The Economy Lot at $9/day, the rate in effect since May 1, 2026. The airport adds a $0.99 transaction fee to every stay, so one day costs $9.99 all in. The Economy Lot is an uncovered surface lot; the free DAYrider shuttle takes 10 to 15 minutes to the terminal and runs daily from 4:30 a.m. to midnight or the last arriving flight. Some sites still say the Economy rate drops to $8 on September 1; that was a September 2025 increase to $8, followed by the May 2026 increase to $9.
| Lot | Daily max | Notes | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economy Lot (shuttle) | $9/day | +$0.99 transaction fee | Cheapest; trips of any length |
| Long-Term Lot | $14/day | +$0.99 transaction fee; 10 to 15 minute walk through the covered garage | Skip the shuttle, mid-tier |
| Short-Term | From $16/day | +$0.99 transaction fee; 3 minute walk | Closer walk, short trips |
| Garage | $23/day | +$0.99 transaction fee; 5 minute walk; covered on the 2nd floor, uncovered on the 3rd | Bad weather, shortest covered walk |
| Cell Phone Waiting Lot | Free | Free WiFi; driver must stay with the car | Picking up arriving passengers |
Rates from the airport's parking products page at park.flydayton.com, checked September 15, 2026 (effective May 1, 2026). The older rate card at flydayton.com/parking, which showed $7 Economy and $22 Garage, is no longer online. Park-N-Go Dayton, a private off-site lot, is not bookable through ParkingAccess; see its rates below.
Use parking.flydayton.com: the airport's official reservation portal, linked from the flydayton.com homepage. You enter arrival and return dates, pick a lot (Economy, Long-Term, Short-Term or Garage), and pre-pay; a $2.99 reservation fee applies, and you can cancel for a refund up to 2 hours before the start time. Reserved spots guarantee availability: particularly valuable around the week of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and major Wright-Patterson AFB family-travel windows. We don't currently sell DAY inventory on parkingaccess.com, so we send you straight to the airport's booking system with your search dates already filled in.
Dayton International adds a $0.99 transaction fee to all parking rates. The airport says the fee pays for its Metropolis system, which reads your plate at entry and exit instead of issuing paper tickets, and for facility upkeep. Drivers without a reservation register their plate and card once; prepaid reservations carry a $2.99 fee instead. From a budget standpoint the fee adds about 11% to a one-day Economy stay and under 1% to a 14-day stay.
For Dayton-metro residents, DAY is the obvious choice on price and drive time: Cincinnati (CVG) is about 65 miles away and Columbus (CMH) about 75, and neither saves enough on parking to cover the drive for most Dayton trips. The case for using a different airport:
Most Dayton-metro travelers default to DAY for domestic short-haul; CVG only enters the picture for international flights or specific airline-loyalty routes. The 65-mile drive to CVG eats most of the rate savings before you account for the time investment.
| Origin | Distance | Drive |
|---|---|---|
| Downtown Dayton | ~12 mi | 15-22 min |
| Wright State University | ~17 mi | 22-30 min |
| Wright-Patterson AFB | ~16 mi | 22-30 min |
| Beavercreek | ~18 mi | 25-32 min |
| Kettering | ~17 mi | 22-30 min |
| Centerville | ~22 mi | 28-38 min |
| Huber Heights | ~10 mi | 12-18 min |
| Springboro | ~20 mi | 25-35 min |
| Englewood / Vandalia | ~5 mi | 8-12 min |
| Tipp City | ~12 mi | 15-22 min |
| Springfield | ~25 mi | 30-40 min |
| Yellow Springs | ~22 mi | 25-35 min |
| Cincinnati (downtown) | ~55 mi | 60-75 min (use CVG instead) |
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base sits 16 miles east of DAY and generates significant airport traffic: military families on PCS moves, contractor business travel for the Air Force Research Laboratory and the National Air and Space Intelligence Center, and visitor flights for the National Museum of the United States Air Force (one of the largest aviation museums in the world). From a parking standpoint:
For 5:30-7:30 AM departures, plan to be at your parking spot 60 minutes before boarding if you're in Short Term Park & Walk or the Garage (close walk, no shuttle), 70 minutes from Long Term, and 80 minutes from Economy with the shuttle. DAY's TSA wait is typically very short: under 12 minutes outside of holiday peaks. The single central security checkpoint serves all gates and the airport's compact footprint means terminal-edge-to-farthest-gate walks are usually under 7 minutes.
Dayton International is uniquely positioned as the commercial airport closest to the birthplace of aviation: the Wright Brothers' bicycle shop, Huffman Prairie Flying Field (where the brothers refined the Flyer in 1904-1905), and the National Museum of the US Air Force are all within 20 minutes of DAY. Practical effects on the airport itself:
Three peak windows produce real capacity pressure: the week before Thanksgiving (heaviest single window), the week before Christmas, and summer Friday afternoons (June-August). During these windows, the closest lots fill first. Reservations through parking.flydayton.com guarantee a spot regardless of the day's actual traffic: strongly recommended for any Friday-afternoon departure during peak windows.
Park-N-Go Dayton is a private lot at 1140 W. National Rd in Vandalia, about 4 minutes by shuttle from the terminal, and is open 24/7. Its own site lists economy self-park at $9.99/day and full-service valet at $12.99/day reserved ($14.99 walk-in), plus 14% tax and service fee, which puts economy at $11.39 a day all in. It also sells covered valet and shuttle at $22/day. It advertises a shuttle that meets you at your car, free cancellation and no booking fees, and shows 4.9 stars from 2,738 Google reviews. ParkingAccess does not book Park-N-Go; reserve on daytonparking.com. Against the airport, Park-N-Go is about $1.40 a day more than driving up to the Economy Lot ($9.99 all in) and less than the $14/day Long-Term Lot.
Two cheaper Dayton lots that still appeared on some booking sites, including ParkingAccess until September 15, 2026, are gone: Thrifty Airport Parking at 2700 W National Road closed in 2017, and Airport Inn & Parking in Vandalia closed in 2018, according to Park-N-Go's write-up on the closed lots. ParkingAccess has removed both listings. The airport's own valet has been closed since March 2020 and its parking site lists no valet product.
Dayton International operates a single passenger terminal serving all carriers from one ticketing area and one central security checkpoint. Concourses A and B branch out from the central security area. Concourse A typically houses American, Delta, and United mainline service; Concourse B typically houses Allegiant and regional partner service, but assignments rotate: confirm your gate via your boarding pass or airline app on the day of travel. Total terminal-edge-to-farthest-gate walk is approximately 7-9 minutes. From any of the parking tiers (Economy, Long Term, Short Term Park & Walk, or Garage), travelers funnel through the same central security checkpoint, then split to A or B.
The Cell Phone Lot is free, with free WiFi, while you watch the flight screen or wait for your passenger's call; you cannot leave the car unattended there. There is no free long-term option. The curb in front of the terminal is only for active loading and unloading.
Yes. parking.flydayton.com is the airport's official reservation site, and all four lots (Economy, Long-Term, Short-Term and Garage) take advance reservations. Prepaid reservations carry a $2.99 fee, can be cancelled for a refund up to 2 hours before the start time, and are not refunded for early exits. Reservations are worth it around Thanksgiving, Christmas and summer Friday afternoons.
The airport says the $0.99 fee pays for its Metropolis ticketless system, which reads plates at entry and exit and texts your receipt, and helps maintain the lots. It is added to all parking rates; prepaid reservations carry a $2.99 fee. On a one-day Economy stay it is about 11% extra; on a 14-day stay it is under 1%.
The Garage at $23/day is the airport's covered option, on its 2nd floor (the 3rd floor is uncovered), a 5 minute walk from the terminal. Off-site, Park-N-Go sells covered valet and shuttle at $22/day plus 14% tax and service fee ($25.08 all in); ParkingAccess does not book it.
The airport lists the DAYrider shuttle ride from the Economy Lot at 10 to 15 minutes to the terminal. It runs daily from 4:30 a.m. to midnight or the last arriving flight, and every DAYrider shuttle is lift-equipped.
Airport-operated lots have no published maximum stay limit. Two weeks at the Economy Lot runs $126 ($9 x 14) plus the $0.99 transaction fee, $126.99 in total. For stays of three weeks or more, which are common for Wright-Patterson AFB deployments, call the airport authority to confirm long-stay procedures.
No. The airport's valet closed in March 2020, and its parking site lists only Garage, Short-Term, Long-Term and Economy. The Garage at $23/day is the closest covered self-park. Off-site, Park-N-Go offers full-service valet at $12.99/day reserved plus 14% tax and service fee.
Greater Dayton RTA operates limited bus service to the airport from downtown Dayton, but headways are infrequent: for most travelers it's not a practical option. Uber and Lyft are price-competitive from anywhere inside the Dayton metro on trips of 1-2 days. Friend or family drop-off remains the cheapest non-parking option for residents within 25 minutes.
Both are self-park lots with no shuttle. Short-Term (from $16/day) is a 3 minute walk to the terminal. Long-Term ($14/day) is a 10 to 15 minute walk through the covered garage. The $2 a day difference buys a much shorter walk; on a 3-day trip Long-Term saves $6.
Last verified September 15, 2026. Airport rates, fees and shuttle hours come from the airport's parking products and FAQ pages at park.flydayton.com (rates effective May 1, 2026). Park-N-Go rates come from daytonparking.com. Always confirm current rates on the airport's reservation site before traveling.
ParkingAccess can't take reservations for these lots online.
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