In our continued effort to inform travelers and help keep travel costs low, we bring you our Fifth Annual Airport Affordability Index.
The index, which uses average plane ticket prices our site users found during the month of June (to a list of common domestic and international destinations) to rank 101 of the most popular airports in the United States, gives travelers a little extra insight into the cheapest departure and arrival points.
This year’s list features quite a few newcomers (Charleston International, Dallas Love Field, Joe Foss Field, Chicago Midway, San Jose International and Bradley International) to the top 10 most affordable airports as well as some repeat appearances from last year (Long Beach (Daugherty Field), Harrisburg International, Bob Hope Airport and Myrtle Beach Jetport). The airports with the cheapest ticket prices serve everything from major markets like Chicago to small markets like Sioux Falls, S.D. Notably, Charleston, S.C. jumped from number 30 last year to claim the top spot this year.
Our rankings provide travelers with a way of seeing how nearby airports measure up and potentially expanding departure or arrival options during a flight search. These rankings fluctuate year to year and prices can change frequently (and dramatically) along routes, but as always, there are a few key takeaways: do your research, check out all your options and, if you can, be flexible with your travel plans — it could yield significant savings!
Take a look at the full list:
Rank |
Airport |
Average Airfare |
Last year’s rank |
| 1 | Charleston International, SC (CHS) | $191 | 30 |
| 2 | Long Beach (Daugherty Field), CA (LGB) | $200 | 1 |
| 3 | Harrisburg International, PA (MDT) | $236 | 7 |
| 4 | Dallas Love Field, TX (DAL) | $266 | 65 |
| 5 | Joe Foss Field, SD (FSD) | $267 | N/A |
| 6 | Chicago Midway, IL (MDW) | $269 | 18 |
| 7 | Bob Hope Airport, CA (BUR) | $274 | 9 |
| 8 | San Jose International, CA (SJC) | $277 | 17 |
| 9 | Myrtle Beach Jetport, SC (MYR) | $287 | 2 |
| 10 | Bradley International, CT (BDL) | $295 | 51 |
| 11 | Wichita Mid-Continent, KS (ICT) | $306 | 70 |
| 12 | Metropolitan Oakland International, CA (OAK) | $306 | 5 |
| 13 | Portland Intl Jetport, ME (PWM) | $308 | 23 |
| 14 | Charles B. Wheeler Downtown, MO (MKC) | $309 | 39 |
| 15 | Akron-Canton Regional, OH (CAK) | $312 | 10 |
| 16 | Manchester, NH (MHT) | $313 | 26 |
| 17 | Theodore Francis Green State, RI (PVD) | $314 | 29 |
| 18 | Eppley Airfield, NE (OMA) | $319 | 33 |
| 19 | Fresno Air Terminal, CA (FAT) | $331 | 3 |
| 20 | Denver International, CO (DEN) | $332 | 54 |
| 21 | Bellingham International, WA (BLI) | $334 | 15 |
| 22 | Reagan National (DCA) | $335 | 24 |
| 23 | Palm Beach International, FL (PBI) | $335 | 19 |
| 24 | Richmond International, VA (RIC) | $341 | 45 |
| 25 | Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County, MI (DTW) | $341 | 38 |
| 26 | General Mitchell International, WI (MKE) | $341 | 42 |
| 27 | Memphis International, TN (MEM) | $342 | 61 |
| 28 | Greater Rochester International, NY (ROC) | $346 | 13 |
| 29 | Orlando International, FL (MCO) | $352 | 36 |
| 30 | Syracuse Hancock International, NY (SYR) | $354 | 20 |
| 31 | La Guardia, NY (LGA) | $355 | 6 |
| 32 | Burlington International, VT (BTV) | $359 | 4 |
| 33 | Kansas City International, MO (MCI) | $359 | 71 |
| 34 | Tucson International, AZ (TUS) | $362 | 35 |
| 35 | Minneapolis-St Paul International, MN (MSP) | $364 | 72 |
| 36 | McCarran International, NV (LAS) | $364 | 68 |
| 37 | Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International, FL (FLL) | $366 | 21 |
| 38 | Indianapolis International, IN (IND) | $367 | 57 |
| 39 | Buffalo Niagara International, NY (BUF) | $368 | 52 |
| 40 | James M. Cox Dayton International, OH (DAY) | $370 | 28 |
| 41 | Albuquerque International, NM (ABQ) | $371 | 92 |
| 42 | William P. Hobby, TX (HOU) | $371 | 50 |
| 43 | Lovell Field, TN (CHA) | $372 | N/A |
| 44 | Dallas/Fort Worth International, TX (DFW) | $372 | 25 |
| 45 | Tampa International, FL (TPA) | $381 | 79 |
| 46 | Oklahoma, OK (OKC) | $382 | 53 |
| 47 | Des Moines International, IA (DSM) | $384 | 31 |
| 48 | Philadelphia International, PA (PHL) | $386 | 47 |
| 49 | Ontario International, CA (ONT) | $388 | 27 |
| 50 | Bishop International, MI (FNT) | $391 | 16 |
| 51 | Baltimore/Washington International, MD (BWI) | $391 | 77 |
| 52 | Reno-Tahoe International, NV (RNO) | $396 | 34 |
| 53 | Pensacola Regional, FL (PNS) | $396 | 43 |
| 54 | Austin-Bergstrom International, TX (AUS) | $399 | 66 |
| 55 | Lambert-St Louis International, MO (STL) | $400 | 64 |
| 56 | Los Angeles International, CA (LAX) | $403 | 60 |
| 57 | Gerald R. Ford International, MI (GRR) | $404 | 41 |
| 58 | Pittsburgh International, PA (PIT) | $405 | 78 |
| 59 | Jacksonville International, FL (JAX) | $408 | 74 |
| 60 | Raleigh-Durham International, NC (RDU) | $409 | 63 |
| 61 | Seattle – Tacoma International, WA (SEA) | $409 | 75 |
| 62 | Greenville-Spartanburg, SC (GSP) | $409 | 46 |
| 63 | George Bush Intercontinental, TX (IAH) | $410 | 32 |
| 64 | Phoenix Sky Harbor International, AZ (PHX) | $413 | 86 |
| 65 | Chicago-O’Hare International, IL (ORD) | $413 | 40 |
| 66 | Cleveland-Hopkins International, OH (CLE) | $413 | 83 |
| 67 | John Wayne/Orange County, CA (SNA) | $414 | 11 |
| 68 | Mahlon Sweet Field, OR (EUG) | $414 | N/A |
| 69 | Albany International, NY (ALB) | $416 | 67 |
| 70 | New Orleans International, LA (MSY) | $417 | 73 |
| 71 | Nashville International, TN (BNA) | $417 | 80 |
| 72 | Salt Lake City International, UT (SLC) | $423 | 97 |
| 73 | Atlanta International, GA (ATL) | $426 | 91 |
| 74 | Adams Field, AR (LIT) | $428 | 59 |
| 75 | Sacramento International Airport, CA (SMF) | $429 | 76 |
| 76 | Logan International, MA (BOS) | $430 | 88 |
| 77 | Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International, OH (CVG) | $437 | 69 |
| 78 | San Diego Intl-Lindbergh Field, CA (SAN) | $443 | 55 |
| 79 | Portland International, OR (PDX) | $448 | 48 |
| 80 | Miami International, FL (MIA) | $451 | 99 |
| 81 | San Francisco International, CA (SFO) | $453 | 84 |
| 82 | Piedmont Triad International, NC (GSO) | $459 | 14 |
| 83 | San Antonio International, TX (SAT) | $470 | 62 |
| 84 | Washington Dulles International (IAD) | $479 | 100 |
| 85 | Norfolk International, VA (ORF) | $480 | 85 |
| 86 | Spokane International, WA (GEG) | $481 | 44 |
| 87 | Birmingham International, AL (BHM) | $484 | 89 |
| 88 | Charlotte/Douglas International, NC (CLT) | $484 | 94 |
| 89 | Standiford Field, KY (SDF) | $485 | 96 |
| 90 | Dane County Rgnl-Truax Field, WI (MSN) | $485 | N/A |
| 91 | McGhee Tyson, TN (TYS) | $500 | 22 |
| 92 | Northwest Arkansas Regional, AR (XNA) | $513 | 82 |
| 93 | Anchorage International, AK (ANC) | $521 | 87 |
| 94 | Port Columbus International, OH (CMH) | $524 | 81 |
| 95 | Boise Air Terminal (Gowen Field), ID (BOI) | $536 | 37 |
| 96 | Southwest Florida International, FL (RSW) | $562 | 98 |
| 97 | El Paso International, TX (ELP) | $568 | 49 |
| 98 | John F. Kennedy International, NY (JFK) | $581 | 95 |
| 99 | Tulsa International, OK (TUL) | $596 | 58 |
| 100 | Newark International, NJ (EWR) | $694 | 93 |
| 101 | Honolulu International, HI (HNL) | $842 | 101 |
(Featured image: elaws)
