Route Reliability

Route reliability

San Francisco (SFO) to Newark (EWR): 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 Newark, NJ (EWR), September 2025 to August 2026.

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

San Francisco, CANewark, NJ

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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

SFO to EWR

San Francisco, CA to Newark, NJ

On time
74.7%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
Cancelled
2.0%vs 1.9% U.S. average About average
60+ min late
9.8%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
Scheduled flights
4,348in 12 months2 airlines
Most reliable airline
Alaska Airlines88.1% on time · 487 flights

On time about as often as the U.S. average, with a typical cancellation rate.

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 SFO to EWR, 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. Alaska Airlines Most reliable 88.1% 1.0% 4.1% 58 min 0.4% 487
2. United Airlines 73.0% 2.1% 10.5% 79 min 0.9% 3,861

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

Alaska Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • Alaska Airlines had the best on-time record from San Francisco (SFO) to Newark (EWR): 88.1% of its 487 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 73.0% for United Airlines.
  • 2.0% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 50), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 9.8% of flights, about 1 in 10, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 78 min.
  • Overall, 74.7% of flights on this route arrived on time, 0.9 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, October was the most reliable month on this route (84.0% on time) and July the least reliable (61.0%).
  • Cancellations peaked in July, when 3.8% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 7 am to 8 am were the most punctual (90.1% on time); flights scheduled to depart 1 pm to 2 pm were the least (54.3%).
  • In the other direction, Newark (EWR) to San Francisco (SFO), 66.2% of flights were on time and 2.3% were cancelled. Compare airlines EWR to SFO.

Best and worst months to fly SFO to EWR

Jan 78.0%
Feb 79.4%
Mar 77.3%
Apr 80.4%
May 70.6%
Jun 72.8%
Jul 61.0%
Aug 66.3%
Sep 74.0%
Oct 84.0%
Nov 76.9%
Dec 71.7%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 74.7%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 78.0% 927
February 79.4% 856
March 77.3% 1,057
April 80.4% 1,106
May 70.6% 1,158
June 72.8% 1,081
July 61.0% 1,105
August 66.3% 1,086
September 74.0% 1,040
October 84.0% 1,123
November 76.9% 1,093
December 71.7% 1,074
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Alaska Airlines February (92.3%) May (66.4%)
United Airlines October (83.2%) July (60.0%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 76.5%
Oct 76.9%
Nov 74.9%
Dec 69.9%
Jan 72.7%
Feb 74.4%
Mar 77.2%
Apr 87.1%
May 81.4%
Jun 76.5%
Jul 61.9%
Aug 64.8%
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 76.5% 357
Oct 2025 76.9% 389
Nov 2025 74.9% 351
Dec 2025 69.9% 366
Jan 2026 72.7% 326
Feb 2026 74.4% 297
Mar 2026 77.2% 378
Apr 2026 87.1% 381
May 2026 81.4% 404
Jun 2026 76.5% 371
Jul 2026 61.9% 367
Aug 2026 64.8% 361

Best and worst departure times

<6a Insufficient sample
6a 87.3%
7a 90.1%
8a 80.9%
9a 74.1%
10a 71.8%
11a 70.6%
12p 56.0%
1p 54.3%
2p 61.7%
3p 66.9%
4p 65.1%
9p 81.2%
10p 80.7%
11p 75.1%
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at SFO, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing before 6 am Insufficient sample 2
Departing 6 am to 7 am 87.3% 220
Departing 7 am to 8 am 90.1% 505
Departing 8 am to 9 am 80.9% 393
Departing 9 am to 10 am 74.1% 58
Departing 10 am to 11 am 71.8% 379
Departing 11 am to noon 70.6% 360
Departing noon to 1 pm 56.0% 91
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 54.3% 359
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 61.7% 248
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 66.9% 124
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 65.1% 312
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 81.2% 526
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 80.7% 358
Departing 11 pm to midnight 75.1% 413
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 San Francisco, CA (SFO) to Newark, NJ (EWR), 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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