Largest maritime cargo ports in the United States (U.S.) - statistics & facts

Until the 19th century, when several other ports eventually overshadowed it, the Port of Boston was the busiest maritime port in the country (and the initial colonies). Nowadays, the ports in Houston, South Louisiana, and Corpus Christi are the most prominent cargo ports in the U.S. The ports in New York, Los Angeles, and Long Beach are, on the other hand, among the largest container ports in the country.

Largest ports concentrated in the Gulf of Mexico

In 2020, the three leading U.S. ports in terms of total cargo throughput were located in the Gulf of Mexico. The Port of Houston was the largest port in the U.S., processing almost 276 million short tons of seaborne cargo. This port is a primary gateway of liquid bulk cargo leaving and entering the country: about 70 percent of all load processed at the Houston Port in 2021 was liquid bulk. The Port of South Louisiana ranked second with a throughput of 225 million short tons in 2020. The port is an important hub for U.S. grain exports. In 2020, around 23 percent of all cargo handled at the Port of South Louisiana was maize, and some 16 percent were soybeans.

Port of Corpus Christi exports the most crude oil

The Port of Corpus Christi is the third-largest cargo port in the U.S. but the leading port for crude oil exports in the country. In 2022, the port exported about 160 million metric tons of crude oil, representing nearly 60 percent of the port’s total exports that year. Located in Texas, the largest crude oil-producing state in the U.S., the port is strategically situated to dominate crude oil exports. Thanks to an intricate network of pipelines, crude oil gets transported directly from the Permian Basin, the highest-producing oil field in the country.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Dec 19, 2023

Key insights

Weight of waterborne goods traded by the U.S.
1.6m mt
Largest U.S. port based on total cargo throughput
Port of Houston
Largest U.S. port based on dry bulk throughput
Port of South Louisiana
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Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Largest container ports in the United States (U.S.) in 2020, based on container throughput (in TEUs)

Water Transport

Largest container ports in the U.S. based on container throughput 2020

Value of goods transported by vessels to and from the United States (U.S.) monthly from 2019 to 2021 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Water Transport

Monthly U.S.-international seaborne freight value by direction 2019-2021

Value of the goods traded by the United States (U.S.) in 2021, by mode of transport (in billion U.S. dollars)

Water Transport

U.S.-international trade value by mode of transport 2021

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Largest maritime container ports in the United States
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