Istanbul Airport vs Sabiha Gökçen Airport: Which One Should You Choose?

Planning to travel to Istanbul (or Türkiye in general)? One of the first decisions you’ll need to make is choosing the correct airport. But here’s the kicker: Istanbul has two major airports — Istanbul Airport (IST) and Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW)!

We like to joke that since Istanbul is the most-visited city in Türkiye, it’s no surprise that the city has two airports to meet the ever-increasing demands and the massive influx of visitors. 😉 

But how do you know which Istanbul airport to fly into? 

That’s where this guide comes in! We’ve traveled through IST and SAW many times and wanted to put together an entire Istanbul Airport vs Sabiha Gökçen comparison to help you make the best choice. We’ve looked at things like location, transportation, which airlines fly to which airports, amenities, and much more. 

Differences Between IST and SAW

To help you make a better and more informed decision, we’ll compare and contrast IST Airport and SAW Airport across four key categories. Let’s take a look: 

LOCATION & TRANSPORTATION

Both Istanbul Airport and Sabiha Gökçen Airport are located outside of Istanbul’s “city center,” so you’ll need to take some form of transportation to get to your hotel. Istanbul (IST) Airport is located in the northern part of Istanbul’s European side, while Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) Airport is located on Istanbul’s Asian side. 

Typically, Istanbul (IST) AIrport is the best airport to fly into Istanbul for tourists thanks to its location on the European side, as well as its transportation connections. 

Here’s a map to help you visualize the two airports in Istanbul: 

Now that you’re acquainted with their locations, let’s take a look at the transportation options for IST and SAW: 

Istanbul Airport (IST) Transportation 

✈️ Private Shuttle — If you want to travel in comfort and enjoy a stress-free experience, we highly recommend a private transfer (especially if you’re traveling with luggage and/or with a large group!) This top-rated transfer costs less than $14/person

✈️  Public Transportation — Take the M11 metro to the terminal station (Gayrettepe) and transfer to the M2 metro heading towards Yenikapı. If you’re staying in Taksim, you can get off at the Taksım station. If you’re staying in Beyoğlu or Galata, get off at ​​​​​​​​Şișhane station. FInally, if you’re staying in Istanbul’s Old Town (Sultanahmet), get off at Veznecıler, transfer to the T1 tram, and get off at Sultanahmet.

✈️  Airport Shuttle — There are comfortable shuttle buses that have direct routes to Istanbul’s city center and work practically around the clock. You can check the prices and timetables on the HavaIST website → 

Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) Transportation 

Sabiha Gökçen Airport also has plenty of transportation options, including via public transportation, shuttle bus, and private transfer. In fact, we have a few articles on this site detailing how to get from SAW Airport to various areas of Istanbul:

📍 How to Get From SAW Airport to Sultanahmet — Planning to travel between SAW Airport to Sultanahmet (Istanbul’s Old Town)? This blog post goes over every transport option. Read here →

📍 How to Get From SAW Airport to Taksim — If you’re wondering how to get from SAW Airport to Taksim, this blog post will help. Read here →

📍 How to Get From SAW Airport to Kadikoy — Last but certainly not pleast, if you want to know how to travel between SAW Airport to Kadikoy, this blog post goes over everything you need to know. 🙂 Read here →

Summary

Both airlines are located far from Istanbul’s city center: Istanbul Airport (IST) is about 43 km (27 mi) from the center, while Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) Airport is about 45 km (28 mi). Thankfully, both airports have plenty of transportation options, including public transportation, direct shuttle buses, and private transfers. 


AIRLINES 

You can’t have an airport without the actual airlines, right? When it comes to airline hubs, Istanbul Airport (IST) and Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) have distinct differences. 

Airlines that fly to Istanbul Airport (IST)

Istanbul Airport (IST) is the primary hub for Turkish Airlines, the national flag carrier of Turkey. Turkish Airlines offers a huge network of flights that connect Istanbul to destinations across the globe. In fact, if you’ve seen their ads, Turkish Airlines’ slogan is “We fly to more countries than any other airline”! 

At the moment, Turkish Airlines flies to more than 260+ countries around the world, plus 50+ domestic destinations within Türkiye. 

If you’re flying with Turkish Airlines or its partner airlines within the Star Alliance network, you’ll likely arrive at or depart from Istanbul Airport. Similarly, IST Airport is a popular destination for other major international airlines like Air France, China Southern, Etihad, LOT, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Transavia, and more.

Airlines that fly to Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) 

Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW), on the other hand, serves as a hub for several budget airlines and low-cost carriers (LCCs), most notably Pegasus Airlines and AJet (formerly AnadoluJet). 

Pegasus Airlines is Turkey’s largest low-cost airline, and offers domestic and international flights at budget-friendly prices. AJet, a subsidiary of Turkish Airlines, also operates a network of domestic and international flights from Sabiha Gökçen Airport.

If you’re looking to travel on a budget, you’ll find a better range of choices at Sabiha Gökçen. Likewise, you’ll find more domestic flights from SAW Airport, as it tends to be more “local” than IST Airport.

Summary

If you’re flying on a national airline (including Turkish Airlines), you’ll most likely arrive and/or depart from Istanbul (IST) Airport. Meanwhile, if you’re traveling on a budget and/or domestically, you’ll be using Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) Airport.

Psst — if you’re flying domestic in Türkiye, we’ve written an entire blog post about domestic airlines, tickets, and other useful hacks. Click here to read!


AIRFARE

This will be a shorter section, but very useful nonetheless. 🙂 

Istanbul Airport (IST), being the hub for Turkish Airlines and other full-service carriers, is typically more expensive when it comes to airfare and ticket prices. 

Meanwhile, Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) generally offers more budget-friendly options than IST. This is largely due to low-cost carriers operating out of SAW — like we mentioned above, Pegasus Airlines and AJet use the airport as their hub. These airlines often have lower base fares and fewer included amenities, which makes them a popular choice among budget travelers. 

To illustrate this example, we searched for a one-way airline ticket to Berlin on October 30th (a Wednesday).

From Istanbul Airport (IST) on Turkish Airlines, the lowest price was 8,262 TL (235 EUR)

From Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) on Pegasus Airlines, the lowest price was 5,382 TL (153 EUR)

Of course, it’s worth mentioning that if you book the Turkish Airlines ticket, you’ll get 1 piece of cabin baggage (8 kg), 1 check-in bag (23 kg), meal service, and seat selection. 

Meanwhile, the Pegasus Airlines ticket only includes 1 piece of cabin baggage (up to 3 kg) and nothing else. 

It’s up to you to decide if you’d rather pay nearly 100 EUR extra for the amenities, or enjoy the satisfaction of saving money. 🙂 


AMENITIES & FACILITIES

In terms of amenities and facilities, Istanbul Airport (IST) wins hands down. It was recently opened and has a ton of restaurants, shops, rest areas, and many other amenities. There’s a downside, though — since it’s so huge, it’s easy to get lost and overwhelmed. 🥲

Meanwhile, Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) Airport is smaller and cozier — there are fewer amenities and it’s not as ‘prettier,’ but it’s faster to get around.  

Amenities at Istanbul Airport (IST) 

🛋️ Lounges: IST Airport has nearly a dozen lounges, including iGA Lounge, SkyTeam Lounge, Turkish Airlines Business Lounge, and more. There are also sleeping pods! 

Psst — You can access these lounges with a Priority Pass membership — click here to learn more!

🛍️ Shopping: IST Airport has more than 200 stores, including clothing stores, luxury shops, duty-free areas, and local products. 

🍱 Dining: There are about 70 restaurants and cafes in IST Airport, including bakeries, regular restaurants, fast food restaurants, and grab-and-go kiosks. 

🖼️ Museum: Did you know that Istanbul (IST) has a museum inside the airport? Open between 8:30 to 23:00 every day, the museum has a paid entrance and includes many interesting exhibits that cover Türkiye’s history in its 1000m² museum. Click here for info → 

🏨 Hotels: There are two hotels inside IST airport, both under the Yotel name. Yotel AIR is located airside (inside the terminal, and you must have a valid boarding pass to enter), while Yotel City Entrance is located landside (no need to have a boarding pass, since it’s technically outside of passport control). 

🗺️ Free layover tour: If you’ve book a flight on Turkish Airlines and have a layover in Istanbul that’s between 6 to 24 hours, you’re eligible for a free layover tour! There are 7 total tours, including a sightseeing tour, half-day tour, evening tour, shopping tour, and more. Click here for more info →  

📌 Other amenities: IST Airport has tons of other amenities like a library, children’s play areas, medical facilities, pharmacies, a post office, a salon and spa (seriously), banks & ATMs, foreign exchange kiosks, smoking boxes, left luggage offices, storage lockers, and much more. 

Amenities at Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) 

🛋️ Lounges: SAW Airport has multiple Plaza Premium lounges as well as the Kepler Club (a lounge and sleeping pod hotel).

Psst — You can also access these lounges with a Priority Pass membership!

🛍️ Shopping: SAW Airport is fairly limited in shopping, as it only has about 50 or so stores. 

🍱 Dining: There are about 30 restaurants and cafes in SAW Airport — the majority are fast food, cafes, and grab-and-go restaurants. 

🏨 Hotels: There are no full-size hotels inside SAW Airport, but there is a lounge/sleeping pod hybrid called Kepler! You can see photos and read all about this “mini hotel” in our blog post (which also talks about 9 other amazing hotels near SAW Airport!) 🙂 

📌 Other amenities: Other SAW Airport amenities include a post office, a medical facility, pharmacy, left luggage office, bank & ATMs, foreign exchange kiosks, etc.

Both places have overpriced cafes and restaurants. Although you might be thinking, Ah, but that’s everywhere! — No, it’s really bad. We remember there was a news article recently that said a basic burger at IST Airport was nearly $20. 😅

So… Which Airport is Better: IST or SAW?

To summarize our Istanbul Airport vs Sabiha Gökçen Airport comparison, we’ve come up with a handy little chart and summary. 🙂 

Istanbul Airport (IST)Sahiba Gökçen Airport (SAW)
Famous for being…The largest airport in Turkey, the second-busiest airport in Europe (2023),
and the 7th busiest airport in the world (2023)! 
The second-busiest airport in Turkey
LocationIstanbul’s European side Istanbul’s Asian side
TransportMetro, airport shuttle bus, private transfer, taxiMetro, airport shuttle bus, private transfer, taxi
Hub forTurkish Airlines, other major carriersPegasus Airlines, AJet, and other budget airlines
Total passengers76,236,000 in 202337,030,000 in 2023 

Choosing between IST and SAW depends on various factors like transportation, budget, whether you have a layover or not, and so on. This summary will make it easier for you to choose based on your situation: 

Best Istanbul airport for budget travelers — SAW 
Best Istanbul airport for business travelers — IST 
Best Istanbul airport for proximity to city center — SAW  
Best Istanbul airport for layovers — IST 
Best Istanbul airport for public transportation options — Both! 

Istanbul Airport (IST) is a “full service airport,” which means it’s bigger, has more airlines, and has better connections to the rest of the world. Since it was opened in late 2019, Istanbul Airport is the newer of the two airports. On the other hand, it’s so huge that it can be difficult trying to find your way around — especially if you’re on a tight layover! In a nutshell, IST offers a comprehensive travel experience but with higher costs. 

Meanwhile, Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) isn’t as busy, has slightly faster lines, and typically cheaper tickets. It’s an excellent option if you prioritize efficiency and affordability over aesthetics and amenities (SAW opened in 2001 and hasn’t undergone the same level of modernization as IST AIrport). In a nutshell, SAW is a more budget-friendly option with a focus on essential amenities and low-cost carriers.

However, at the end of the day, the best airport for you may simply come down to ticket prices, flight schedules, and your personal preferences and priorities. 


Ready to book your trip? You can check prices and compare flights to IST and SAW with out widget below:

Q&A

Does Istanbul have 2 airports?
Yes, Istanbul has two major international airports: Istanbul Airport (IST) and Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW).

How many airports are there in Istanbul?
Istanbul has two main international airports. There used to be a third, Atatürk Airport, but it has been closed for scheduled passenger flights since 2019. All of the flights from Atatürk Airport moved to Istanbul Airport (IST).

Which Istanbul Airport is better?
The “better” airport depends on your priorities. Istanbul Airport (IST) is newer, larger, and offers a wider range of airlines and destinations. However, it can be overwhelming to navigate, especially during busy periods. Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) is smaller, easier to navigate, and generally offers more affordable flights, but it has fewer airlines and destinations.

What is the difference between the two airports in Istanbul?
The main differences between Istanbul Airport (IST) and Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) are size, airline options, destinations, amenities, and overall atmosphere. IST is larger, offers more flights and destinations, and has a wider range of amenities, including luxury lounges and high-end shops. SAW is smaller, more budget-friendly, and offers a more streamlined experience.

Which Istanbul Airport does Turkish Airlines use?
Turkish Airlines uses Istanbul Airport (IST) as its main hub.

Which Istanbul Airport does Pegasus Airlines use?
Pegasus Airlines uses Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) as its main hub.

How far apart are the two Istanbul airports?
Istanbul (IST) Airport is about 76 km (47 mi) apart from Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW). 


Merhaba and welcome to Let’s Travel to Türkiye!

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