Route Reliability

Route reliability

San Francisco (SFO) to Chicago (ORD): 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 Chicago, IL (ORD), September 2025 to August 2026.

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

San Francisco, CAChicago, IL

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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 ORD

San Francisco, CA to Chicago, IL

On time
73.8%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
Cancelled
1.0%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
9.4%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
Scheduled flights
5,650in 12 months2 airlines
Most reliable airline
United Airlines75.5% on time · 3,885 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 SFO to ORD, 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 75.5% 0.7% 8.4% 70 min 0.7% 3,885
2. American Airlines 69.9% 1.6% 11.7% 113 min 0.8% 1,765

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 Chicago (ORD): 75.5% of its 3,885 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 69.9% for American Airlines.
  • 1.0% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 100), 0.9 points lower than 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 85 min.
  • Overall, 73.8% of flights on this route arrived on time, 1.8 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, September was the most reliable month on this route (85.5% on time) and July the least reliable (65.9%).
  • Cancellations peaked in January, when 2.6% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 7 am to 8 am were the most punctual (90.7% on time); flights scheduled to depart 2 pm to 3 pm were the least (52.1%).
  • In the other direction, Chicago (ORD) to San Francisco (SFO), 65.5% of flights were on time and 1.1% were cancelled. Compare airlines ORD to SFO.

Best and worst months to fly SFO to ORD

Jan 77.7%
Feb 84.4%
Mar 75.7%
Apr 78.3%
May 74.8%
Jun 72.8%
Jul 65.9%
Aug 71.9%
Sep 85.5%
Oct 83.5%
Nov 79.7%
Dec 79.3%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 73.8%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 77.7% 964
February 84.4% 932
March 75.7% 1,209
April 78.3% 1,391
May 74.8% 1,515
June 72.8% 1,506
July 65.9% 1,562
August 71.9% 1,580
September 85.5% 1,369
October 83.5% 1,392
November 79.7% 1,151
December 79.3% 1,141
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
United Airlines September (86.6%) July (67.3%)
American Airlines December (84.3%) July (65.9%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 84.0%
Oct 81.1%
Nov 76.2%
Dec 79.5%
Jan 72.3%
Feb 85.2%
Mar 73.1%
Apr 69.8%
May 72.6%
Jun 69.1%
Jul 63.7%
Aug 64.9%
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 84.0% 486
Oct 2025 81.1% 524
Nov 2025 76.2% 411
Dec 2025 79.5% 391
Jan 2026 72.3% 329
Feb 2026 85.2% 357
Mar 2026 73.1% 461
Apr 2026 69.8% 523
May 2026 72.6% 559
Jun 2026 69.1% 530
Jul 2026 63.7% 523
Aug 2026 64.9% 556

Best and worst departure times

<6a 88.6%
6a 90.4%
7a 90.7%
8a 80.8%
10a 69.7%
11a Insufficient sample
12p 54.9%
1p 59.0%
2p 52.1%
3p 60.3%
4p 73.4%
5p 63.8%
6p 73.4%
7p Insufficient sample
9p Insufficient sample
10p 82.5%
11p 78.3%
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 88.6% 386
Departing 6 am to 7 am 90.4% 686
Departing 7 am to 8 am 90.7% 140
Departing 8 am to 9 am 80.8% 530
Departing 10 am to 11 am 69.7% 623
Departing 11 am to noon Insufficient sample 45
Departing noon to 1 pm 54.9% 253
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 59.0% 432
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 52.1% 390
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 60.3% 383
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 73.4% 350
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 63.8% 127
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 73.4% 241
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm Insufficient sample 16
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm Insufficient sample 2
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 82.5% 285
Departing 11 pm to midnight 78.3% 761
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 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.

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