Knotts Berry Farm
vs
Universal Epic Universe

On a typical day Knotts Berry Farm queues less: about 24 minutes a ride against 43 at Universal Epic Universe, a difference of roughly 19 minutes on every queue you join.

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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.

Knotts Berry Farm and Universal Epic Universe compared on their typical recorded queue times
Typically	Knotts Berry FarmUnited States	Universal Epic UniverseUnited States
Average wait per ride	24 min (best of the two)	43 min
Rides with recorded waits	16 (best of the two)	13
Longest typical queue	GhostRider64 min	Mine-Cart Madness™100 min
Shortest typical queue	Los Voladores7 min	Bowser Jr. Challenge9 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running	90%	90%

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.

Knotts Berry Farm and Universal Epic Universe compared on live queue times
Right now	Knotts Berry FarmUnited States	Universal Epic UniverseUnited 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 Knotts Berry Farm queues less: about 24 minutes a ride against 43 at Universal Epic Universe, a difference of roughly 19 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 Knotts Berry Farm if…

You want shorter queues: Knotts Berry Farm averages 24 minutes a ride against 43 at Universal Epic Universe
You want more to do: 16 rides here have recorded wait data against 13 at Universal Epic Universe
GhostRider is on your list - it is Knotts Berry Farm's longest typical queue at about 64 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Knotts Berry Farm's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Universal Epic Universe if…

You will accept a longer queue - 43 minutes a ride here against 24 at Knotts Berry Farm - for what Universal Epic Universe has that Knotts Berry Farm does not
Mine-Cart Madness™ is on your list - it is Universal Epic Universe's longest typical queue at about 100 minutes, so it is the one to do first
You want Universal Epic Universe's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Knotts Berry Farm

Knott's Berry Farm sits in Buena Park, Orange County, California, with a long history dating back to Walter Knott's original berry farm and boysenberry jam stand from the 1920s. It's now a full theme park famous for its coaster line-up: HangTime, Silver Bullet, Xcelerator (a hydraulic launch coaster), GhostRider (a large wooden coaster), and the classic Timber Mountain Log Ride.

Southern California locals keep Knott's busy all year round, but peak crowds align with US school holidays, the extremely popular Scary Farm Halloween event, and Knott's Merry Farm at Christmas. Check live wait times for Xcelerator and HangTime on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a weekday outside local school breaks for shorter queues.

Knotts Berry Farm live queue times

Universal Epic Universe

Universal Epic Universe opened in May 2025 as the third major park at Universal Orlando - the first large US theme park opening in decades. It's split into five worlds: Celestial Park (the central hub), Super Nintendo World, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, Dark Universe, and How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk. Major rides include Stardust Racers, Mine-Cart Madness, and Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry.

As a brand-new park, Epic Universe has been drawing heavy crowds since opening, with queue times on Stardust Racers and Mario Kart-style attractions often topping two hours on weekends. Check live wait times the moment you enter, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek, off-peak date - the crowds settle noticeably on Tuesdays and Wednesdays outside US school holidays.

Universal Epic Universe live queue times

05 · Questions

Knotts Berry Farm or Universal Epic Universe?

Which is better, Knotts Berry Farm or Universal Epic Universe?

If you are judging on queues, Knotts Berry Farm: it averages about 24 minutes a ride on a typical day against 43 at Universal Epic Universe, roughly 19 minutes back on every queue you join. Knotts Berry Farm has 16 rides with recorded waits against 13 at Universal Epic Universe.

Which has shorter queues, Knotts Berry Farm or Universal Epic Universe?

Knotts Berry Farm, by about 19 minutes a ride. On a typical day Knotts Berry Farm averages 24 minutes against 43 at Universal Epic Universe. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Knotts Berry Farm best time to visit and Universal Epic Universe best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Knotts Berry Farm and Universal Epic Universe 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 Knotts Berry Farm and Universal Epic Universe for the full ride lists.

Is Knotts Berry Farm bigger than Universal Epic Universe?

By rides we track waits for, Knotts Berry Farm is the bigger day out: 16 rides against 13. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Knotts Berry Farm 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.

Knotts Berry Farm calendar Universal Epic Universe calendar Compare other parks