TSA wait times
ENIAH · George Bush Intercontinental Airport
IAH TSA wait times: how busy will security be?
We forecast how many travelers each IAH 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 pickTerminal A South should be calm before your flight.
| Checkpoint | 6 AM | 7 AM | 8 AM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal A South Best bet | Calm~258 travelers | Calm~189 travelers | Calm~190 travelers |
| Terminal D (limited hours) | Calm~82 travelers | Calm~131 travelers | Calm~115 travelers |
| Terminal A North | Moderate~479 travelers | Calm~253 travelers | Calm~330 travelers |
| Terminal E | Moderate~1,484 travelers | Calm~983 travelers | Moderate~1,155 travelers |
| Terminal C South | Moderate~433 travelers | Moderate~418 travelers | Moderate~461 travelers |
| Terminal C North | Moderate~717 travelers | Moderate~532 travelers | Moderate~783 travelers |
At IAH, every checkpoint leads to every concourse, so you can pick the least busy one. Checkpoints reserved for connecting passengers or private flights are not listed. Source: official airport website, checked 2026-10-09.
A typical week at IAH 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 | 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 | 11 PM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 12/min | 40/min | 60/min | 80/min | 58/min | 70/min | 51/min | 65/min | 55/min | 55/min | 64/min | 58/min | 60/min | 60/min | 55/min | 52/min | 29/min | 12/min | 9/min | 4/min | 1/min |
| Tue | 9/min | 28/min | 46/min | 60/min | 45/min | 52/min | 38/min | 50/min | 48/min | 39/min | 46/min | 42/min | 48/min | 49/min | 40/min | 36/min | 20/min | 11/min | 7/min | 4/min | 1/min |
| Wed | 9/min | 28/min | 48/min | 63/min | 48/min | 52/min | 42/min | 51/min | 48/min | 43/min | 53/min | 49/min | 58/min | 55/min | 46/min | 38/min | 22/min | 11/min | 7/min | 3/min | 1/min |
| Thu | 11/min | 38/min | 57/min | 69/min | 54/min | 66/min | 46/min | 59/min | 54/min | 50/min | 58/min | 56/min | 65/min | 63/min | 65/min | 51/min | 30/min | 15/min | 9/min | 4/min | 1/min |
| Fri | 10/min | 38/min | 54/min | 70/min | 55/min | 61/min | 47/min | 51/min | 51/min | 44/min | 55/min | 49/min | 59/min | 56/min | 53/min | 45/min | 28/min | 13/min | 8/min | 4/min | 1/min |
| Sat | 10/min | 38/min | 56/min | 72/min | 58/min | 67/min | 47/min | 60/min | 56/min | 45/min | 50/min | 46/min | 49/min | 51/min | 48/min | 42/min | 25/min | 12/min | 8/min | 4/min | 2/min |
| Sun | 10/min | 35/min | 49/min | 67/min | 51/min | 65/min | 47/min | 63/min | 58/min | 54/min | 64/min | 60/min | 68/min | 66/min | 61/min | 57/min | 37/min | 17/min | 10/min | 6/min | 3/min |
Busiest days ahead
- Friday, March 5: about 72,734 travelers screened
- Monday, March 8: about 71,641 travelers screened
- Sunday, March 7: about 70,762 travelers screened
- Saturday, March 6: about 68,755 travelers screened
- Sunday, November 29: about 64,938 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 18% 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. 27, 2026. For live wait times, see the official airport website.