JFK, LaGuardia or Newark: how New York's three airports differ

In short

• JFK curbs are for active pickups only. For now, car service pickups at Terminals 5 and 7 use a lot at the Howard Beach AirTrain station, a free AirTrain ride from the terminal.
• New Terminal One at JFK is due to open its first gates in early 2027.
• LaGuardia has no rail link. The free Q70 bus runs to Terminals B and C.
• You get 45 minutes of free waiting after a domestic landing and 60 minutes after an international landing.

Where each airport is

JFK is in Jamaica, Queens, on Jamaica Bay. Cars come in from the north on the Van Wyck Expressway (I-678) and from the west on the JFK Expressway off the Belt Parkway. Its five passenger terminals, 1, 4, 5, 7 and 8, are on one loop road, linked by the AirTrain. As of September 2026, Terminal 1 serves international airlines including Air France, Lufthansa, Korean Air and Turkish Airlines. Terminal 4 is Delta, with Virgin Atlantic, Emirates and others. Terminal 5 is JetBlue. Terminal 7 carries Aer Lingus, Air Canada, ANA and Frontier, and Terminal 8 is American Airlines with British Airways, Iberia and Qatar Airways.

LaGuardia is in East Elmhurst, on a narrow strip between the Grand Central Parkway and Flushing Bay. It's the closest of the three to Midtown. Scheduled flights use two terminals. Terminal B serves Air Canada, American, Frontier, JetBlue, Porter, Southwest and United, and Terminal C is run by Delta. Terminal A, the original Marine Air Terminal at the west end of the airport, now serves private aviation through Modern Aviation.

Newark Liberty is in New Jersey, 9 miles west-southwest of Manhattan, through the Lincoln or Holland Tunnel and down the New Jersey Turnpike. Terminal A, opened to passengers in January 2023, serves Air Canada, American, Delta, JetBlue and United. Terminal B carries more than 25 domestic and international airlines, among them Alaska, Lufthansa and SAS. Terminal C is run by United.

Teterboro is an airport for private and corporate jets in Bergen County, New Jersey, about 12 miles north-northwest of Midtown. From Manhattan, it's the Lincoln Tunnel and Route 3.

Which airport a flight uses

LaGuardia's perimeter rule bans most nonstop flights to or from cities more than 1,500 miles away, except on Saturdays and to Denver. So flights across the Atlantic and to the West Coast leave from JFK or Newark, and LaGuardia handles shorter trips, like Chicago, Atlanta, Florida and Toronto.

The terminal matters too. At JFK, Terminal 8 is not a short walk from Terminal 4, and airlines will move as the new terminals open. Your flight number tells us both the airport and the terminal. Give it to us when you book.

What changes at JFK in 2026 and 2027

JFK is in the middle of a Port Authority rebuild, and the airport says construction will continue through 2026. Two new terminals are going up. New Terminal One is being built where Terminal 2 stood, next to Terminal 4. It missed its 2026 target and is now due to open its first phase in early 2027, with 13 gates plus one temporary gate. The current Terminal 1 will be torn down once it opens. A new Terminal 6, for JetBlue and partner airlines, is going up on the site of the old Terminals 6 and 7. It will connect to Terminal 5 and open in phases, with the first gates in late 2026 and the full terminal in 2028. Terminal 7 will be torn down after the first phase.

If you arrive or leave by car, this means three things. The airport warns of detours, road closures and traffic in front of the terminals. For now, car service pickups at Terminals 5 and 7 use a lot at the Howard Beach AirTrain station, a free AirTrain ride from the terminal. Ride app pickups use the same lot, and drop-offs are still in front of the terminal. And opening dates at JFK have already slipped. If you fly in early 2027, check your airline's terminal notice a few days before.

Curb rules at the three airports

At all three airports, cars can't wait at the arrivals door. At JFK, the curb is for active pickups and drop-offs only, and empty cars are towed. LaGuardia and Newark say it directly. A driver can't wait at the curb unless the passenger and bags are already there. Otherwise, the driver waits in the cell phone lot until called.

So an airport pickup happens in two steps. Your chauffeur waits nearby while your flight lands. Once you have your bags, they come to the curb or the car service pickup area and call or message you with the exact spot. Our guide to meeting your driver at JFK, LaGuardia and Newark explains how that works and where the car waits at each airport.

We track your flight and move the pickup if it lands early or late. You get 45 minutes of free waiting after a domestic landing, 60 minutes after an international landing, and 15 minutes at any other pickup. For flights, we count from touchdown. If you'd rather skip all of that, add meet and greet. Your chauffeur waits inside the terminal with a name sign, for an extra charge, plus any airport parking. For details on each terminal, see JFK terminal pickups and LaGuardia arrivals.

How early to leave

TSA doesn't give one arrival time for everyone. It tells travelers to check with their airline, because times vary by airport and date, and to allow time for parking or shuttles, check-in, boarding passes and security. The MyTSA app shows how busy a checkpoint usually is at a given hour, based on past data. Your airline sets its own check-in and bag drop deadlines. Plan backward from those.

Then add the drive time. For JFK, the slow point is often the Kew Gardens interchange in central Queens, where the Van Wyck meets the Grand Central and Jackie Robinson parkways. Nearly 600,000 vehicles pass there each day, several miles before the terminals. The main road in is the Grand Central Parkway, and its ramps back up at rush hour. For Newark, each trip from Manhattan goes through the Lincoln or Holland Tunnel, and the tunnel line sets the pace. For routes from each part of the island, see Manhattan chauffeur and black car service.

Bring the right ID. Since May 7, 2025, you need a REAL ID or a passport for domestic flights. As of September 2026, a traveler without acceptable ID pays a $45 TSA ConfirmID fee, and TSA doesn't guarantee it can confirm who you are.

Trains, and when a car is easier

AirTrain JFK connects all terminals to the subway and the Long Island Rail Road at Jamaica, and to the subway at Howard Beach. It's free between terminals. As of September 2026, getting on or off at Jamaica or Howard Beach costs $8.75, paid with a contactless card, a phone or an OMNY card. Trains run every 5 to 15 minutes.

LaGuardia has no rail link. The Q70 LaGuardia Link bus is free and runs to Terminals B and C from the Jackson Heights-Roosevelt Avenue and 74th Street-Broadway subway stations.

AirTrain Newark is free between the terminals, parking and rental cars. It costs $8.75 to ride to the Newark Liberty International Airport station on NJ Transit and Amtrak, unless you already have a rail ticket. It doesn't go directly to Terminal A. That's a 15-minute covered walk or a 5-minute shuttle ride away. The system is being upgraded, and shuttle buses run when the train is out of service.

The train makes sense if you travel light and your hotel is on a subway line. A car is easier with more than one large bag each, with children, with a stop on the way, or late at night. A Business SUV seats 5 with 3 large and 3 small bags, and the 12-seat Sprinter takes 10 large and 2 small bags. Infant, toddler and booster seats are free. Tell us which one you need. Our flat airport rates are the same in both directions.

Arriving from abroad

International arrivals take longer because of passport control, baggage and customs. The free Mobile Passport Control app from U.S. Customs and Border Protection works at JFK and Newark. It's for U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, Canadian citizen visitors and returning Visa Waiver Program travelers with an approved ESTA. You get 45 minutes of free waiting after a domestic landing and 60 minutes after an international landing. For flights, we count from touchdown. After that, we charge waiting at a rate that depends on the vehicle.

When to book by the hour

A flat-rate transfer is best when you're going straight to one address. If your day after landing includes a hotel stop, a meeting, lunch and another trip, book hourly chauffeur service. One car and one chauffeur stay with you, with a 3-hour minimum, and your bags stay in the car while your plans change.