Year to date · January–August 2026
12.6 million TEU
August 2026 only
1.56 million TEU
First port
3.75 million TEU
Transhipment TEU
6.47 million TEU
What the data say · August 2026
Spanish ports handled 12.6 million TEU in the year to August 2026, 0.8% more than in the same period of 2025. In August alone, the figure was 1.56 million TEU, 2.6% less than in August 2025.
In August, 15 of the 24 port authorities with data improved on their August 2025 figure.
Transhipment TEU: 6.47 million TEU in the year to August 2026, 0.3% less than a year earlier. Bahía de Algeciras ranks first on this measure, with 2.73 million TEU.
2024 closed with 18.1 million TEU, 10.7% more than in 2023. It is the highest figure in the entire annual series.
Valencia ranks first among port authorities with 3.75 million TEU in the year to August 2026 (1.9% less than a year earlier). It is followed by Bahía de Algeciras (3.16 million) and Barcelona (2.52 million). Together, the three account for 75% of the total.
The largest increases were recorded by Alicante (+33.0%), Málaga (+26.0%) and Las Palmas (+4.8%); the steepest falls by Santa Cruz de Tenerife (−6.3%), Valencia (−1.9%) and Bahía de Cádiz (−0.6%). The comparison is limited to port authorities that account for at least 1% of the total, so that an extreme swing at a small player does not distort the picture.
The rest of the top ten are Las Palmas (4th, 1.06 million, +4.8%), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (5th, 339,458 TEU, −6.3%), Málaga (6th, 301,842 TEU, +26.0%), Bilbao (7th, 285,097 TEU, +1.0%), Vigo (8th, 210,630 TEU, +1.8%), Alicante (9th, 167,386 TEU, +33.0%) and Bahía de Cádiz (10th, 140,828 TEU, −0.6%).
At the bottom of the table are Melilla (2,470 TEU), Avilés (8 TEU) and Pasaia (4 TEU), out of a total of 26 port authorities with data.
The distribution is highly concentrated: the top five account for 86.2% of the total and 4 port authorities are enough to reach 80%, while the other 16 port authorities further down share the remaining 5%. 16 of the 25 port authorities with a comparison grew year on year, 8 of them by double digits, and 9 fell.
Of the 8 months of 2026 with data, 4 are above the same month of 2025 and 4 below; over the last three months (June, July, August) the figure is down 2.2% on the same months of 2025; the largest year-on-year difference was in March (up 10.9%); the highest point in the series was May, at 1.67 M, and the lowest January, at 1.36 M.
Between 2013 and 2024 the figure went from 13.9 M to 18.1 M, an increase of 30.4% over 11 years (+2.4% a year on average); the last year is the high point of the series and the low was 2013 (13.9 M).
Top 10 · Ranking of port authorities · year to date 2026
Month by month · 2026 vs 2025
Annual series for the port system
Full table · 28 port authorities
| # | Port authorities | Jan–Aug 2026 | YoY change | August | Monthly change | Share | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valencia | 3.75 M | −1.9% | 467,192 | −5.4% | 29.8% | Port |
| 2 | Bahía de Algeciras | 3.16 M | +0.9% | 393,191 | −1.5% | 25.1% | Port |
| 3 | Barcelona | 2.52 M | −0.5% | 294,037 | −13.7% | 20.1% | Port |
| 4 | Las Palmas | 1.06 M | +4.8% | 150,253 | +7.1% | 8.5% | Port |
| 5 | Santa Cruz de Tenerife | 339,458 | −6.3% | 42,396 | +13.3% | 2.7% | Port |
| 6 | Málaga | 301,842 | +26.0% | 39,622 | +20.1% | 2.4% | Port |
| 7 | Bilbao | 285,097 | +1.0% | 34,100 | +20.7% | 2.3% | Port |
| 8 | Vigo | 210,630 | +1.8% | 25,920 | +6.2% | 1.7% | Port |
| 9 | Alicante | 167,386 | +33.0% | 23,896 | +34.8% | 1.3% | Port |
| 10 | Bahía de Cádiz | 140,828 | −0.6% | 17,647 | −3.8% | 1.1% | Port |
| 11 | Santander | 114,396 | +7.4% | 14,132 | −0.2% | 0.9% | Port |
| 12 | Sevilla | 110,846 | +11.0% | 13,801 | +2.0% | 0.9% | Port |
| 13 | Castellón | 97,529 | +38.5% | 10,374 | +13.7% | 0.8% | Port |
| 14 | Huelva | 77,718 | −27.5% | 9,142 | −4.0% | 0.6% | Port |
| 15 | Baleares | 60,870 | +5.1% | 8,248 | +9.8% | 0.5% | Port |
| 16 | Gijón | 45,885 | −0.3% | 5,926 | +21.9% | 0.4% | Port |
| 17 | Marín y Ría de Pontevedra | 33,059 | +23.7% | 2,893 | +27.4% | 0.3% | Port |
| 18 | Vilagarcía | 28,889 | +21.7% | 4,131 | +23.4% | 0.2% | Port |
| 19 | Cartagena | 28,506 | +2.9% | 3,425 | −13.7% | 0.2% | Port |
| 20 | Tarragona | 11,196 | +8.6% | 1,487 | +10.0% | 0.1% | Port |
| 21 | Almería | 8,747 | −38.6% | 655 | −50.6% | 0.1% | Port |
| 22 | Ferrol-San Cibrao | 7,138 | −64.5% | 44 | −96.3% | 0.1% | Port |
| 23 | Ceuta | 6,640 | +80.8% | 1,027 | +137.6% | 0.1% | Port |
| 24 | Melilla | 2,470 | −18.8% | 342 | +22.4% | 0.0% | Port |
| 25 | Avilés | 8 | — | 0 | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 26 | Pasaia | 4 | +100.0% | 0 | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 27 | A Coruña | — | — | — | — | — | Port |
| 28 | Motril | — | — | — | — | — | Port |
What this indicator measures
The TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) is the standard measure of container traffic. Puertos del Estado counts every container handled, full and empty, and separates import and export boxes, domestic cabotage and transhipment containers, which arrive on one ship and leave on another without entering Spain. In Algeciras and Valencia transhipment makes up more than half of the total.
Context
Counting all its ports, Spain is Europe’s second-largest container port system, after Germany and ahead of the Netherlands. Valencia and Algeciras alternate in first place nationally and both rank among Europe’s top ten; Barcelona is third. Las Palmas and Bilbao complete the group of ports handling more than half a million TEU a year.
Frequently asked questions
Which Spanish port handles the most containers?
Valencia, with 3.75 million TEU in the year to August 2026, 29.8% of the total.
How many TEU have Spanish ports handled this year?
12.6 million TEU in the year to August 2026, 0.8% more than in the same period of 2025.
When is the container ranking updated?
Puertos del Estado publishes the data every month. Latest data available: August 2026.
Source
Puertos del Estado. To explore the data in detail, use PortStats · containers or see the original source.