Busiest cargo ports in the U.S.
Until the 19th century, the Port of Boston was the busiest maritime port in the country. Today, the ports in Houston, South Louisiana, Los Angeles, Long Beach, and New York are among the most prominent ports in the U.S.In 2020, the three leading U.S. ports in terms of total cargo throughput were on the Gulf of Mexico. The Port of Houston was the largest port in the U.S., processing almost 276 million short tons of seaborne cargo. This port is a primary gateway of liquid bulk cargo leaving and entering the country: About 70 percent of all cargo processed at the Houston Port in 2021 was liquid bulk.
The Port of South Louisiana ranked second with a throughput of 225 million short tons in 2020. The port is an important hub for U.S. grain exports. In 2020, around 23 percent of all cargo handled at the Port of South Louisiana was maize, and some 16 percent soybeans.
