Route profile
SFO→LAX
Flight reliability, delays and best times to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles, 337 miles.
Right now
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Route reliability
July 2023 – July 2026
Better than 54% of comparable major US routes (4,598 compared)
Calculated from 34,804 flights. How this is calculated
SFO → LAX arrives on time 77.1% of the time; the return trip, LAX → SFO, arrives on time 69.3% of the time, a 7.8-point gap between the two directions of the same city pair.
SFO → LAX spends 31.6 minutes on the ground on a 337-mile trip: 20.1 minutes from pushback to wheels-up at SFO and 11.5 minutes from touchdown to gate at LAX.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026
Why SFO → LAX flights are cancelled
July 2023 – July 2026
SFO → LAX cancelled 242 of 34,804 scheduled flights — about 1 in every 144. The reason filed most often was the airline, 65.7% of the cancellations coded on this route — about 1 in every 219 scheduled flights.
Share of cancellations
Of 242 cancelled departures carrying a reason code.
What each reason means
Crew, maintenance, aircraft cleaning, baggage or fueling: what BTS counts as within the carrier’s own control.
159 cancellations, 65.7% of the total.
Conditions the carrier judged severe enough to stop the flight: a blizzard, a hurricane, a line of thunderstorms.
47 cancellations, 19.4% of the total.
Airport capacity, air traffic control flow programs, heavy traffic and ordinary bad weather. A system decision, not the airline’s.
36 cancellations, 14.9% of the total.
A terminal evacuation, a security breach, screening equipment failure, or screening queues over 29 minutes.
0 cancellations, 0.0% of the total.
Reason codes are the operating airline’s own filing with US DOT, not an independent finding of fault. Ordinary bad weather is filed under air traffic, so weather’s full share is larger than its bar.
242 coded cancellations were recorded on SFO → LAX; the section appears from 50.
When it goes wrong
July 2023 – July 2026
46 min late
against a median of 5 min early
Percentiles over 34,804 operations; cancelled and diverted flights are counted separately.
Will your connection be tight enough?
Layovers at LAX after arriving from SFO.
| Connection time | Chance of missing | Reads as |
|---|---|---|
| 30 min | 38% | Likely to miss |
| 45 min | 22% | High risk |
| 60 min | 15% | Some risk |
| 90 min | 7.2% | Some risk |
| 120 min | 4.0% | Low risk |
This is one leg of a connection. Gate changes and the next flight's own schedule matter too. And a connection can fail before delay is even the question — this route cancels 0.70% of the time and diverts 0.04% of the time, which a late arrival never shows up in.
Chance of missing is the share of 34,548 arrivals on this route that landed later than the connection time less 30 minutes to reach the next gate.
The worst tenth of arrivals on this route land at least 46 minutes late (90th-percentile gate arrival delay), over 34,804 operations.
Any other layover length: connection checker.
Best time to fly
SFO → LAX flights departing 5–9 AM arrived on time 91.2% of the time, against 68.8% for 9 PM–5 AM departures, a gap of 22.4 percentage points.
By day and hour
On-time arrival rate for each weekday and scheduled departure hour, in local time at the departure airport (SFO).
Hour of departure matters more than day of the week: hourly averages sit a typical 9.1 points from the route-wide rate, weekday averages 3.6 points.
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On-time rate, % · stronger color, fewer on time
- 50–59
- 60–69
- 70–79
- 80–89
- 90–99
- Fewer than 120 flights, not scored
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · On time is arrival within 15 minutes of schedule. Cells round to whole percentages; the table shows one decimal.
No slot is named best or worst: too few reach 500 flights. Departures before 6 AM and after 11 PM (379 flights) are not drawn: no slot in those hours has enough flights to score.
View as tableHide table
| Hour | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 AM–7 AM | 95.4% on time549 flights | 94.1% on time458 flights | 95.0% on time440 flights | 94.9% on time545 flights | 96.0% on time556 flights | 92.6% on time448 flights | 94.8% on time499 flights |
| 7 AM–8 AM | 86.7% on time286 flights | 89.4% on time339 flights | 88.4% on time328 flights | 88.9% on time273 flights | 88.1% on time279 flights | 86.9% on time329 flights | 86.1% on time267 flights |
| 8 AM–9 AM | 91.2% on time344 flights | 91.6% on time323 flights | 88.6% on time316 flights | 86.3% on time345 flights | 84.5% on time346 flights | 87.4% on time233 flights | 84.2% on time270 flights |
| 9 AM–10 AM | 83.1% on time305 flights | 88.1% on time278 flights | 86.4% on time289 flights | 84.3% on time309 flights | 83.8% on time311 flights | 86.9% on time256 flights | 86.5% on time278 flights |
| 10 AM–11 AM | 67.4% on time432 flights | 74.8% on time371 flights | 72.3% on time381 flights | 66.8% on time428 flights | 65.7% on time429 flights | 75.3% on time440 flights | 68.4% on time416 flights |
| 11 AM–12 PM | 69.0% on time355 flights | 79.9% on time315 flights | 71.4% on time319 flights | 74.2% on time353 flights | 71.3% on time348 flights | 73.3% on time315 flights | 73.6% on time325 flights |
| 12 PM–1 PM | 67.6% on time218 flights | 81.6% on time229 flights | 67.0% on time220 flights | 71.0% on time225 flights | 60.2% on time228 flights | 79.1% on time190 flights | 69.3% on time219 flights |
| 1 PM–2 PM | 73.4% on time339 flights | 78.9% on time357 flights | 76.4% on time359 flights | 73.1% on time334 flights | 72.1% on time337 flights | 81.1% on time299 flights | 74.2% on time348 flights |
| 2 PM–3 PM | 61.5% on time260 flights | 79.7% on time233 flights | 66.4% on time235 flights | 67.5% on time259 flights | 66.8% on time256 flights | 87.5% on time233 flights | 71.3% on time246 flights |
| 3 PM–4 PM | 73.0% on time202 flights | 81.1% on time169 flights | 66.2% on time159 flights | 68.2% on time199 flights | 68.9% on time192 flights | 72.0% on time158 flights | 69.4% on time180 flights |
| 4 PM–5 PM | 69.0% on time405 flights | 78.4% on time366 flights | 76.5% on time371 flights | 66.5% on time396 flights | 67.2% on time401 flights | 76.0% on time368 flights | 67.5% on time417 flights |
| 5 PM–6 PM | 65.7% on time209 flights | 80.7% on time173 flights | 73.8% on time169 flights | 71.2% on time206 flights | 69.0% on time214 flights | 86.1% on time163 flights | 71.8% on time160 flights |
| 6 PM–7 PM | 75.1% on time455 flights | 82.0% on time435 flights | 78.8% on time444 flights | 76.3% on time445 flights | 71.7% on time447 flights | 83.4% on time433 flights | 71.4% on time476 flights |
| 7 PM–8 PM | 66.3% on time269 flights | 78.6% on time272 flights | 78.5% on time275 flights | 63.8% on time271 flights | 65.7% on time274 flights | 78.5% on time203 flights | 66.3% on time289 flights |
| 8 PM–9 PM | 63.1% on time318 flights | 78.8% on time186 flights | 83.1% on time180 flights | 58.4% on time306 flights | 56.8% on time312 flights | 111 flights, too few to score | 62.0% on time261 flights |
| 9 PM–10 PM | 115 flights, too few to score | 64 flights, too few to score | 79 flights, too few to score | 54.3% on time130 flights | 54.7% on time129 flights | 70 flights, too few to score | 53.9% on time142 flights |
| 10 PM–11 PM | 78.8% on time160 flights | 87.7% on time155 flights | 78.7% on time152 flights | 67.3% on time161 flights | 70.6% on time160 flights | 81.8% on time154 flights | 64.8% on time165 flights |
By departure window
By departure hour
- 12 AM to 4 AM: too few flights to score
- 5 AM: 97.8% on time from 275 flights
- 6 AM: 94.7% on time from 3,495 flights
- 7 AM: 87.8% on time from 2,101 flights
- 8 AM: 87.8% on time from 2,177 flights
- 9 AM: 85.5% on time from 2,026 flights
- 10 AM: 70.0% on time from 2,897 flights
- 11 AM: 73.2% on time from 2,330 flights
- 12 PM: 70.7% on time from 1,529 flights
- 1 PM: 75.5% on time from 2,373 flights
- 2 PM: 71.3% on time from 1,722 flights
- 3 PM: 71.2% on time from 1,259 flights
- 4 PM: 71.4% on time from 2,724 flights
- 5 PM: 73.5% on time from 1,294 flights
- 6 PM: 76.9% on time from 3,135 flights
- 7 PM: 70.8% on time from 1,853 flights
- 8 PM: 65.1% on time from 1,674 flights
- 9 PM: 57.8% on time from 729 flights
- 10 PM: 75.5% on time from 1,107 flights
- 11 PM: too few flights to score
Why SFO → LAX runs late
July 2023 – July 2026
the inbound aircraft was late, so this flight started late
crew, maintenance, boarding and fueling, all within the carrier’s control
airspace and airport capacity, including weather-driven flow control
weather severe enough to stop this flight specifically
screening or terminal security incidents
Share of the delay minutes US DOT attributed to each cause for SFO → LAX. Only delays of 15 minutes or more are attributed.
Late-arriving aircraft is the largest cause on SFO → LAX, at 55.7%: flights here mostly leave late because the plane came in late, and the day shows it: 5–9 AM departures arrived on time 91.2% of the time and 9 PM–5 AM departures 68.8%.
How this route holds up in bad weather
July 2023 – July 2026
Bad weather raises cancellations by a similar amount at both ends of SFO to LAX: 1.7 times the normal rate at SFO and 1.3 times at LAX. Cancelled in bad weather against normal hours: SFO 1.5% against 0.9%, LAX 1.0% against 0.8%. Flights that did leave SFO in bad weather arrived on time 73.0% of the time, against 79.8% in normal hours.
Bad weather and normal hours at the airports
Scheduled departures, July 2023 – July 2026| Departures from | SFO | LAX |
|---|---|---|
| Cancelled in bad weather | 1.5% | 1.0% |
| Cancelled in normal hours | 0.9% | 0.8% |
| Arrived on time, bad weather | 73.0% | 78.9% |
| Arrived on time, normal hours | 79.8% | 81.4% |
| Departures in bad weather | 36,006 | 60,639 |
Of the carriers on this route, United Airlines (1.0% cancelled against 1.9% for the other carriers at SFO) cancelled the fewest departures from SFO in bad weather and SkyWest Airlines (3.0% cancelled against 1.2% for the other carriers at SFO) the most.
This route’s airlines in bad weather at SFO
All departures from SFO| Airline | Bad-weather departures | Cancelled | Other carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 13,903 | 1.0%below the others | 1.9% |
| Delta Air Lines | 3,513 | 0.8%below the others | 1.5% |
| Southwest Airlines | 2,224 | 1.1%about level | 1.5% |
| American Airlines | 3,143 | 1.2%about level | 1.5% |
| JetBlue | 1,072 | 1.3%about level | 1.5% |
| Frontier Airlines | 1,057 | 1.8%about level | 1.5% |
| Alaska Airlines | 3,124 | 1.8%about level | 1.4% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 7,724 | 3.0%above the others | 1.2% |
These are airport figures, not route figures: every scheduled departure from SFO and LAX, to any destination, in hours the weather report called bad. The airline rows count each carrier’s departures from SFO on every route.
Weather source and limits. In full: SFO (airlines), LAX, What Weather Costs Each Airport, Who Cancels More When the Weather Turns, Airports That Change Places When Weather Turns.
Airlines on this route
Carriers with at least 200 flights, by the airline that operated each one.
| Carrier | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Median delay | Severe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 9,787 | 82.1% | 0.82% | -6 min | 5.1% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 9,230 | 77.4% | 0.64% | -4 min | 7.2% |
| Delta Air Lines | 7,251 | 78.8% | 0.84% | -10 min | 7.6% |
| Southwest Airlines | 4,366 | 67.0% | 0.37% | 0 min | 10.5% |
| Alaska Airlines | 1,441 | 73.3% | 0.56% | -1 min | 6.2% |
| American Airlines | 1,174 | 76.8% | 0.17% | -6 min | 11.3% |
| Frontier Airlines | 1,022 | 66.4% | 1.27% | 0 min | 12.9% |
| JetBlue | 532 | 73.2% | 0.56% | -3 min | 9.1% |
United Airlines flew 28.1% of the 34,803 flights listed. Frontier Airlines cancelled 1.27% of its flights here against 0.17% for American Airlines.
United Airlines arrived on time 15.7 percentage points more often than Frontier Airlines on this route.
Other ways to fly San Francisco to Los Angeles
Airport pairs in the same two city markets, as the DOT defines them.
SJC → LAX is the most reliable pairing for this journey at 86.7% on time, against 77.1% for SFO → LAX.
Flying to LAX from the San Francisco area? Compare SFO, SJC, OAK for LAX, with the same test for what counts as a real difference.
Flights on this route
Flight numbers with at least 600 operations here and still on the schedule.
DL1598 (6:00 AM) arrived on time 94.9% of the time, 25.3 points more often than DL1715 (10:55 AM) at 69.6%.
Weekly and seasonal patterns
By day of week
Tuesday is historically the most reliable day and Friday the least, a gap of 9.8 percentage points.
By month
- Jan: 84.1%
- Feb: 74.5%
- Mar: 76.1%
- Apr: 74.0%
- May: 73.1%
- Jun: 70.8%
- Jul: 74.3%
- Aug: 81.6%
- Sep: 82.5%
- Oct: 80.6%
- Nov: 79.5%
- Dec: 75.4%
June is historically the weakest month and January the strongest, a spread of 13.3 percentage points.
Reliability over time
July 2023 – July 2026
- July 2023: 84.3% from 959 flights
- August 2023: 83.7% from 988 flights
- September 2023: 84.7% from 996 flights
- October 2023: 84.2% from 1,012 flights
- November 2023: 84.6% from 975 flights
- December 2023: 78.2% from 879 flights
- January 2024: 79.3% from 857 flights
- February 2024: 67.5% from 812 flights
- March 2024: 63.6% from 941 flights
- April 2024: 66.4% from 990 flights
- May 2024: 72.6% from 1,002 flights
- June 2024: 74.1% from 858 flights
- July 2024: 80.2% from 942 flights
- August 2024: 83.0% from 1,005 flights
- September 2024: 84.0% from 1,013 flights
- October 2024: 83.7% from 1,063 flights
- November 2024: 79.3% from 1,044 flights
- December 2024: 76.4% from 972 flights
- January 2025: 87.0% from 849 flights
- February 2025: 78.7% from 816 flights
- March 2025: 79.6% from 917 flights
- April 2025: 86.8% from 920 flights
- May 2025: 81.8% from 965 flights
- June 2025: 79.8% from 898 flights
- July 2025: 73.6% from 896 flights
- August 2025: 77.8% from 928 flights
- September 2025: 78.6% from 916 flights
- October 2025: 73.6% from 991 flights
- November 2025: 74.2% from 904 flights
- December 2025: 71.2% from 846 flights
- January 2026: 86.0% from 774 flights
- February 2026: 77.4% from 739 flights
- March 2026: 85.4% from 927 flights
- April 2026: 69.6% from 987 flights
- May 2026: 65.3% from 1,028 flights
- June 2026: 60.7% from 1,079 flights
- July 2026: 61.7% from 1,116 flights
Over the most recent 12 months (2025-08 to 2026-07), on-time arrivals averaged 72.8% against 81.2% in the 12 months before — declining by 8.4 percentage points.
Data and methodology
Calculated by FlyerIntel from 34,804 SFO → LAX flight records from the US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, covering July 2023 – July 2026. Late means 15 or more minutes past scheduled arrival; cancelled and diverted flights are left out of on-time rates.
Full methodology · Data sources · Report a problem
Related research: How Long a Layover Needs to Be · Two Airlines on One Route · Best Time of Day to Fly From Major US Airports
Analysis last recomputed