# Chicago (US CHI)

**UN/LOCODE:** US CHI  
**Country:** United States  
**Water Body:** Lake Michigan; Great Lakes  
**Harbor Size:** Medium  
**Harbor Type:** Coastal (Tide Gates)  
**GPS:** 41.8833, -87.6000

As North America's largest rail gateway, Chicago links Great Lakes shipping to the continent's interior more densely than any rival inland port. The Illinois International Port District runs two facilities — Iroquois Landing at the mouth of the Calumet River and the Lake Calumet Terminal six miles inland — together handling more general cargo than any other Great Lakes port, over 19 million tons a year. Traffic is dominated by bulk and breakbulk: steel, building stone, iron ore, coal, limestone and grain, rather than ocean containers. A first sea-container terminal serving metropolitan Chicago only received U.S. Customs approval in 2024, so containerised liner traffic remains nascent. International vessels reach the port through the St. Lawrence Seaway, while the Illinois Waterway and the Mississippi tie it into the inland barge system. Shippers needing deep-sea container services typically route via coastal gateways such as New York/New Jersey or Montreal with onward rail.

## Transit Times & Routes

- [Los Angeles → Shanghai](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-shanghai)
- [Los Angeles → Shenzhen](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-shenzhen)
- [Los Angeles → Guangzhou](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-guangzhou)
- [Los Angeles → Hong Kong](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-hong-kong)
- [Los Angeles → Tokyo](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-tokyo)
- [Los Angeles → Busan](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-busan)

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*Freight Academy — Seaport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/seaports/chicago-port-us-chi](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/seaports/chicago-port-us-chi)*

*Markdown mirror: [https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/seaports/en/chicago-port-us-chi](https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/seaports/en/chicago-port-us-chi)*

*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/seaports/chicago-port-us-chi/llm-summary?lang=en*