Turkey is a bridge connecting Europe and Asia with a powerful maritime network spanning the Marmara, Aegean, and Mediterranean coasts. Turkish ports handle about 13.5 million TEU annually. All of Turkey’s top five seaports are in the “One Hundred Container Ports 2025” ranking. Below you’ll find a list of the biggest seaports in Turkey by container volume.
Major seaports in Turkey – top 5
Here’s a map of Turkey with its biggest seaports.
Largest seaports in Turkey
Mersin Port, TRMER
- Location: Northeastern Mediterranean (Çukurova region)
- Key commodities: produce and foodstuffs, textiles, household goods, metals, chemicals
- Throughput 2024: 1,889,900 teu
- Growth rate 2023/2024: down 2.7% (2023: 1,942,069 teu)
Mersin Port is Turkey’s leading southern container gateway that supports exporters across agriculture, FMCG, and more. It is a key logistics hub connecting Turkey with the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.
Tekirdağ (Asyaport), TRTEK
- Location: Tekirdağ, Sea of Marmara (Gulf of Saros), on the Gulf of Oman-facing route via Dardanelles
- Key commodities: agricultural (wheat, sunflower, sunflower seeds, rice, milk
- Throughput 2024: 2,032,700 teu
- Growth rate 2023/2024: up 19.5% (2023: 1,700,928 teu)
Asyaport is purpose-built for big-ship calls and fast hub-and-spoke operations. It is also home to the first Turkish terminal with cold ironing.
Aliağa (İzmir/Nemrut Bay), TRALI
- Location: North of İzmir, Aegean coast (Nemrut Bay cluster)
- Key commodities: petrochemicals, plastics, packaging, machinery, ceramics, textiles, and general
- Throughput 2024: 2,119,200 teu
- Growth rate 2023/2024: up 33.6% (2023: 1,585,800 teu)
Aliağa is situated about 50 km north of Izmir. It’s port run by the Aliağa Regional Port Authority serves petrochemicals and a fast-growing container base tied to Aegean manufacturers.
Kocaeli (Gulf of İzmit), TRIZT
- Location: Eastern Marmara (Gebze–Yarımca–Dilovası), near Istanbul
- Key commodities: automotive, chemicals, textiles, steel, and cement
- Throughput 2024: 2,322,100 teu
- Growth rate 2023/2024: up 7.5% (2023: 2,159,160 teu)
Kocaeli is a port authority area with multiple large terminals, and it’s a major industrial center. It handles mostly automotive, chemicals and steel cargo. Since it is located close to Istanbul and boasts modern infrastructure, it serves as a crucial trade link between Asia and Europe.
The largest port in Turkey, Ambarlı Port Complex (Istanbul), TRAMR
- Location: European side of Istanbul, Sea of Marmara
- Key commodities: industrial raw materials, food and agricultural products, fuel and energy products, textiles and apparel, automotive components, electronics and machinery
- Throughput 2024: 3,009,700 teu
- Growth rate 2023/2024: down 5.1% (2023: 3,170,430 teu)
The Port of Ambarli has been operating since the early 1990s. The Ambarlı Regional Port Authority has been the largest seaport in Turkey by container volumes, thanks to dense mainline and feeder calls serving Istanbul’s vast consumer market.
Check other posts about the biggest ports all over the world.
