Which U.S. Music Festivals Draw the Largest Crowds?

The U.S. festival season kicks off this weekend with the first days of Coachella 2026 (April 10-12), one of the first major music festivals of the year. Our chart, based on figures from festival organizers, shows that the California-based event drew around 750,000 visitors across its two weekends last year (six days in total, about 125,000 attendees per day), making it the largest music festival in the country by total attendance, well ahead of other major gatherings.

Summerfest in Milwaukee ranked second with roughly 600,000 attendees in 2025, spread over a longer nine-day run, making it one of the longest festivals in the lineup. The electronic dance music event EDC Las Vegas attracted around 525,000 visitors in just three days last year, highlighting its particularly high daily attendance. Meanwhile, Lollapalooza in Chicago and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival each drew about 460,000 people, albeit over different durations: four and eight days, respectively.