App-based ride share · ~15–25 min to downtown Moline when I-74 / I-280 is clear
Where they are
One map, pinned from each airport’s published coordinates.
Category scores
Overall is the published weighted sum. A highlighted score is ahead; a tie stays plain.
Ease of use
25% · Wayfinding, security wait, and layout.
CID8.6+0.1
MLI8.5
Comfort & amenities
20% · Seating, Wi-Fi, cleanliness, and quiet.
CID7.5+0.1
MLI7.4
Food & retail
15% · Food and retail quality and variety.
CID7.2
MLI7.2
Ground access
15% · Transit, taxi, and parking to the city.
CID7.0
MLI7.8+0.8
Reliability
15% · Delays, cancellations, and weather resilience.
CID7.2
MLI7.4+0.2
Lounges
10% · Worth-it density and access quality.
CID2.0
MLI5.0+3.0
Best for
CID
Corridor trips on the five live airlines (Allegiant, American, Delta, Frontier, United)Drivers using the free cell lot or the $11 long-term lotBudget riders on Cedar Rapids Transit Route 11 at $1 (no Sunday service)
MLI
Quad Cities / eastern Iowa / western Illinois trips that would otherwise drive to ORD or CIDRepeat MLI departures who will actually buy the $50 IMEG yearOvernight parking at leftover $9 Long-Term Economy
Watch out for
CID
No passenger lounge and no Priority Pass — aggregator Business Lounge CID is fictionCLEAR is not at CIDPrairie Bistro is weekday-only; Cedar Ridge is still stamped closedOfficial pages do not print a 2-hour arrive clock — TSA is by 3:45 a.m.
MLI
Project GATEWAY Phase 2 leftover from April 2026 is landside construction — tours are closedOfficial Allegiant leftover still prints six dests; live 14–15 Sep 2026 FIDS had noneOfficial ride-share card does not print Uber or Lyft namesIMEG leftover is $50/year with no printed walk-up day pass; live Priority Pass moline-mli is 404
Amenities and tips
CID
One TSA, remodeled 1986 terminalNo passenger loungeHigh Porch, Fly Zone, Java House, Tap & PourFree Wi-Fi (SSID unpublished)Two mother’s rooms and a coat checkOn-terminal rentals plus Route 11
Official clock is TSA by 3:45 a.m. — not a 2-hour tile
Contact page: the checkpoint opens by 3:45 a.m. daily. Official pages do not print a 90-minute or 2-hour arrive clock, a closing hour, or a numeric wait tile.
One TSA, then one sterile concourse
Ticketing, Guest Services, and Prairie Bistro are landside. After screening you stay sterile — wrong gate is a walk, not a reclear.
Landside Prairie Bistro is weekday lunch; eat after TSA
Prairie Bistro is 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. Monday–Friday only. After screening, Fly Zone and Java House open at 4:00 a.m.; High Porch at 10:30 a.m.; Tap & Pour until 6:00 p.m.
MLI
IMEG Business Lounge $50/yearLong-Term Economy $9METRO Route 20 Blue $1.00Air Host + airside deli / CaribouAirport Public WirelessKids Zone / art gallery
Arrive 90 minutes to 2 hours; doors leftover 3:30 a.m.
Official leftover arrive 90 minutes to 2 hours. Terminal leftover opens 3:30 a.m. Checkpoint leftover opens two hours before each airline’s first departure.
One hall, two concourses after a single TSA
Official leftover one civil hall. Map leftover Concourse A Gates A1–A6 and Concourse B Gates B7–B11 / B15 / B17. Read FIDS.
Air Host landside; deli and Caribou after TSA
Official leftover Air Host restaurant/bar on the public side. Airside leftover deli/coffee/bar from 4:30 a.m. until last departure.
CID · Eastern Iowa put about 1.63 million people through one TSA in 2025: easy when the 3:45 a.m. bank is quiet, Prairie Bistro is closed on Saturday, and there is still no passenger lounge.
MLI · A compact two-concourse leftover with $9 Economy parking, four live airline names, and a $50/year IMEG room, but Project GATEWAY is still tearing up the landside brick and the Allegiant dest card already disagrees with a midweek FIDS.
