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In short: Taxis and app cars picked up about 12.3 million riders at JFK and LaGuardia in 2025, about 94% of the 2019 level. For the first time in this data, LaGuardia (6.21 million) edged past JFK (6.13 million). Apps carry most airport riders: about two-thirds at JFK and four in five at LaGuardia. NYC trips to Newark reached 1.85 million in 2025, above 2019, and almost all of them were app trips.
These counts come from TLC's pickups and drop-offs by taxi zone, built from trip records filed by app companies and taxi technology providers. They include yellow taxis, green cabs and high-volume FHVs (app-based companies). Black car, livery and luxury limousine trips that are not app-based are not included.
JFK and LaGuardia pickups by year
| Year | JFK | LaGuardia | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 6,712,074 | 6,440,040 | 13,152,114 |
| 2020 | 1,912,644 | 1,662,382 | 3,575,026 |
| 2023 | 6,406,890 | 5,691,255 | 12,098,145 |
| 2024 | 6,321,481 | 6,034,170 | 12,355,651 |
| 2025 | 6,131,443 | 6,214,590 | 12,346,033 |
Airport pickups fell by almost three-quarters in 2020 and climbed back by 2023. Since then JFK has edged down slightly while LaGuardia has kept rising. Local rules and pickup details for each airport are on our JFK and LaGuardia pages. This trip data alone doesn’t explain why.
Who picks up at each airport
At JFK, yellow taxis made 2,062,317 pickups (about 34%) and app-based cars 4,068,857 (about 66%). At LaGuardia, yellow taxis made 1,291,288 (about 21%) and apps 4,923,038 (about 79%). For the hour-by-hour pattern at each airport, see airport pickups by hour; for fares and driver pay on airport trips, airport trips by the numbers. Yellow taxis keep a much bigger role at airports than citywide, where they made about 15% of 2025 daily trips across these and other TLC industries (trip statistics).
Trips from NYC to Newark
NYC trips to Newark reached 1,850,039 in 2025, about 14% above 2019. Yellow taxis made 94,212 of them, about 5%, down from about 11% in 2019. Under TLC rule 80-20(a)(1), a taxi driver must not refuse a passenger going to Newark Airport without justifiable grounds; refusal carries mandatory penalties that rise to revocation for repeat findings. Our Newark Airport page covers what applies there.
Airports and enforcement
The airports are patrolled by the Port Authority Police Department (PAPD), which also writes TLC summonses. Their TLC summonses grew much faster than airport trips did:
In 2019, Port Authority Police wrote 6,524 TLC summonses while JFK and LaGuardia had 13.2 million pickups. In 2025 they wrote 8,836 while pickups were 12.3 million. So Port Authority TLC summonses rose about 35% while airport pickups fell about 6%. We can't tie any summons to an airport, because the OATH data has no usable location field, and Port Authority Police also patrol bridges, tunnels and the bus terminal.
Two airport-specific rules are worth knowing. For-hire vehicles may only pick up passengers booked through a licensed base, and at the city's airports TLC rule 80-19(c)(2) applies enhanced penalties for doing otherwise, starting at $500 for a first violation (chapter 80). See unlicensed activity and street hails. And the most common Port Authority charges are traffic and standing rules; see Port Authority TLC summonses.
What this data can and cannot tell you
It can tell you how many yellow taxi, green cab and app-based pickups happened at JFK and LaGuardia each year, and how many NYC trips ended at Newark.
It cannot tell you:
- Non-app black car, livery or limo trips. They are not in this data.
- Pickups at Newark. Only drop-offs are published.
- Wait times, fares or earnings at the airports.
- Which summonses came from which airport. OATH data has no usable location.
- Brand-level splits within app-based trips.
Frequently asked questions
How many taxi and Uber pickups are there at JFK and LaGuardia?
TLC's zone data shows 6,131,443 pickups at JFK and 6,214,590 at LaGuardia in 2025, counting yellow taxi, green cab and app-based (high-volume FHV) trips.
Do yellow cabs or apps carry more airport passengers?
Apps. In 2025, app-based vehicles made about 66% of these pickups at JFK and about 79% at LaGuardia. Yellow taxis made about 34% at JFK and 21% at LaGuardia.
Have airport trips recovered since the pandemic?
Nearly. Combined JFK and LaGuardia pickups were 12.35 million in 2025, about 94% of 2019's 13.15 million.
Can a NYC taxi refuse a trip to Newark Airport?
TLC rule 80-20(a)(1) says a driver must not refuse to take a passenger to any destination in New York City, Westchester or Nassau counties, or Newark Airport, unless the driver has justifiable grounds.
Why is there no Newark pickup data?
Newark Liberty Airport is in New Jersey, so TLC publishes only NYC trips that end there (drop-offs), not pickups.
Sources
Last reviewed against the official sources on .
- NYC Open Data: Pickups and Drop-offs by Taxi Zone and Industry (c5iv-bn4s) data.cityofnewyork.us
- NYC Open Data: OATH Hearings Division Case Status (jz4z-kudi) data.cityofnewyork.us
- TLC Rules, Chapter 80: Drivers (§80-19, §80-20) nyc.gov
- Port Authority Police Department: About PAPD panynj.gov
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll check it against the official source.
TLC Help is not a law firm and is not affiliated with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission or OATH. Explanations on this site are general information, not legal advice. Legal representation is provided by independent attorneys and OATH-registered representatives in our network.