Chokepoints
How many ships cross Bab al-Mandab and Suez each day?
Bab al-Mandab: 27.2 transits a day from 1 Aug to 11 Oct 2026, against 36.2 from 1 Mar to 30 Jun, about 25% fewer. Suez: 41.2 a day against 40.6 over the same windows.
Transits are the daily count of container ships, bulk carriers, general cargo ships, ro-ro ships and tankers, with no size threshold, tracked by satellite as they cross the chokepoint, each ship counted once per crossing (IMF PortWatch); Lloyd's List counts only cargo vessels over 10,000 dwt, so its figures differ.
Questions
Why do these figures differ from Lloyd's List?
Lloyd's List counts cargo vessels over 10,000 dwt; PortWatch counts all five cargo ship types with no size threshold. The two series move differently when the mix of ship sizes changes.
Why is Hormuz not shown?
The Hormuz count is held until it is reconciled: ships that switch off or spoof their transponders are undercounted in satellite tracking.
How this figure is made
Daily transit counts from IMF PortWatch for Bab al-Mandab and Suez, averaged over each window. The Strait of Hormuz count is held until it is reconciled with other trackers. Methodology.
Cite this page
Conflict Gauge: Iran (MergeSeat). "How many ships cross Bab al-Mandab and Suez each day?". https://conflictgauge.com/answers/red-sea-chokepoint-transits. Data as of 26 October 2026. Page version v1, published 2026-10-28. Accessed <date>.