Airports near Johannesburg

Two nearby passenger airports, one distant northern option

From the Johannesburg reference coordinate used on this page, O.R. Tambo International Airport (JNB) sits 21 km east in Kempton Park and Lanseria International Airport (HLA) sits 32 km northwest—a difference of 10 km (10.3 km unrounded) in distance from the city reference point, while the two airports themselves lie 39 km apart. Because the metropolitan area stretches across Sandton, Rosebank, Midrand, Randburg, the East Rand, and Soweto, the better airport for your trip depends on which airline serves your route and which side of Gauteng you are staying in.

The third airport in the passenger comparison—Polokwane International Airport (PTG) at 298 km north in Limpopo—is a separate northern provincial terminal rather than a practical local arrival option for a stay in Johannesburg.

Three closer general aviation airfields also appear in our Gauteng dataset: Rand Airport (QRA) at 12 km, Brakpan Airport (FABB) at 26 km, and Grand Central Airport (GCJ) at 26 km. All three are marked “No regular flights listed” and are excluded from the passenger airport ranking.

Navigating across Gauteng from JNB or HLA

Booking websites sometimes group both JNB and HLA under “Johannesburg”. Always check the three-letter IATA code on your ticket before arranging a pickup, rental car, or Gautrain connection, as the two terminals sit 39 km apart on opposite sides of the metro.

JNB links directly into the R21, R24, and N3 freeway network and has a Gautrain station connecting to Sandton, Rosebank, Johannesburg Park Station, and Pretoria, whereas HLA connects by road along the R512 and N14 toward Randburg, Fourways, Pretoria, and Rustenburg.