It originally consisted (1936) of three grass strips with the intention of only providing an emergency landing ground for airmail aircraft transiting between Brisbane and Sydney.

Regular services were started by Queensland Airlines and Butler Air Transport after World War II.

[6] By 1958, the taxiways and runways were fully paved, with the latter upgraded a decade later to allow jet operations with DC-9 and L-188 Electra aircraft to begin.

The current terminal, known as the Eric Robinson Building, was officially opened in 1981 by Acting Prime Minister Douglas Anthony, when at the time more than 650,000 passengers were using the airport.

[16] On 1 August 2023, Bonza announced it would open its third base at Gold Coast Airport, flying on 14 routes, 11 of which are not flown by other airlines.

[17][18] Bonza launched the new routes starting November 2023, but ceased all operations when it declared bankruptcy in April 2024.

[19] In October 2023, Jetstar replaced its Gold Coast to Tokyo route with Brisbane, to better utilize resources.

Completed in 2010, the project doubled the size of the existing facility to almost 27,000 m2 (290,000 sq ft), incorporating domestic and international operations with self-service kiosks and 40 common-user check-in desks.

The works will accommodate forecast growth for the next 10 years with a further expansion, stage two, scheduled to kick in upon demand.

It would be a Required navigation performance (RNP) system rather than a traditional ILS as this would allow planes to cross the coast at Currumbin rather than Surfers Paradise and therefore fly over fewer houses.

Due to Ground contamination that was found at the ILS location, it will not be able to be installed before the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.

[26] 2016 saw the commencement of Project LIFT an approximate $300 million upgrade featuring two new wide-bodied aircraft stands and a three-level terminal development with four aerobridges and improved ground transport facilities.

The following airlines operate scheduled and in some cases chartered passenger flights from Gold Coast Airport.

The Pacific Motorway (M1) interchange is 1.5 km south of the airport just over the NSW border in Tweed Heads West.

The Pacific Motorway connects the city to Northern NSW, Gold Coast's western suburbs, and Brisbane CBD.

[48][49] The Gold Coast City Transport Strategy 2031 includes an extension of the G:link light rail to the airport, while the South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program envisions extending the Gold Coast Line train line to the airport.

In March 1949, a Lockheed Lodestar aircraft became airborne at Bilinga airstrip for a flight to Archerfield Airport.