Route reliability
Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to Chicago (ORD): which airline is most on time?
On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW) to Chicago, IL (ORD), September 2025 to August 2026.
Dallas/Fort Worth, TXChicago, IL
Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026
DFW to ORD
Dallas/Fort Worth, TX to Chicago, IL
- On time
- 66.5%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
- Cancelled
- 2.8%vs 1.9% U.S. average Worse than average
- 60+ min late
- 12.7%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
- Scheduled flights
- 7,115in 12 months7 airlines
- Most reliable airline
- United Airlines69.2% on time · 2,080 flights
On time less often than the U.S. average, with more cancellations.
Airlines on this route
Ranked by on-time arrival
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | 60+ min late | Avg delay when late | Diverted | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Spirit Airlines Small sample (under 300 flights) | 76.8% | 2.0% | 8.1% | 84 min | 0.0% | 99 |
| 2. United Airlines Most reliable | 69.2% | 1.8% | 13.6% | 96 min | 0.6% | 2,080 |
| 3. Frontier Airlines | 67.2% | 3.3% | 15.0% | 99 min | 0.7% | 461 |
| 4. American Airlines | 64.9% | 3.1% | 12.0% | 73 min | 0.7% | 4,301 |
| 5. Envoy Air Operating carrier; sold as American Eagle Small sample (under 300 flights) | 63.6% | 4.5% | 17.5% | 86 min | 0.0% | 154 |
| Republic Airways Operating carrier; sold as American Eagle, Delta Connection, United Express | Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) | 12 | ||||
| SkyWest Airlines Operating carrier; sold as United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle, Alaska | Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) | 8 | ||||
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 Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to Chicago (ORD): 69.2% of its 2,080 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 64.9% for American Airlines.
- Spirit Airlines (76.8% on 99 flights) scored higher but flew the route far less often, so that result is less certain.
- Republic Airways, SkyWest Airlines also flew this route but with fewer than 50 reported flights, too few to rate.
- 2.8% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 36), 0.9 points higher than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
- 12.7% of flights, about 1 in 8, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 82 min.
- Overall, 66.5% of flights on this route arrived on time, 9.1 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
- Over the last 3 years, February was the most reliable month on this route (83.7% on time) and June the least reliable (61.1%).
- Cancellations peaked in January, when 5.5% of flights were cancelled.
- Flights scheduled to depart before 6 am were the most punctual (85.0% on time); flights scheduled to depart 6 pm to 7 pm were the least (44.6%).
- In the other direction, Chicago (ORD) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), 68.0% of flights were on time and 2.7% were cancelled. Compare airlines ORD to DFW.
Best and worst months to fly DFW to ORD
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 66.5%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 71.7% | 1,471 |
| February | 83.7% | 1,403 |
| March | 70.3% | 1,594 |
| April | 68.1% | 1,604 |
| May | 62.4% | 1,699 |
| June | 61.1% | 1,850 |
| July | 61.8% | 1,917 |
| August | 64.3% | 1,868 |
| September | 79.3% | 1,678 |
| October | 81.2% | 1,828 |
| November | 76.6% | 1,653 |
| December | 76.3% | 1,623 |
| Airline | Best month | Worst month |
|---|---|---|
| Spirit Airlines | September (89.1%) | July (52.8%) |
| United Airlines | February (87.9%) | May (65.3%) |
| Frontier Airlines | October (71.6%) | June (45.7%) |
| American Airlines | October (81.2%) | June (58.1%) |
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 | 72.5% | 534 |
| Oct 2025 | 72.9% | 606 |
| Nov 2025 | 62.8% | 591 |
| Dec 2025 | 65.8% | 552 |
| Jan 2026 | 63.1% | 501 |
| Feb 2026 | 79.6% | 511 |
| Mar 2026 | 60.6% | 558 |
| Apr 2026 | 66.4% | 581 |
| May 2026 | 69.3% | 628 |
| Jun 2026 | 55.0% | 667 |
| Jul 2026 | 66.0% | 692 |
| Aug 2026 | 66.3% | 694 |
Best and worst departure times
Share of scheduled flights on time
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Departing before 6 am | 85.0% | 260 |
| Departing 6 am to 7 am | 81.8% | 341 |
| Departing 7 am to 8 am | 76.0% | 705 |
| Departing 8 am to 9 am | 79.1% | 398 |
| Departing 9 am to 10 am | 78.3% | 378 |
| Departing 10 am to 11 am | 73.8% | 507 |
| Departing 11 am to noon | 68.8% | 173 |
| Departing noon to 1 pm | 69.4% | 471 |
| Departing 1 pm to 2 pm | 60.4% | 396 |
| Departing 2 pm to 3 pm | 65.8% | 444 |
| Departing 3 pm to 4 pm | 54.2% | 227 |
| Departing 4 pm to 5 pm | 57.8% | 540 |
| Departing 5 pm to 6 pm | 53.3% | 486 |
| Departing 6 pm to 7 pm | 44.6% | 332 |
| Departing 7 pm to 8 pm | 60.1% | 646 |
| Departing 8 pm to 9 pm | 60.9% | 253 |
| Departing 9 pm to 10 pm | 64.3% | 398 |
| Departing 10 pm to 11 pm | 56.9% | 160 |
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 Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW) to Chicago, IL (ORD), 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.