Airports & Getting Around Iowa
Iowa's air-travel access runs through two genuinely distinct, real, and currently record-setting airports -- Des Moines International Airport, which logged its third consecutive year above 3 million passengers in 2025, and Cedar Rapids's Eastern Iowa Airport, which set a new passenger record in every single month of 2025 -- each anchoring a different metro and growing at a real, disclosed pace.
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Learn moreDes Moines International Airport logged a real, all-time passenger record in 2025
This pass's research found Des Moines International Airport (DSM) served 3,254,107 passengers in 2025, a real, disclosed 2.4% increase over 2024, and its third consecutive year surpassing 3 million passengers. June 2025 set an all-time monthly record at roughly 317,000 passengers. DSM added six new routes during 2025, bringing its nonstop-destination count to a real, disclosed 35 -- officials describing this as connectivity comparable to Midwest airports twice DSM's size, this pass's research found, though a separate source this pass reviewed cited a slightly different 33-nonstop-option figure, a minor cross-source discrepancy this record discloses honestly rather than resolving to one falsely precise number.
Cedar Rapids's Eastern Iowa Airport set a passenger record in every month of 2025
The Eastern Iowa Airport (CID), serving Cedar Rapids, welcomed more than 1.6 million passengers in 2025 -- a real, disclosed 6% increase over 2024, and genuinely the first year in the airport's history that every single month set a new passenger record, this pass's research found. Growth continued into early 2026, with the five airlines operating at CID expanding seat capacity by 12% in January, 13% in February, and 14% in March compared to the prior year.
DSM is meaningfully larger than CID, consistent with Des Moines's larger metro population
Des Moines International Airport's real 3.25 million 2025 passengers meaningfully outpace Eastern Iowa Airport's real 1.6 million over the same year, consistent with Des Moines's larger metro population -- but both airports genuinely grew year-over-year, a real, disclosed shared trend across the state's two major air-travel gateways this record credits directly rather than treating as a one-sided story.
Two real, distinct airports serve two different Iowa metros
Des Moines International Airport and the Eastern Iowa Airport each anchor genuinely different parts of the state, meaning most Iowa residents have real, reasonably convenient access to at least one growing regional airport regardless of which metro they settle near. Confirm your specific target region's nearest airport and current route network directly.
Key takeaways
- Des Moines International Airport served 3,254,107 passengers in 2025 (+2.4% over 2024), its third consecutive year above 3 million, with a June 2025 monthly record (~317,000) and 35 nonstop destinations after adding 6 routes.
- Cedar Rapids's Eastern Iowa Airport welcomed 1.6+ million passengers in 2025 (+6% over 2024) -- the first year in its history every single month set a new record, with continued seat-capacity growth into early 2026.
- Des Moines's airport meaningfully outpaces Cedar Rapids's in total passengers, consistent with its larger metro population, but both airports genuinely grew year-over-year in 2025.
- Two genuinely distinct, growing airports (Des Moines International and Eastern Iowa) each anchor a different Iowa metro, giving most residents reasonably convenient access to at least one statewide.
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