TSA wait times
ENDTW · Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
DTW TSA wait times: how busy will security be?
We forecast how many travelers each DTW security checkpoint will screen, hour by hour, from the official TSA throughput reports. Pick your flight time to see which checkpoint should be the least busy for you.
Forecasts, not live wait times. Busy levels compare each checkpoint with its own past year. Times are local airport time.
When is your flight?
Security checkpoints before a 9 AM departure on Tuesday, October 27
Foxy's pickEvans Terminal (Blue 2) should be calm before your flight.
| Checkpoint | 6 AM | 7 AM | 8 AM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evans Terminal (Blue 2) Best bet | Calm~319 travelers | Calm~201 travelers | Calm~212 travelers |
| Evans Terminal (Blue 1) | Moderate~328 travelers | Calm~227 travelers | Calm~224 travelers |
At DTW, each terminal has its own security: we only compare the checkpoints of Evans Terminal. Source: official airport website, checked 2026-10-09.
A typical week at DTW security
Travelers screened per minute, all checkpoints together, forecast average over the next four weeks. This is a flow of people, not a wait time.
Calm Moderate Busy compared with the rest of the week.
| Day | 2 AM | 3 AM | 4 AM | 5 AM | 6 AM | 7 AM | 8 AM | 9 AM | 10 AM | 11 AM | 12 PM | 1 PM | 2 PM | 3 PM | 4 PM | 5 PM | 6 PM | 7 PM | 8 PM | 9 PM | 10 PM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 1/min | 7/min | 22/min | 36/min | 40/min | 37/min | 33/min | 26/min | 30/min | 33/min | 28/min | 30/min | 33/min | 27/min | 24/min | 22/min | 22/min | 16/min | 9/min | 3/min | 1/min |
| Tue | 2/min | 6/min | 18/min | 30/min | 36/min | 36/min | 30/min | 25/min | 27/min | 28/min | 24/min | 27/min | 26/min | 23/min | 21/min | 18/min | 18/min | 13/min | 7/min | 2/min | 1/min |
| Wed | 1/min | 6/min | 18/min | 33/min | 36/min | 38/min | 31/min | 24/min | 27/min | 30/min | 27/min | 29/min | 31/min | 26/min | 26/min | 24/min | 25/min | 15/min | 8/min | 2/min | 1/min |
| Thu | 1/min | 7/min | 23/min | 39/min | 41/min | 38/min | 34/min | 28/min | 29/min | 33/min | 29/min | 34/min | 36/min | 34/min | 30/min | 28/min | 31/min | 25/min | 12/min | 4/min | 1/min |
| Fri | 1/min | 7/min | 24/min | 42/min | 42/min | 41/min | 37/min | 30/min | 31/min | 36/min | 29/min | 35/min | 34/min | 32/min | 29/min | 27/min | 27/min | 21/min | 11/min | 4/min | 1/min |
| Sat | 1/min | 7/min | 23/min | 38/min | 40/min | 39/min | 34/min | 24/min | 28/min | 28/min | 24/min | 25/min | 26/min | 21/min | 18/min | 17/min | 16/min | 11/min | 6/min | 2/min | 1/min |
| Sun | 1/min | 6/min | 18/min | 33/min | 36/min | 34/min | 31/min | 24/min | 27/min | 32/min | 27/min | 31/min | 33/min | 32/min | 27/min | 27/min | 29/min | 22/min | 13/min | 4/min | 1/min |
Busiest days ahead
- Monday, November 30: about 40,735 travelers screened
- Sunday, November 29: about 39,693 travelers screened
- Tuesday, December 29: about 39,530 travelers screened
- Wednesday, December 30: about 39,250 travelers screened
- Monday, December 28: about 38,568 travelers screened
How we forecast
Every week, the TSA publishes how many travelers each checkpoint screened, hour by hour. Our model learns each checkpoint's patterns from years of these reports (weekdays, seasons, holidays) and is retested every week against what really happened.
Tested on 2026: for the 3 hours before a departure, our forecasts were off by 13% on average, and the busy level was right 75% of the time. Treat them as typical conditions, not a guarantee.
Source: TSA throughput data (FOIA Reading Room), U.S. government work. Updated Oct. 23, 2026. For live wait times, see the official airport website.