2025 total
81.9 million tonnes
First port · 2025
12.6 million tonnes
Series high, 2012–2025
102.4 million tonnes
Month with the highest figure
7.78 million tonnes
The 2025 balance
Spanish ports handled 81.9 million tonnes of dry bulk traffic in 2025, 3.4% less than in 2024 (2.9 million less). This is the year-end balance according to Puertos del Estado’s monthly statistics, with December data for the 28 port authorities.
The high point of the 2012–2025 series is 2018, with 102.4 million tonnes: 2025 was 20% below it and ranks 12th of the 14 years with data.
In the 2025 ranking, the ports moving up on 2024 are Castellón (from 4th to 3rd), Bilbao (from 7th to 6th) and Almería (from 9th to 7th); those moving down are Cartagena (from 3rd to 4th), Barcelona (from 6th to 8th) and A Coruña (from 8th to 9th).
Gijón ranks first among port authorities with 12.6 million tonnes in 2025 (4% more than in 2024). It is followed by Tarragona (8.48 million) and Castellón (8.16 million). Together, the three account for 35.7% of the total.
The largest increases were recorded by Motril (+15.7%), Almería (+10.4%) and Bahía de Cádiz (+9.4%); the steepest falls by Marín y Ría de Pontevedra (−23.2%), Alicante (−20.4%) and Cartagena (−17.8%). 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 Cartagena (4th, 7.22 million, −17.8%), Huelva (5th, 5.44 million, +3.0%), Bilbao (6th, 4.37 million, +1.3%), Almería (7th, 4.28 million, +10.4%), Barcelona (8th, 4.08 million, −15.1%), A Coruña (9th, 3.77 million, −10.6%) and Ferrol-San Cibrao (10th, 3.33 million, −9.9%).
At the bottom of the table are Bahía de Algeciras (273,939 tonnes), Melilla (14,630 tonnes) and Ceuta (8,446 tonnes), out of a total of 28 port authorities with data.
The distribution is concentrated: the top five account for 51.1% of the total and 12 port authorities are enough to reach 80%, while the other 18 port authorities further down share the remaining 24.6%. 15 of the 28 port authorities with a comparison grew compared with 2024, 7 of them by double digits, and 13 fell.
Of the 12 months of 2025 with data, 5 are above the same month of 2024 and 7 below; over the last three months (October, November, December) the figure is up 2.3% on the same months of 2024; the largest year-on-year difference was in January (down 18.6%); the highest point in the series was September, at 7.78 M, and the lowest January, at 6.16 M.
Between 2012 and 2025 the figure went from 88.6 M to 81.9 M, a decrease of 7.6% over 13 years (−0.6% a year on average). The best year was 2018 (102.4 M) and the worst 2020 (77.1 M).
Top 10 · Ranking of port authorities · 2025
Month by month · 2025 vs 2024
Annual series, 2012–2025
Full table · 28 port authorities · 2025
| # | Port authorities | 2025 | Change on 2024 | 2024 | Share | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gijón | 12.6 M | +4.0% | 12.1 M | 15.4% | Port |
| 2 | Tarragona | 8.48 M | −8.0% | 9.23 M | 10.4% | Port |
| 3 | Castellón | 8.16 M | +6.3% | 7.68 M | 10.0% | Port |
| 4 | Cartagena | 7.22 M | −17.8% | 8.78 M | 8.8% | Port |
| 5 | Huelva | 5.44 M | +3.0% | 5.28 M | 6.6% | Port |
| 6 | Bilbao | 4.37 M | +1.3% | 4.32 M | 5.3% | Port |
| 7 | Almería | 4.28 M | +10.4% | 3.88 M | 5.2% | Port |
| 8 | Barcelona | 4.08 M | −15.1% | 4.8 M | 5.0% | Port |
| 9 | A Coruña | 3.77 M | −10.6% | 4.22 M | 4.6% | Port |
| 10 | Ferrol-San Cibrao | 3.33 M | −9.9% | 3.7 M | 4.1% | Port |
| 11 | Santander | 3.18 M | −4.7% | 3.34 M | 3.9% | Port |
| 12 | Avilés | 2.88 M | +1.4% | 2.84 M | 3.5% | Port |
| 13 | Valencia | 2.43 M | −11.9% | 2.76 M | 3.0% | Port |
| 14 | Sevilla | 2.19 M | +8.6% | 2.02 M | 2.7% | Port |
| 15 | Bahía de Cádiz | 1.81 M | +9.4% | 1.66 M | 2.2% | Port |
| 16 | Alicante | 1.43 M | −20.4% | 1.8 M | 1.7% | Port |
| 17 | Marín y Ría de Pontevedra | 1.09 M | −23.2% | 1.43 M | 1.3% | Port |
| 18 | Málaga | 1.08 M | −14.1% | 1.26 M | 1.3% | Port |
| 19 | Pasaia | 1.0 M | +6.8% | 938,380 | 1.2% | Port |
| 20 | Motril | 871,521 | +15.7% | 752,994 | 1.1% | Port |
| 21 | Las Palmas | 462,174 | +11.7% | 413,813 | 0.6% | Port |
| 22 | Santa Cruz de Tenerife | 416,931 | +23.9% | 336,443 | 0.5% | Port |
| 23 | Vilagarcía | 383,401 | −7.0% | 412,377 | 0.5% | Port |
| 24 | Baleares | 321,796 | −10.2% | 358,505 | 0.4% | Port |
| 25 | Vigo | 312,292 | +20.0% | 260,261 | 0.4% | Port |
| 26 | Bahía de Algeciras | 273,939 | +15.9% | 236,283 | 0.3% | Port |
| 27 | Melilla | 14,630 | −12.3% | 16,689 | 0.0% | Port |
| 28 | Ceuta | 8,446 | +115.1% | 3,926 | 0.0% | Port |
What this indicator measures
Dry bulk is unpackaged cargo moved loose: coal, iron ore, cereals and animal feed, cement and clinker, fertilisers, scrap and salt. It is the traffic most closely linked to heavy industry, power generation and agriculture, and the one that has changed most with the closure of coal-fired power plants.
Frequently asked questions
Which was Spain’s first port by dry bulk traffic in 2025?
Gijón, with 12.6 million tonnes in 2025, 15.4% of the total.
What was the dry bulk traffic figure for Spanish ports in 2025?
81.9 million tonnes in 2025, 3.4% less than in 2024.
Was 2025 a record year?
No: the high point of the 2012–2025 series is 2018, with 102.4 million tonnes; 2025 was 20% below it.
Source
Puertos del Estado. To explore the data in detail, use PortStats · traffic by type of cargo, annual series or see the original source.