidays/thanksgiving-2023/ (CC BY 4.0).

## Frequently asked questions

### How many people flew over Thanksgiving 2023?

TSA screened 17,282,982 passengers nationwide over the Thanksgiving 2023 travel period (Tue, Nov 21 – Mon, Nov 27, 2023), up 10.7% from 15,612,784 over the same period a year earlier. The busiest day was Sunday, November 26, with 2,908,785 screenings, the most TSA had ever screened in a single day.

### How does Passenger Index define the Thanksgiving travel period?

As the Tuesday before Thanksgiving through the Monday after (7 days), the period TSA itself reports. The 2023 period ran Tue, Nov 21 – Mon, Nov 27, 2023 and is compared with Tue, Nov 22 – Mon, Nov 28, 2022, the same days relative to the holiday.

### When is the Thanksgiving 2024 travel period?

Tue, Nov 26 – Mon, Dec 2, 2024. Passenger Index publishes airport and state results a few days after it ends, once TSA releases the checkpoint data.