Route Reliability

Route reliability

Chicago (ORD) to San Francisco (SFO): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Chicago, IL (ORD) to San Francisco, CA (SFO), September 2025 to August 2026.

Historical performance Official DOT data through August 2026 · Not live flight status

Chicago, ILSan Francisco, CA

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Three-letter airport codes, nonstop U.S. domestic flights. One direction at a time.

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

ORD to SFO

Chicago, IL to San Francisco, CA

On time
65.5%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
Cancelled
1.1%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
13.2%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
Scheduled flights
5,649in 12 months2 airlines
Most reliable airline
United Airlines68.5% on time · 3,883 flights

On time less often than the U.S. average, with fewer cancellations.

Compared with all U.S. flights, September 2025 to August 2026. “About average” means within 1.5 points for on time, 0.3 for cancelled and 1 for 60+ minutes late.

Airlines on this route

Ranked by on-time arrival

Airlines from ORD to SFO, September 2025 to August 2026. Rates are shares of all scheduled flights.
Airline On time Cancelled 60+ min late Avg delay when late Diverted Flights
1. United Airlines Most reliable 68.5% 0.8% 12.1% 75 min 0.0% 3,883
2. American Airlines 58.8% 1.6% 15.5% 73 min 0.1% 1,766

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 Chicago (ORD) to San Francisco (SFO): 68.5% of its 3,883 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 58.8% for American Airlines.
  • 1.1% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 91), 0.8 points lower than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 13.2% of flights, about 1 in 8, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 74 min.
  • Overall, 65.5% of flights on this route arrived on time, 10.1 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, September was the most reliable month on this route (82.5% on time) and June the least reliable (62.3%).
  • Cancellations peaked in January, when 2.7% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 6 am to 7 am were the most punctual (89.6% on time); flights scheduled to depart 6 pm to 7 pm were the least (46.6%).
  • In the other direction, San Francisco (SFO) to Chicago (ORD), 73.8% of flights were on time and 1.0% were cancelled. Compare airlines SFO to ORD.

Best and worst months to fly ORD to SFO

Jan 74.3%
Feb 69.6%
Mar 71.0%
Apr 69.9%
May 63.6%
Jun 62.3%
Jul 62.8%
Aug 66.3%
Sep 82.5%
Oct 78.9%
Nov 74.1%
Dec 74.5%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 65.5%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 74.3% 961
February 69.6% 929
March 71.0% 1,205
April 69.9% 1,392
May 63.6% 1,513
June 62.3% 1,504
July 62.8% 1,563
August 66.3% 1,581
September 82.5% 1,378
October 78.9% 1,390
November 74.1% 1,153
December 74.5% 1,139
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
United Airlines September (83.3%) June (65.2%)
American Airlines September (80.9%) May (56.7%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 77.6%
Oct 70.5%
Nov 67.5%
Dec 65.8%
Jan 73.7%
Feb 72.8%
Mar 72.5%
Apr 65.0%
May 59.0%
Jun 49.1%
Jul 62.0%
Aug 59.0%
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
All airlines combined, September 2025 to August 2026. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Sep 2025 77.6% 490
Oct 2025 70.5% 522
Nov 2025 67.5% 412
Dec 2025 65.8% 392
Jan 2026 73.7% 327
Feb 2026 72.8% 356
Mar 2026 72.5% 459
Apr 2026 65.0% 523
May 2026 59.0% 559
Jun 2026 49.1% 530
Jul 2026 62.0% 523
Aug 2026 59.0% 556

Best and worst departure times

6a 89.6%
7a 85.5%
8a 63.7%
9a 66.9%
10a 55.6%
11a 66.4%
12p 69.4%
1p 58.9%
2p 72.5%
3p 63.0%
4p 66.8%
5p 61.8%
6p 46.6%
7p 55.7%
8p 47.4%
9p 57.0%
10p Insufficient sample
11p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at ORD, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing 6 am to 7 am 89.6% 597
Departing 7 am to 8 am 85.5% 324
Departing 8 am to 9 am 63.7% 457
Departing 9 am to 10 am 66.9% 311
Departing 10 am to 11 am 55.6% 356
Departing 11 am to noon 66.4% 256
Departing noon to 1 pm 69.4% 350
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 58.9% 56
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 72.5% 357
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 63.0% 467
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 66.8% 371
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 61.8% 246
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 46.6% 446
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 55.7% 379
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 47.4% 213
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 57.0% 414
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm Insufficient sample 47
Departing 11 pm to midnight Insufficient sample 2
Woman at an airport window watching a plane take off
Photo: Depositphotos (licensed stock, illustrative only). Credits

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 Chicago, IL (ORD) to San Francisco, CA (SFO), 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.

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