Route reliability
San Francisco (SFO) 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 San Francisco, CA (SFO) to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW), September 2025 to August 2026.
San Francisco, CADallas/Fort Worth, TX
Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026
SFO to DFW
San Francisco, CA to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
- On time
- 71.0%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
- Cancelled
- 2.3%vs 1.9% U.S. average Worse than average
- 60+ min late
- 9.7%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
- Scheduled flights
- 4,262in 12 months4 airlines
- Most reliable airline
- United Airlines74.5% on time · 916 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. United Airlines Most reliable | 74.5% | 0.5% | 6.8% | 55 min | 0.9% | 916 |
| 2. American Airlines | 70.7% | 2.6% | 10.8% | 95 min | 0.6% | 3,094 |
| 3. Frontier Airlines Small sample (under 300 flights) | 61.3% | 4.1% | 5.5% | 52 min | 0.5% | 217 |
| SkyWest Airlines Operating carrier; sold as United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle, Alaska | Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) | 35 | ||||
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 San Francisco (SFO) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): 74.5% of its 916 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 70.7% for American Airlines.
- SkyWest Airlines also flew this route but with fewer than 50 reported flights, too few to rate.
- 2.3% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 43), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
- 9.7% of flights, about 1 in 10, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 84 min.
- Overall, 71.0% of flights on this route arrived on time, 4.6 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
- Over the last 3 years, September was the most reliable month on this route (83.0% on time) and May the least reliable (63.9%).
- Cancellations peaked in January, when 5.1% 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 2 pm to 3 pm were the least (51.1%).
- In the other direction, Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to San Francisco (SFO), 59.5% of flights were on time and 2.2% were cancelled. Compare airlines DFW to SFO.
Best and worst months to fly SFO to DFW
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 71.0%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 71.4% | 928 |
| February | 80.4% | 869 |
| March | 70.0% | 1,010 |
| April | 69.4% | 1,010 |
| May | 63.9% | 1,106 |
| June | 64.0% | 1,140 |
| July | 68.1% | 1,176 |
| August | 71.1% | 1,129 |
| September | 83.0% | 959 |
| October | 81.5% | 1,078 |
| November | 77.0% | 999 |
| December | 78.2% | 1,001 |
| Airline | Best month | Worst month |
|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | September (85.4%) | January (72.0%) |
| American Airlines | September (83.6%) | June (62.4%) |
| Frontier Airlines | December (70.7%) | March (38.2%) |
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 | 81.8% | 303 |
| Oct 2025 | 78.5% | 354 |
| Nov 2025 | 71.2% | 326 |
| Dec 2025 | 78.2% | 339 |
| Jan 2026 | 66.6% | 311 |
| Feb 2026 | 82.1% | 291 |
| Mar 2026 | 76.3% | 337 |
| Apr 2026 | 65.6% | 337 |
| May 2026 | 64.2% | 400 |
| Jun 2026 | 57.8% | 424 |
| Jul 2026 | 64.6% | 421 |
| Aug 2026 | 72.6% | 419 |
Best and worst departure times
Share of scheduled flights on time
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Departing before 6 am | 79.4% | 452 |
| Departing 6 am to 7 am | 89.6% | 280 |
| Departing 7 am to 8 am | 86.9% | 183 |
| Departing 8 am to 9 am | 84.0% | 506 |
| Departing 10 am to 11 am | 75.2% | 541 |
| Departing 11 am to noon | 59.7% | 233 |
| Departing noon to 1 pm | 68.3% | 315 |
| Departing 1 pm to 2 pm | Insufficient sample | 27 |
| Departing 2 pm to 3 pm | 51.1% | 348 |
| Departing 3 pm to 4 pm | 56.1% | 246 |
| Departing 4 pm to 5 pm | 74.3% | 261 |
| Departing 5 pm to 6 pm | 59.9% | 197 |
| Departing 6 pm to 7 pm | 68.2% | 214 |
| Departing 7 pm to 8 pm | Insufficient sample | 1 |
| Departing 8 pm to 9 pm | Insufficient sample | 2 |
| Departing 11 pm to midnight | 61.2% | 456 |
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 San Francisco, CA (SFO) 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.