Chicago City Wire

O’Hare International Airport experienced its busiest June on record in 2025, with more than 8 million passengers passing through its terminals. This figure marks the highest June total in the airport’s 70-year history and represents the second-busiest month ever for O’Hare, according to an announcement from Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA).

“O’Hare’s tremendous growth in passengers and operations this summer underscores Chicago’s historic role as a critical travel hub,” said Mayor Brandon Johnson. “As we welcome millions of travelers to our city, we proudly position Chicago not just as the world-class destination it is, but as a world-class gateway to destinations across the globe.”

CDA Commissioner Michael J. McMurray added, “The record-breaking passenger volumes we’re seeing at O’Hare are a clear sign that travel to and from Chicago is not just back—it’s booming. The CDA is proud to build on the strong partnerships with our hub carriers and other airline partners that are making this summer the busiest in the history of Chicago’s airports.”

Data released by the CDA shows that O’Hare handled 8.04 million passengers in June 2025, which is an increase of 8.72% compared to June 2024. This number falls just short of O’Hare’s all-time monthly record set in July 2019.

In total, more than 40.1 million travelers used O’Hare during the first half of 2025—a rise of 6% over the same period last year. The airport also saw over 77,000 takeoffs and landings in June alone, up by 13.45% from June last year. Year-to-date flight operations have surpassed 407,000, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 10.4%.

TSA checkpoints at O’Hare have also reported new highs for daily screenings since June began. Of the ten busiest days ever recorded at these checkpoints, nine occurred after June 19 this year. The highest single-day screening took place on August 4, when TSA processed 117,871 passengers.

Airlines have scheduled nearly 17.8 million departing seats from both O’Hare and Midway airports between June and August this year—7% higher than last summer and up by about 4% compared to summer of 2019 when O’Hare had its previous busiest year. Combined service from both airports will reach a total of 265 destinations worldwide this summer.