The Dwell U.S. port congestion data
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Ship queue

Near normal

All US container ports ships awaiting berth

8 ships waiting for a berth across US container ports as of week of Aug 24, 2026. Weekly, from MARAD and the Marine Exchange.

Data through week of Aug 24, 2026 · source last checked Sep 1, 2026 · page revised Sep 1, 2026

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About this data
Source
MARAD and the Marine Exchange, via BTS Supply Chain and Freight Indicators
Series
Container ships awaiting berth
Basis
Queue count, not a dwell time
Geography
All US container ports
Unit
vessels
Calculation
Weekly reading
Last observation
week of Aug 24, 2026
Update frequency
Weekly

The number of container ships awaiting berth across US ports is 8 ships as of week of Aug 24, 2026, near its trailing-12-month normal of 9 ships. This is a ship QUEUE, not a dwell time. Well below the 2021 to 2023 congestion era, when the queue ran into the dozens.

The US total of ships awaiting berth at all container ports rose to 8 this week, up 33% week over week, and sits 50% below the five-year median (per MARAD). Savannah's ship queue accounted for the bulk of the week-over-week increase, doubling to 4 ships, while LA/Long Beach cleared to zero. The overall count remains well below historical norms despite the weekly uptick.

Period moves and the seasonal vs-N-yr median (a prior-years comparison). The card verdict and the friction board use each series' trailing-12-month median, the friction rule.
PeriodCurrentPriorChange
Week over week8 ships6 ships+33.3%
Month over month8 ships6 ships+33.3%
Year over year8 ships15 ships-46.7%
vs 5-yr median8 ships16 ships-50.0%

Previous weeks

An earlier week

The container ship queue at US ports stands at 4 vessels as of Aug 10, down 6 ships month over month, per MARAD and the Marine Exchange. The reading sits well below its five-year median of 20 ships.

About All US container ports ships awaiting berth

This page tracks the number of container ships waiting offshore for a berth to open at All US container ports. It is a queue, a count of ships, and it is not a dwell time: a vessel in the queue has not yet reached a berth. The count comes from MARAD and the Marine Exchange and updates weekly, so it is the most current congestion signal on the site. A rising queue is an early warning that boxes will start to sit; an empty queue is shown as zero ships, never as a zero dwell.

Common questions

How congested are US ports right now?

8 ships container ships are waiting for a berth across US ports as of week of Aug 24, 2026, near the trailing-12-month normal of 9 ships. The import-friction board gives the per-complex read.

Is port congestion getting better or worse?

Neither, at the moment: the national ship queue has been broadly steady for 3 weeks, with no sustained move in either direction.

Is the current queue normal?

The queue sits near its trailing-12-month normal of 9 ships, the same friction basis the board uses. For scale, the chart's 2021 to 2023 stretch shows the backlog era, when the national queue ran into the dozens.

Where does this port congestion data come from?

From MARAD and the Marine Exchange, via the BTS Supply Chain and Freight Indicators: a weekly count of container ships awaiting berth. It is a queue count, not a dwell time; a ship in the queue has not yet reached a berth. The methodology page has the full sourcing.