---
title: "Is Atlanta airport easy to navigate? A first-timer's map"
description: "ATL is two terminals, seven concourses and one underground train. Here's the layout in plain terms and the mistakes first-timers make."
url: "https://atlairportguide.com/guides/atlanta-airport-easy-navigate/"
updated: "2026-11-15"
airport: "ATL"
type: "guide"
---

> Independent guide, not the official ATL website. All pages: https://atlairportguide.com/llms.txt

# Is Atlanta airport easy to navigate? A first-timer's map of ATL

ATL is two terminals, seven concourses and one underground train. Here's the layout in plain terms and the mistakes first-timers make.

Updated November 15, 2026

![Looking down the steel side and handrail of a long escalator at Atlanta airport toward the lower hall and its video screen.](https://atlairportguide.com/images/atl/domestic-terminal-west-crossover-v4.webp)

Escalators down to the lower hall

Yes, once you know which of two buildings and which of seven concourses you need, so start with the building. The Plane Train, ATL’s one underground train, carries you to any of the seven concourses.

## The layout in plain terms

The Domestic Terminal is at 6000 North Terminal Parkway and the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal is at 2600 Maynard H. Jackson Jr. Blvd. The International Terminal has its own entrance, reached from Interstate 75 at Exit 239. The two sit on far sides of the airfield, and the buildings themselves aren’t walkable from each other. Inside, ATL says the Plane Train and a pedestrian walkway both run from Concourse F to the other concourses and the Domestic Terminal.

Alaska, American, Avelo, Delta, Denver Air Connection, Frontier, JetBlue, Southwest, Sun Country and United check in at the Domestic Terminal. Delta also checks in at the International Terminal, where foreign airlines such as Air Canada, British Airways and Lufthansa check in. Our [airline guide](https://atlairportguide.com/guides/every-airline-at-atlanta-airport-z/) lists every airline, with its phone number, and our [airlines page](https://atlairportguide.com/airlines/) shows where each airline checks in.

Southwest flies from Concourse C, Alaska and Frontier from Concourse E, Denver Air Connection from Concourse T and Etihad from Concourse F. Qatar Airways checks in at International Departures in the International Terminal. For another airline, our [flights page](https://atlairportguide.com/flights/) doesn’t carry live arrivals or departures, but it links each airline’s page with its check-in counters and gates.

Gates sit on the concourses, and the letter on your gate is your concourse. The gate lists run from T1 to T21, A1 to A34, B1 to B36, C1 to C55, D1 to D36, E1 to E42 and F1 to F14, but they skip numbers in between. They hold 21 gates on T, 29 on A, 32 on B, 34 on C, 31 on D, 32 on E and 12 on F. Concourse T joins the Domestic Terminal and Concourse F joins the International Terminal. A through E are separate buildings out on the airfield. Atlanta.com’s navigation guide describes the concourses as a straight row, T through F. Our [concourse map](https://atlairportguide.com/terminals/terminal/) shows each one.

## Where first-time visitors go wrong

| The slip | What to know | What to do |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Checking in at the wrong terminal | Flights outside the United States check in at the International Terminal and flights within it at the Domestic Terminal, ATL says | Contact your airline for its specific check-in requirements, using the phone numbers in our airline guide |
| Mixing up terminals and concourses | ATL warns that it’s easy to confuse them and tells flyers to confirm their concourse and gate after checking in | Write down the concourse letter as well as the terminal |
| Taking MARTA to an international flight | MARTA ends at the Domestic Terminal | Ride the free shuttle bus to the International Terminal |
| Choosing a checkpoint by airline | Passengers can reach all concourses and gates from any checkpoint, ATL says | Pick by hours on our security page, and check real-time waits on ATL’s wait times page at ATL.com or in the MyTSA app, as ATL tells flyers to |
| Heading for the Rental Car Center from the International Terminal | ATL’s maps page says a designated shuttle runs from the International Terminal’s Arrivals level to the Rental Car Center, while its FAQ sends you on the free terminal shuttle to the Domestic Terminal and then the SkyTrain | From the Domestic Terminal, walk out of the west end and take the escalator up to the SkyTrain, as our Rental Car Center guide shows |
| Trusting an old gate | Gates change and flights get delayed or canceled, ATL says | Recheck the gate column as shown in our guide to checking a flight |
| Arriving into the rush | ATL says the busiest times at security usually fall between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. | Plan on two hours before a domestic flight and three before an international one, as ATL asks |

The Main Checkpoint at the Domestic Terminal is open 24 hours. North and South run from 4 a.m. to 9 p.m., with South taking TSA PreCheck passengers only, and Lower North runs from 3:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. The International Main Checkpoint screens from 4:30 a.m. to midnight.

## Take the Plane Train between concourses

ATL calls the Plane Train the fastest way to move through the airport and says it runs through the Transportation Mall. Its own story calls it a 24-hour operation that shuts down only on Wednesday mornings at 1 a.m. for track maintenance. ATL’s story says that if you arrive as the doors close, the wait is 108 seconds. It says the west extension would cut that to 90. The train also carries arriving passengers to baggage claim.

If you’d rather walk, UpgradedPoints, a travel site, reports that the airport’s signs give five minutes between neighboring concourses and ten between E and F. ATL itself publishes no walking time. Our [Plane Train and walking guide](https://atlairportguide.com/guides/plane-train-walking-between-atl-concourses/) covers what to do if the train is slow.

## A free shuttle bus links the two terminals

Outside security, the free [shuttle bus](https://atlairportguide.com/transport/international-terminal-shuttle/) runs between the terminals. It leaves the International Terminal from the curb outside and stops at the west end of the Domestic Terminal. Going the other way, board right outside Domestic baggage claim. ATL also says passengers can take the Plane Train from the International Terminal to the Domestic Terminal.

## Ask a Customer Experience Representative

Customer Experience Representatives answer questions about flights, ground transportation, hotels and Atlanta in general. They give directions and help at security checkpoints. ATL stations them at the busy west crossover and at the Plane Train in the Transportation Mall.

Information desks stand on Concourse E, on Concourse F and in International Terminal arrivals. Our [information desks page](https://atlairportguide.com/amenities/information-desks/) lists them all.

### Sources

- Our [airline guide](https://atlairportguide.com/guides/every-airline-at-atlanta-airport-z/), [concourse map](https://atlairportguide.com/terminals/terminal/), [security page](https://atlairportguide.com/security/), [airlines page](https://atlairportguide.com/airlines/), [Rental Car Center guide](https://atlairportguide.com/guides/atlanta-airport-rental-cars-rental-car-center/), [guide to checking a flight](https://atlairportguide.com/guides/arrivals-departures-at-atlanta-airport-how-check-flight/), [Plane Train and walking guide](https://atlairportguide.com/guides/plane-train-walking-between-atl-concourses/), [information desks page](https://atlairportguide.com/amenities/information-desks/) and [International Terminal shuttle page](https://atlairportguide.com/transport/international-terminal-shuttle/)
- ATL’s tips for navigating the airport
- ATL’s Plane Train story
- ATL’s maps page and FAQ
- ATL’s passenger security page
- ATL’s Customer Experience Representatives page
- UpgradedPoints on getting between ATL’s terminals
- Atlanta.com on navigating the airport