New York Airports Compared: JFK vs EWR vs LGA

JFK — the international flagship

JFK carries New York’s intercontinental map: our route database records around 151 destinations served by roughly 62 carriers — every major alliance, the long-haul gateways to every continent, and the widest competition in the market. It sits in southeastern Queens, 15 miles from Midtown.

The transfer works by rail: the AirTrain (free between terminals, $8.75 to exit at Jamaica or Howard Beach) connects to the subway ($2.90, about 50–60 minutes to Midtown total) or the LIRR (a few dollars more, 20–30 minutes to Penn Station). The famous taxi flat rate to Manhattan is $70 plus tolls and tip; rideshares float below that off-peak and above it at peak. The free Q70 bus links the airport to the E/F/M/R trains and skips the AirTrain fee entirely — the locals’ route.

Choose JFK when: flying long-haul, staying in Brooklyn or Queens, or comparing the widest set of fares across every alliance.

EWR — Newark: the New Jersey option

Newark sits across the Hudson in New Jersey, 16 miles from Midtown as the crow flies and a world away in traffic. Our snapshot records 113 destinations on about 24 carriers — United’s transatlantic co-hub is the headline, with solid domestic coverage and genuinely competitive fares on many European routes.

The rail link is clean: the AirTrain ($8.75 on top of the rail fare) feeds Newark Liberty Airport Station, where NJ Transit and Amtrak run to New York Penn in about 25–30 minutes (NJ Transit roughly $16–18 total with the AirTrain). Taxis meter to roughly $60–80 to Midtown plus tolls and tip. The honest caveat: evening and weekend rail works fine, but a car crash on the turnpike approach can strand the taxi option for hours.

Choose EWR when: United’s fare wins, you are heading to New Jersey or the west side, or the transatlantic fare gap beats JFK’s convenience.

LGA — the close-in domestic field

La Guardia sits closest to Manhattan — 8 miles in northern Queens — and our snapshot records 52 destinations on about 10 carriers, almost entirely domestic: the perimeter rule keeps its nonstops inside roughly 1,500 miles, so JFK and EWR keep the long-haul. The rebuilt terminal now rates among the best in the country.

There is no rail link: the free Q70 bus to the E/F/M/R subway plus a $2.90 ride reaches Midtown in 35–50 minutes; a taxi runs $30–45 without traffic and happily doubles at peak. LGA is the rational pick for a Midtown meeting on a domestic ticket — and the wrong pick for anything with an ocean in between.

Choose LGA when: your trip is domestic, your hotel is Midtown-east or uptown, and your schedule fears the Van Wyck more than the fare.

JFK, EWR or LGA: how to decide

The airports sit at three corners of the metro area, 45–90 road-minutes apart — a self-connect between two of them on separate tickets is the classic New York error, and no airline covers it. The arithmetic that matters: for a Manhattan hotel, LGA beats JFK on time when the route exists; EWR beats JFK on price when United wins the route; JFK beats both on network breadth and Brooklyn/Queens convenience. Weigh each fare against its transfer, not against the words “New York”.

Our recorded counts (JFK 151, EWR 113, LGA 52) decide the network side; which airport wins your dates is the search form's job.