Where the world’s goods flow: Top 5 largest ports

People have begun to settle near reservoirs since ancient times, as water provided food and served as a means of transportation. Gradually, ports appeared in such settlements, which still play a huge role in the economy. We are talking about the largest sea harbors on the planet.

5 Largest seaports in the world

1. Shanghai Port: the largest port in the world

For many years, the port of Shanghai has had the largest volume of cargo transportation. If all the containers coming here were destined for the residents of this Chinese city, everyone would receive almost two containers of goods. But they mainly overload coal, metal ore, petroleum products, construction materials, and equipment.

This workload is associated with a favorable geographical location. The largest port in the world is located on the western coast of the Pacific Ocean, near the confluence of the Yangtze River with the East China Sea. And on the territory it occupies, 3619.6 km2, Moscow and Volgograd would fit perfectly. The process is automated, utilizing robotic terminals, and artificial intelligence algorithms predict terminal loading within 72 hours, resulting in a 15% reduction in downtime.

2. The Grand Port of Saint Petersburg: the largest in Russia

The large port of Saint Petersburg retains its status as the largest container port in Russia. But in terms of total cargo turnover, it is in third place, behind Novorossiisk and Ust-Luga. So, in just four months of 2025, the total cargo turnover of the port in Novorossiisk amounted to 53.1 million tons of cargo, and in St. Petersburg, 19.1 million tons.

The port continues to specialize in the transshipment of petroleum products, metals, timber, chemical cargoes, coal, and ore. Its water area of about 629.9 km2, an area comparable to the area of Kazan, is located in the Nevsky Bay of the Gulf of Finland, with most terminals located on islands in the Neva Delta.

The port of Ust-Luga is also actively developing in the Leningrad Region, where the Lugaport deepwater terminal opened in 2024. Visit. A F R I N I K . C O M . For the full article. Part of the capacity is planned to be transferred there.

3. Port of Rotterdam: the largest port in Europe

The port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands retains the status of Europe’s largest in terms of cargo turnover, having handled 436 million tons of cargo and 9 million physical containers in 2024. Oil, coal, ore, agricultural products, chemicals, and industrial equipment form the basis of transportation, although energy volumes are declining due to the green transition – the practice of replacing fossil fuels with hydrogen and electricity, digitalization of logistics, and the reorientation of cargo flows to environmentally friendly goods.

Located in a strategically important location at the mouth of the Rhine and Meuse Rivers, the port serves as the main “gateway to Europe”: up to 40% of cargo from Asia and the United States enters the continental part of the EU through its terminals. Its area is 124.6 km2, including the water area, which is comparable to the territory of Ivanovo. Most of the goods arriving from the USA or Asian countries arrive deep into continental Europe through the port of Rotterdam.

4. Port of Los Angeles: the largest port in South and North America

The Port of Los Angeles is the largest harbor on two continents, sometimes referred to as the port of America. Located in San Pedro Bay, 32 km from the city center. It occupies more than 35 km2 — about the size of Manezhnaya and Red Square in Moscow — and is adjacent to the port of Long Beach.

In 2024, container turnover amounted to 6.7 million physical containers. Furniture, car parts, clothing, footwear, and electronics are mainly imported, while waste paper, animal feed, scrap metal, and soybeans are exported. Its 30 km2 terminals are a hub for Asian electronics and American raw materials. 300% more containers are handled here than in the entire Santos (Brazil), the largest port in South America.

5. Port of Singapore, Singapore

The port of Singapore, which handles 37.49 million TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit ) per year, or about 100,000 TEU daily. It has 55 berths and connections to 600 ports around the world. The port’s strategic location in Southeast Asia makes it an ideal hub in the global supply chain. It is reported that half of the world’s crude oil supplies pass through the port.

Singapore is currently completing the phased construction of the Tuas Port, which is scheduled to be completed in the 2040s, and is expected to have a capacity of 65 million TEU by that time. The Port of Tuas is considered a leader in digitalization and sustainable development, as the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is working with port operators to implement digital technologies in the port of Singapore.