Route reliability
Denver (DEN) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): which airline is most on time?
On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Denver, CO (DEN) to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW), September 2025 to August 2026.
Denver, CODallas/Fort Worth, TX
Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026
DEN to DFW
Denver, CO to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
- On time
- 74.2%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
- Cancelled
- 1.8%vs 1.9% U.S. average About average
- 60+ min late
- 9.4%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
- Scheduled flights
- 6,063in 12 months5 airlines
- Most reliable airline
- United Airlines76.6% on time · 1,878 flights
On time about as often as the U.S. average, with a typical cancellation rate.
Airlines on this route
Ranked by on-time arrival
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | 60+ min late | Avg delay when late | Diverted | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. United Airlines Most reliable | 76.6% | 0.6% | 8.1% | 68 min | 0.6% | 1,878 |
| 2. Frontier Airlines | 75.2% | 0.9% | 7.8% | 71 min | 0.2% | 1,200 |
| 3. American Airlines | 72.1% | 3.0% | 10.9% | 97 min | 0.3% | 2,939 |
| Envoy Air Operating carrier; sold as American Eagle | Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) | 24 | ||||
| SkyWest Airlines Operating carrier; sold as United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle, Alaska | Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) | 22 | ||||
On time = arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. Avg delay when late = average arrival delay of flights 15+ minutes late. "Most reliable" needs at least 300 flights in 12 months. Tap a heading to sort.
What this means
United Airlines has the strongest record on this route.
- United Airlines had the best on-time record from Denver (DEN) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): 76.6% of its 1,878 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 72.1% for American Airlines.
- Envoy Air, SkyWest Airlines also flew this route but with fewer than 50 reported flights, too few to rate.
- 1.8% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 56), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
- 9.4% of flights, about 1 in 11, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 83 min.
- Overall, 74.2% of flights on this route arrived on time, 1.4 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
- Over the last 3 years, September was the most reliable month on this route (80.9% on time) and June the least reliable (62.3%).
- Cancellations peaked in January, when 5.4% of flights were cancelled.
- Flights scheduled to depart before 6 am were the most punctual (89.0% on time); flights scheduled to depart 6 pm to 7 pm were the least (49.9%).
- In the other direction, Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to Denver (DEN), 68.9% of flights were on time and 1.9% were cancelled. Compare airlines DFW to DEN.
Best and worst months to fly DEN to DFW
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 74.2%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 69.8% | 1,401 |
| February | 79.1% | 1,368 |
| March | 75.4% | 1,574 |
| April | 72.8% | 1,512 |
| May | 66.6% | 1,621 |
| June | 62.3% | 1,625 |
| July | 65.9% | 1,657 |
| August | 71.0% | 1,603 |
| September | 80.9% | 1,484 |
| October | 79.9% | 1,610 |
| November | 76.7% | 1,471 |
| December | 78.1% | 1,443 |
| Airline | Best month | Worst month |
|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | December (86.8%) | July (66.4%) |
| Frontier Airlines | December (78.2%) | June (56.0%) |
| American Airlines | September (81.8%) | June (60.1%) |
Month by month, last 12 months
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 78.2% | 463 |
| Oct 2025 | 79.1% | 522 |
| Nov 2025 | 78.6% | 468 |
| Dec 2025 | 75.1% | 481 |
| Jan 2026 | 71.6% | 479 |
| Feb 2026 | 80.4% | 460 |
| Mar 2026 | 76.3% | 541 |
| Apr 2026 | 80.4% | 489 |
| May 2026 | 72.0% | 533 |
| Jun 2026 | 60.7% | 539 |
| Jul 2026 | 68.0% | 547 |
| Aug 2026 | 72.1% | 541 |
Best and worst departure times
Share of scheduled flights on time
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Departing before 6 am | 89.0% | 362 |
| Departing 6 am to 7 am | 88.0% | 449 |
| Departing 7 am to 8 am | 85.0% | 513 |
| Departing 8 am to 9 am | 82.4% | 432 |
| Departing 9 am to 10 am | 83.2% | 673 |
| Departing 10 am to 11 am | 75.3% | 518 |
| Departing 11 am to noon | Insufficient sample | 18 |
| Departing noon to 1 pm | 68.0% | 366 |
| Departing 1 pm to 2 pm | 74.9% | 419 |
| Departing 2 pm to 3 pm | 72.0% | 293 |
| Departing 3 pm to 4 pm | 64.4% | 424 |
| Departing 4 pm to 5 pm | 57.6% | 250 |
| Departing 5 pm to 6 pm | 65.5% | 472 |
| Departing 6 pm to 7 pm | 49.9% | 375 |
| Departing 7 pm to 8 pm | Insufficient sample | 24 |
| Departing 8 pm to 9 pm | 67.8% | 273 |
| Departing 9 pm to 10 pm | 66.2% | 198 |
| Departing 10 pm to 11 pm | Insufficient sample | 4 |
Sources & data dates
- Source
- U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987-present)
- Period
- September 2025 to August 2026 (12 months); month-of-year patterns September 2023 to August 2026
- Data through
- August 2026
- Processed
- 2026-11-03
- Scope
- Nonstop scheduled flights from Denver, CO (DEN) to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW), one direction. Airlines that report to the DOT only.
- Method
- Rates use all scheduled flights as the denominator; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Figures based on fewer than 50 scheduled flights are suppressed. Full methodology.