Carowinds
vs
Universal Studios Florida Park

On a typical day Carowinds queues less: about 8 minutes a ride against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park, a difference of roughly 15 minutes on every queue you join.

See both right now Compare other parks

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Carowinds and Universal Studios Florida Park compared on their typical recorded queue times
Typically	CarowindsUnited States	Universal Studios Florida ParkUnited States
Average wait per ride	8 min (best of the two)	23 min
Rides with recorded waits	36 (best of the two)	15
Longest typical queue	Fury 32521 min	Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™42 min
Shortest typical queue	Woodstock Whirlybirds3 min	Ollivanders™ Experience in Diagon Alley™5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running	Not recorded	84%

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Carowinds and Universal Studios Florida Park compared on live queue times
Right now	CarowindsUnited States	Universal Studios Florida ParkUnited States
Average wait right now	-	-
Rides open	-	-
Opening hours today	-	-
Longest queue	-	-
Shortest queue	-	-

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Carowinds queues less: about 8 minutes a ride against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park, a difference of roughly 15 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Carowinds if…

You want shorter queues: Carowinds averages 8 minutes a ride against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park
You want more to do: 36 rides here have recorded wait data against 15 at Universal Studios Florida Park
Fury 325 is on your list - it is Carowinds's longest typical queue at about 21 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Carowinds's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Universal Studios Florida Park if…

You will accept a longer queue - 23 minutes a ride here against 8 at Carowinds - for what Universal Studios Florida Park has that Carowinds does not
Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™ is on your list - it is Universal Studios Florida Park's longest typical queue at about 42 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Universal Studios Florida Park's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Carowinds

Carowinds sits directly on the North Carolina / South Carolina state line in Charlotte and is best known for Fury 325 - one of the world's tallest and fastest full-circuit roller coasters at 325 feet. The rest of the line-up is strong too: Copperhead Strike, Intimidator, Afterburn inverted coaster, and the newer Top Gun: The Jet Coaster. A separate Carolina Harbor water park operates in the summer.

Carowinds' peak crowds come during US summer school holidays, Scarowinds (Halloween), and Charlotte-area weekend visits. Weekdays in May, September and October are much quieter. Check live queue times for Fury 325 and Copperhead Strike first thing on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a lower-crowd midweek date for shorter waits across the coaster line-up.

Carowinds live queue times

Universal Studios Florida Park

Universal Studios Florida is one of two major parks at the Universal Orlando Resort, themed around film and TV. Highlights include Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, Revenge of the Mummy, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, Fast and Furious, and Transformers: The Ride. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter's Diagon Alley connects to Universal's Islands of Adventure via the Hogwarts Express.

Universal Studios Florida is busy year-round, with peak crowds during US school holidays, Halloween Horror Nights, and the Christmas season. Mid-January and early September are the quietest periods. Check live wait times across both parks on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a lower-crowd date - the extensive Wizarding World areas regularly top 60-minute queues.

Universal Studios Florida Park live queue times

05 · Questions

Carowinds or Universal Studios Florida Park?

Which is better, Carowinds or Universal Studios Florida Park?

If you are judging on queues, Carowinds: it averages about 8 minutes a ride on a typical day against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park, roughly 15 minutes back on every queue you join. Carowinds has 36 rides with recorded waits against 15 at Universal Studios Florida Park.

Which has shorter queues, Carowinds or Universal Studios Florida Park?

Carowinds, by about 15 minutes a ride. On a typical day Carowinds averages 8 minutes against 23 at Universal Studios Florida Park. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Carowinds best time to visit and Universal Studios Florida Park best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Carowinds and Universal Studios Florida Park in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Carowinds and Universal Studios Florida Park for the full ride lists.

Is Carowinds bigger than Universal Studios Florida Park?

By rides we track waits for, Carowinds is the bigger day out: 36 rides against 15. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Carowinds is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.

Carowinds calendar Universal Studios Florida Park calendar Compare other parks