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Port import inflow: where cargo is growing
Census counts imports by the port where they enter the U.S. This page ranks the largest ports by value, shows which are growing against the year before, adds the weight that arrives in containers, and turns it into truckloads per working day so a small fleet can size what it could chase.
Monthly seriesCensus imports by port (general imports value and vessel weight), monthlyData through Aug 2026 (44 months in this snapshot)Retrieved Oct 10, 2026, 05:56 UTCretrieved Oct 10, 2026
Read this first
Imports are counted at the port of entry, not the final destination. Weight is reported for vessel and air shipments only: land ports carry value alone. The share that leaves a port by truck is not in the data, so every truckload figure rests on a share you enter. Growth figures compare the sum of the latest 12 months with the sum of the 12 months before, not the same month. When a port's monthly value steps up once, the figure stays large for a full year because the base is the old, lower level. The table adds the latest month against the same month a year earlier so you can see both. The data does not say why a port's value changes.
The 15 largest ports
Bar length is import value in the last 12 months, in billions of dollars. The label adds the change against the 12 months before. Click a row to load it below.
Largest ports by import value
All ports, monthly import value
Billions of dollars a month, Jan 2023 to Aug 2026.
Chicago, IL
Monthly series for the port you select. The table lists the numbers.
Pre-filled values are Example data. Replace them with your own.
Truckloads per working day at this port
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- Average monthly weight
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- Your trucks, loads per working day
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- Your share of that flow
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Pick a port.
Formula: loads a day = monthly kg x share by truck / (tonnes per load x 1,000) / working days. Your loads a day = trucks x loads per week x 52 / 12 / working days. Integer arithmetic. Nothing you type leaves this page.
The 30 largest ports
Click a column heading to sort. Weights in thousand tonnes (kt). A dash means the table reports no weight for that port.
| Port | Import value, 12 months | Share of U.S. | Value change | Latest month vs year earlier | Containerized weight, 12 months | Weight change | All vessel weight, 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago, IL | $317.9B | 9.1% | +0.5% | +44.3% | 106 kt | -7.1% | 1,951 kt |
| Laredo, TX | $259.1B | 7.4% | +16.8% | +33.9% | - | - | - |
| Los Angeles, CA | $250.5B | 7.1% | -14.9% | +5.1% | 42,587 kt | -5.6% | 56,746 kt |
| Newark, NJ | $197.2B | 5.6% | -7.7% | +2.9% | 31,463 kt | -5.4% | 55,417 kt |
| Los Angeles International Airport, CA | $134.2B | 3.8% | +32.5% | +46.4% | - | - | - |
| San Francisco International Airport, CA | $121.1B | 3.5% | +66.1% | +49.6% | - | - | - |
| JFK International Airport, NY | $117.4B | 3.3% | -46.7% | +51.7% | - | - | - |
| Ysleta, TX | $99.2B | 2.8% | +42.6% | +71.4% | - | - | - |
| New Orleans, LA | $92.2B | 2.6% | +19.5% | +53.0% | 3,042 kt | +15.3% | 28,830 kt |
| Savannah, GA | $89.2B | 2.5% | -4.9% | +2.5% | 19,750 kt | +1.2% | 23,528 kt |
| Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | $85.2B | 2.4% | +113.5% | +112.7% | - | - | - |
| Houston, TX | $81.4B | 2.3% | -7.4% | +13.9% | 17,633 kt | -0.5% | 44,086 kt |
| Long Beach, CA | $81.2B | 2.3% | -11.6% | +25.1% | 13,361 kt | -5.0% | 26,982 kt |
| Anchorage, AK | $79.1B | 2.3% | +81.2% | +171.3% | 38 kt | +320.3% | 2,246 kt |
| Detroit, MI | $70.6B | 2.0% | +1.6% | +49.9% | 120 kt | +113.4% | 3,024 kt |
| Atlanta, GA | $70.2B | 2.0% | +1.3% | +9.6% | - | - | - |
| Port Huron, MI | $68.0B | 1.9% | -8.6% | -2.0% | 12 kt | -17.7% | 649 kt |
| Norfolk-Newport News, VA | $66.4B | 1.9% | +1.9% | +7.1% | 11,956 kt | +4.5% | 13,658 kt |
| Charleston, SC | $59.4B | 1.7% | -6.5% | -16.5% | 10,338 kt | +1.1% | 15,043 kt |
| Baltimore, MD | $50.2B | 1.4% | -7.1% | +29.4% | 6,073 kt | -1.0% | 13,256 kt |
| Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY | $45.8B | 1.3% | -3.4% | +19.5% | 18 kt | +6.5% | 654 kt |
| Otay Mesa, CA | $43.4B | 1.2% | +3.6% | +4.0% | - | - | - |
| Cleveland, OH | $43.1B | 1.2% | +18.2% | +141.6% | 47 kt | -48.7% | 678 kt |
| Philadelphia, PA | $37.8B | 1.1% | +1.4% | +20.8% | 5,569 kt | +0.4% | 17,512 kt |
| Miami International Airport, FL | $37.1B | 1.1% | +6.5% | +20.4% | - | - | - |
| Low Value | $36.5B | 1.0% | +34.6% | +32.0% | - | - | - |
| Tacoma, WA | $33.7B | 1.0% | -12.2% | +11.8% | 4,569 kt | -11.3% | 5,653 kt |
| Eagle Pass, TX | $33.2B | 0.9% | +8.3% | +22.1% | - | - | - |
| Santa Teresa, NM | $31.6B | 0.9% | +40.1% | +173.2% | - | - | - |
| Hildago, TX | $31.2B | 0.9% | +0.5% | +2.0% | - | - | - |
Source: Census Bureau international trade API, retrieved Oct 10, 2026, last 12 months Sep 2025 to Aug 2026. Value is general imports in dollars (B = billion). Containerized weight is vessel weight in containers. Change compares the same 12-month spans. Latest month is Aug 2026 against Aug 2025.
What it means for your fleet
- Follow weight, not only value. A port can rise in value while the boxes get lighter. Trucks are paid on loads.
- Treat growth as a pointer. A port that grows 10% or more year on year is worth a call to its drayage and warehouse contacts. The data does not tell you which lanes grew.
- Remember the entry port is not the destination. Cargo can move inland by rail or sit in a warehouse for weeks before a truck sees it.
- Use your own share assumption. The calculator is only as good as the share by truck you enter. Ask a local drayage dispatcher for a realistic range.
- Re-check every quarter. Port volumes swing with tariffs, carrier schedules and weather. The table shows the change against last year.
Questions
Why containerized weight and not just value?
Value follows what is in the box: a container of electronics and one of furniture can weigh the same and differ many times in value. Trucks carry weight and loads. The table shows both so you can see ports where value and tonnage tell a different story.
What is in vessel weight?
Vessel shipping weight covers everything that arrives on a ship, including bulk cargo such as crude oil and ore that mostly does not leave by truck. Containerized vessel weight is the part in containers, closer to what drayage handles. Land ports (truck and rail crossings) have a value but no weight in this table.
Is the truckload figure a forecast?
No. It divides the port's average monthly weight by the payload you enter, after the share you assume leaves by truck, and spreads it over the working days you enter. The data does not say how cargo leaves the port. It is a sizing aid.
How is growth computed, and can it mislead?
Value change is the sum of import value in the last 12 months divided by the sum in the 12 months before, minus 1. It is not the same month against the same month. If a port's monthly value jumps once and stays high, almost the whole year shows the new level against an old base, so the percentage can be large even though growth stopped after the step. The column next to it compares the latest month with the same month a year earlier. A change in value can also come from price, product mix or a change in where cargo enters. The data does not say which.
What is general imports value?
Census's measure of goods entering the U.S. for consumption or storage, in dollars, by the port where they entered. It is not the port where they finally go.
How current is it?
The snapshot was retrieved Oct 10, 2026 and runs through Aug 2026. Census revises recent months, so the newest figures can change. The last 12 months here are Sep 2025 to Aug 2026.
Related guides and tools
- Ports and trade: top ports by import value and mode
- Border and ports decoded: BTS and Census together
- Border seasonality planner: busy months by port
- For drayage fleets: what to track
- Deadhead: what an empty return costs
- Intelligence hub: all open-data pages
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