Europe’s busiest ports ranked: Which move the most goods?

Sea shipping plays a vital role in keeping Europe fed, fueled, and supplied. In 2024, around 13 billion tonnes of traded goods were transported by sea globally, with the EU handling 3.4 billion tonnes, corresponding to 26% of the global total. Short sea shipping, which includes maritime transport within the EU and candidate countries, is the primary form of shipping in the region.

The EU's busiest ports, based on volume of goods transported in 2024, are Rotterdam in the Netherlands with 397.3 million tonnes, Antwerp-Bruges in Belgium with 243.7 million tonnes, and Hamburg in Germany with 97 million tonnes. The top five busiest EU ports are Rotterdam, Antwerp-Bruges, Hamburg, Algeciras in Spain with 81.5 million tonnes, and Amsterdam in the Netherlands with 78.8 million tonnes.

France's busiest port, Le Havre and Rouen (HAROPA), handled 76.6 million tonnes, followed by Gdansk in Poland with 71 million tonnes, Marseille in France with 66 million tonnes, and Valencia in Spain with 64.5 million tonnes. Romania's Constanta port and six other ports in the top 20 handle between 36.8 million and 55.5 million tonnes of goods.

Italy's Trieste port and Genova port rank 11th and 12th with 53.5 million and 47.4 million tonnes respectively. Portugal's Sines port and Greece's Piraeus port follow at 44.1 million and 43.7 million tonnes respectively. The busiest ports in the EU by volume of goods transported are dominated by the Netherlands, Italy, and Spain, with the Netherlands leading with 538.1 million tonnes, closely followed by Italy at 488.6 million tonnes and Spain at 486 million tonnes.