How Much Is Parking at Long Beach Airport (2026 Data)

How much is parking at Long Beach Airport? Since October 1, 2026, a full day costs $30¹ in Structure B and $35¹ in Structure A, and the hourly charge is $5¹. Before that the daily maximums were $25² and $30², with $4² an hour. Valet parking followed on November 1, going from $38³ to $42⁴ a day.

It is the second step of the same size in two years: the daily maximums went up by $5⁵ on October 1, 2025 as well. This page sets out every rate now in force, the rules that change the bill, how far prices have moved since 2021, what parking earns the airport, and the passenger numbers behind the increase. All money is in US dollars; fiscal years end on September 30.

Long Beach Airport parking rates in 2026

The airport has two public parking structures a short walk from the ticketing lobby, Structure A and Structure B, also called Lot A and Lot B.⁶ Since October 1, 2026, both charge $5¹ per hour, up to $35¹ a day in Structure A and $30¹ a day in Structure B. Valet costs $42¹ a day, and the Cell Phone Waiting Lot at the corner of Wardlow Road and Lakewood Boulevard is free for up to one hour.⁷

Against the rates in force until September 30, 2026 the hourly charge rose 25%², the Structure A maximum 17%² and the Structure B maximum 20%². Valet rose by $4⁸ a day, a 10.5%⁸ increase, on November 1, 2026.

How much is parking at Long Beach Airport per day?

A full day costs $30¹ in Structure B and $35¹ in Structure A. At the hourly rate of $5¹, six hours in Structure B already reach the $30⁸ daily maximum and seven hours in Structure A reach $35⁸, so anyone parking for an afternoon or longer pays the full-day price. A day of valet at $42¹ costs $7⁸ more than a day in Structure A. Before October the same day cost $25² in Structure B and $30² in Structure A.

Short stops are where the hourly rise shows most. A two-hour drop-off or pick-up in either structure now costs $10⁸, against $8⁸ before October; drivers who wait in the car rather than walk in can use the free Cell Phone Waiting Lot for up to an hour instead. Booking ahead adds the reservation fee on top of the daily maximum: a one-day online booking comes to $38.50⁸ in Structure A and $33⁸ in Structure B, and a week booked online in Structure A to $250⁸, because the fee stops at its cap.

When Structure A is full, drivers are sent to Structure B, which also holds the electric-vehicle chargers.¹

How much is overnight parking at Long Beach Airport?

There is no separate overnight rate: a car left overnight pays the posted daily maximum for each day it is parked, so one night costs $30¹ in Structure B and $35¹ in Structure A. Whether a day means 24 hours or a calendar day is not specified on the rate page.¹ A reserved stay that runs over is charged at the drive-up rate, and leaving early earns no partial refund.⁷ The rules that matter for an overnight or longer stay are in the table below.

On a one-day booking in Structure B the reservation fee is $3⁸; any booking of $50⁸ or more pays the $5⁷ cap, which a two-day stay in either structure already reaches. Reservations started on October 1, 2025, through a tool run by the airport's parking operator, and at busy times Structure A may not be offered online.⁶ A booking guarantees entry to the reserved structure even when drive-up spaces are sold out.⁷

Valet parking at Long Beach Airport

Valet is the dearest way to park at the airport. The valet operator's rate card in force since November 1, 2026 charges $42⁴ per 24 hours, then $6⁴ an hour after that maximum, with a free exterior wash. A short-term valet stay costs $18⁴ for the first two hours and $6⁴ an hour after, capped at $42⁴; oversized vehicles pay $55⁴ per 24 hours, and a coupon rate of $38⁴ per 24 hours is listed. Bookings made before November 1 keep the earlier price.

The card it replaced, in force from October 1, 2025, charged $38³ per 24 hours and $4³ an hour after the maximum, and $48³ for oversized vehicles. The hourly charge after the daily maximum is up 50%⁸ and the oversize rate by $7⁸, or 14.6%⁸; only the first two hours of short-term valet kept their price.

How Long Beach Airport parking prices have risen since 2021

Five years ago the structures cost much less. Until September 30, 2021, the daily maximum was $19⁹ in Structure A and $17⁹ in Structure B; the city's fee schedule for fiscal 2022 proposed $21⁹ and $19⁹, and proposed raising the monthly parking card for tenant employees from $30⁹ to $40⁹. The fiscal 2026 budget added $5⁵ to the daily fee and $1⁵ to the hourly fee, which took Structure A to $30⁶ and Structure B to $25⁶ on October 1, 2025; before that step they were $25⁸ and $20⁸, with $3⁸ an hour. The fiscal 2027 budget repeated the step, with the same $5¹⁰ a day and $1¹⁰ an hour, from October 1, 2026.

From fiscal 2021 to October 2026 the Structure A maximum rose 84.2%⁸ and the Structure B maximum 76.5%⁸. The hourly rate went from $3⁸ to $5¹ in two years.

The city says why. Parking increases were introduced to offset rising operating costs, to match fees at comparable airports and to avoid raising other charges on the airport's business partners; the fiscal 2026 step was expected to bring in about $2.7 million⁵ a year. For October 2026 the city's fee schedule puts the extra income at $862,000² from the Structure A daily rate, $678,000² from Structure B and $4,555² from each hourly rate, about $1.55 million⁸ a year in all, or 11.8%⁸ of fiscal 2025 parking income. The city calls these estimates theoretical.

The fiscal 2027 airport budget books the same step at $1,658,000¹⁰ a year, alongside a $1¹⁰ rise in the drop-off and pick-up fee for ride-hailing and taxis worth $425,000¹⁰.

What parking earns Long Beach Airport

Parking fees are the airport's second-largest source of operating revenue.¹¹ In fiscal 2025 they brought in $13,118,601¹¹, or 21.43%⁸ of $61,227,813¹¹ in operating revenue. Landing, gate and ramp fees earned $17,579,674¹¹, land and building rentals $11,140,437¹¹, concessions $11,023,019¹¹ and other fees and charges $8,366,082¹¹.

Parking income has swung with traffic. Fees were $8,726,170¹² in fiscal 2011 and reached an early high of $9,853,562¹² in fiscal 2012, slid to $7,719,562¹² in fiscal 2015 as passenger numbers fell, recovered to $10,050,093¹³ in fiscal 2018, and dropped to $4,189,027¹⁴ in fiscal 2021 as the pandemic emptied the terminal. Fiscal 2024's $13,442,244¹⁴ is the highest of the 15 years. In fiscal 2025, before the October 2025 rate step took effect, fees fell 2.4%⁸ to $13,118,601¹¹ as boardings fell 7.2%⁸: still 42.1%⁸ above pre-pandemic fiscal 2019 and 3.13⁸ times the 2021 low.¹¹ The trend line is fitted over fiscal 2016-2025 and includes the pandemic dip; a line fitted over all 15 years would reach only about $14.1 million⁸ by 2050, barely above today's level.

Parking's weight in the airport's budget has not returned to where it was. It made up 26.92%⁸ of operating revenue in fiscal 2011 and 14.5%⁸ in fiscal 2021; the fiscal 2025 share of 21.43%⁸ is above the pandemic years but below every year from 2011 to 2015, because landing fees and concessions grew faster.

Parking revenue per passenger

Dividing parking fees by the passengers who boarded in the same fiscal year gives a price signal that strips out traffic swings. It was $5.69⁸ in fiscal 2011, stayed near $6.00⁸ to $6.06⁸ from 2012 to 2015, fell to $5.01⁸ in fiscal 2018 when traffic peaked, and rose to $6.49⁸ in fiscal 2024 and $6.82⁸ in fiscal 2025, the highest of the 15 years, as parking income fell less than traffic. Boarding counts include connecting passengers and travelers who arrive by taxi, ride-hailing or rental car, so this is an average across every departing traveler rather than a price per parked car.⁸

Airlines pay the airport far more per passenger than parking brings in, and their bill has risen faster. Airline payments per enplaned passenger were $6.65¹² in fiscal 2011 and $13.18¹¹ in fiscal 2025, 1.98⁸ times as much.¹¹ The fiscal 2026 budget had aimed for $12.87⁵ in fiscal 2026, within a target range of $12⁵ to $13⁵. A year later the target has moved: the fiscal 2027 budget estimates $14.81¹⁰ for fiscal 2026, 12.4%⁸ above the fiscal 2025 actual, projects $15.57¹⁰ for fiscal 2027 and now aims for $15¹⁰ to $16¹⁰ a passenger, citing inflation and operating changes. In fiscal 2025 parking brought in 51.7%⁸ as much per passenger as the airlines paid.

The airline charge per passenger is set to keep climbing. Between the fiscal 2026 and fiscal 2027 budgets the target range moved up by $3⁸ a passenger, and the fiscal 2027 projection of $15.57¹⁰ is 18.1%⁸ above the fiscal 2025 actual. Airlines and drivers are paying more at the same time: the budget pairs the parking step with higher ride-hailing and taxi fees and new service fees to cover rising operating costs, and says this limits the need to raise other fees.¹⁰

The costs behind the increase

Running the airport has become steadily dearer. Operating expenses, including depreciation, were $35,719,157¹² in fiscal 2011 and $72,165,429¹¹ in fiscal 2025, 2.02⁸ times as much, and 9.3%⁸ more than in fiscal 2024. Operating revenue did not keep pace: fiscal 2025 closed with an operating loss of $10,937,616¹¹ before passenger facility charges, grants and other non-operating income, against $4,204,989¹⁴ a year earlier.¹¹ The fiscal 2026 budget added $758,318⁵ for parking management services, and in fiscal 2025 the airport installed a new parking access and revenue control system, and the solar canopies on top of both structures generated more than 3.2 million⁵ kilowatt-hours in their first year. New LED lights in Structure B cut its electricity use by 44%¹⁵ in January 2026 against January 2025.

Personnel services went from $7,738,612¹¹ in fiscal 2021 to $17,651,616¹¹ in fiscal 2025, 2.28⁸ times as much, and 14.8%⁸ in the last year alone; depreciation reached $19,972,473¹¹.

Passenger traffic and parking demand

Parking demand follows the number of people flying out. The airport boarded 1,412,636¹² passengers in fiscal 2006 and between 1,276,679¹² and 1,643,383¹² a year from 2007 to 2016. Traffic then climbed to 2,006,292¹³ in fiscal 2018; the pandemic cut it to 767,207¹⁴ in fiscal 2021, and fiscal 2024 set the record at 2,072,058¹⁴, 1.47⁸ times fiscal 2006.¹⁴ Fiscal 2025 fell 7.2%⁸ to 1,923,368¹¹. The table carries no trend line: a straight line through these years is dragged down by 2020-2021 and would end below the 2024 count, which is not a plausible path.

Calendar 2025 went the other way. The airport boarded 1,906,221¹⁶ passengers, 7.9%⁸ fewer than the 2,068,742¹⁶ of 2024, as airlines offered 2,633,091¹⁶ seats against 2,812,881¹⁶. In September 2025 the airport warned the city that published airline schedules pointed to about 15%¹⁷ less scheduled service in 2026, and that nearly 80%¹⁷ of its revenue depends on commercial passengers.

Within the year, the busiest months at the airport were October (171,362⁸ boardings), June (170,911¹⁸) and July (169,919¹⁹); February was the quietest at 133,038²⁰. The monthly record set in May 2024, when 189,435²¹ passengers departed, has not been reached in any month reported since.

2026 is running lower still. From January to August the airport boarded 1,145,160²⁹ passengers against 1,255,344²⁹ a year earlier, down 8.8%⁸, while airlines offered 1,493,720²⁹ seats against 1,776,464²⁹, down 15.9%⁸. Planes ran fuller: the load factor for the eight months was 77%²⁹, against 71%²⁹ a year earlier. Every month was below 2025; June fell most, by 13.7%⁸, and August least, by 4.5%⁸.

Counting arrivals as well, 2,293,946²⁹ passengers used the airport in those eight months, 8.6%⁸ fewer than the 2,511,084²⁹ of January-August 2025.

The busiest month of 2026 so far was August, with 152,787²⁹ boardings, and the quietest February, with 127,977²⁰. Flights fell faster than passengers: commercial airline landings dropped from 11,280²⁹ in January-August 2025 to 9,475²⁹, down 16.0%⁸, while the seats on offer fell 15.9%⁸.

The city's budget expects the fall to continue. For fiscal 2027 the airport anticipates a little over 3.2 million¹⁰ passengers, arriving and departing together, 7%¹⁰ fewer than the year before and the third year of decline from the peak. The budget puts this down to airline capacity cuts, softer travel demand in the region and economic uncertainty, after a spike in oil prices in 2026 led airlines to cut schedules and raise fares.¹⁰

Airlines and flight slots

Airline service at the airport runs on a fixed number of allocated flight slots, so the carriers holding them decide how many travelers need a parking space. In fiscal 2011-2015 JetBlue carried 79%¹² to 83%¹² of the airport's passengers. JetBlue left on October 6, 2020.¹⁴ By fiscal 2024 Southwest carried 91%¹⁴ of 2,072,058¹⁴ enplanements, and in fiscal 2025 it boarded 1,708,187¹¹ of 1,923,368¹¹, or 88.8%⁸.

Ten years later the mix had turned over. Southwest boarded 1,708,187¹¹ passengers at the airport in fiscal 2025, Hawaiian 120,191¹¹ and Delta's regional service 94,377¹¹. American left at the end of February 2023.¹¹

In 2026 the drop has come from Southwest. From January to August it boarded 999,881²⁹ passengers, 10.2%⁸ fewer than a year earlier, while Delta grew 4.6%⁸ to 64,775²⁹ and Alaska/Hawaiian held level at 79,818²⁹. Southwest still carried 87.3%⁸ of all boardings.

The slot count moved in 2026. In fiscal 2024 and 2025 the 58¹¹ air carrier slots were split Southwest 50¹¹, Delta 4¹¹, and Hawaiian and UPS 2¹¹ each. Delta gave up 1²⁹ slot in January 2026, Southwest 5²⁹ in February, and Alaska received 2²⁹ in April. By August 2026 Southwest held 45²⁹, Delta 3²⁹, Alaska/Hawaiian 4²⁹ and UPS 2²⁹, 54⁸ in all; 4²⁹ more were being allocated and 25²⁹ commuter slots remained available.

What a trip from Long Beach Airport costs to park

The daily maximums turn into these bills:

• One week in Structure B: $210⁸, against $175⁸ before October 1, 2026.
• One week in Structure A: $245⁸, against $210⁸ before October 1, 2026.
• One week with valet: $294⁸, against $266⁸ before November 1, 2026.
• The longest allowed stay, 30 days: $900⁸ in Structure B and $1,050⁸ in Structure A.

A week in Structure A costs $35⁸ more than a week in Structure B, and a week of valet $49⁸ more than a week in Structure A. Over the longest allowed stay the gap between the two structures reaches $150⁸. For anyone flying out for more than a day, the choice of structure therefore matters more than the hourly rate, and booking online adds at most $5⁷ to any of these bills.

How Long Beach compares with other airports

Structure A's $35¹ sits in the middle of the terminal garages at other airports, at the rates posted in November 2026: above John Wayne's $30³⁰ terminal parking, below San Diego's $40³¹ and San Jose's $41³² Terminal B garage. Structure B's $30¹ matches the closest garages at John Wayne, Portland and Baltimore/Washington, and only New Orleans at $26³³ and Miami at $25³⁴ charge less for their terminal garages among the airports compared. Phoenix, at $33³⁵, sits between the two Long Beach structures.

Nationally, prices for parking fees and tolls rose 15.2%⁸ from 2021 to 2025.³⁹ Over about the same span, Long Beach's Structure A maximum went from $19⁹ in fiscal 2021 to $30⁶ in October 2025, up 57.9%⁸, a rise 3.8⁸ times as steep as the national one. The second step, in October 2026, falls outside that comparison period.

California's airports boarded 111,723,917⁴⁰ passengers in calendar 2025 on the preliminary federal count, more than any other state; Delaware's 169,827⁴⁰ were the fewest.

Conclusions

1. Two equal steps in two years. Structure A went from $25⁸ before October 2025 to $35¹ in October 2026, and Structure B from $20⁸ to $30¹; since fiscal 2021 the Structure A maximum has risen 84.2%⁸. Valet followed in November, at $42⁴ a day.
2. Fewer passengers put more weight on the rate. In fiscal 2025 boardings fell 7.2%⁸ and parking fees 2.4%⁸, and January-August 2026 boardings were down another 8.8%⁸. The October increase will carry more of the parking income; the city's $1.55 million⁸ a year estimate is theoretical.
3. Parking's share of airport income has shrunk. It made up 21.43%⁸ of operating revenue in fiscal 2025, down from 26.92%⁸ in fiscal 2011, while operating expenses were 2.02⁸ times their fiscal 2011 level.
4. For a short stay the hourly rate decides the bill. At $5¹ an hour, six hours in Structure B already cost the full $30⁸ day.
5. Long Beach stays mid-priced among terminal garages. Its $35¹ is above John Wayne's $30³⁰ and below San Diego's $40³¹.