Denver (DEN) Flight Delays: Rate, Worst Hours and Live Risk
Denver (DEN) is ranked 6 of 22 for delays among DelayGuard's guide airports (1 is the highest rate): 24.7% of flights departing DEN arrived 15 or more minutes late across 902,804 flights, January 2023 to December 2025. United Airlines operated 33.1% of those departures, with a 23.2% delay rate of its own. The worst scheduled departure hours are 10 PM (38.4%) and 6 PM (37.4%); 6 AM is the best at 10.0%. 0.95% of scheduled DEN departures were cancelled in 2024 to 2025.
These figures are historical US domestic rates, not a forecast for one departure. Use the per-flight delay estimate before you book.
Delay window: January 2023 to December 2025. Cancellation window: 2024 to 2025. Last updated: 2026-10-18. Delayed means a flight arrived 15 or more minutes after its scheduled arrival, the BTS and DOT on-time standard. Cancelled and diverted flights are excluded from delay rates. Historical BTS figures are separate from DelayGuard's per-flight model probability and from live FAA, weather and ground-delay status.
Layover buffer
Chance an inbound arrival is 45+ min late at DEN: 10.08%.
90,811 of 901,086 arrivals, January 2023 to December 2025. Not a missed-connection rate.
Flight delays today at DEN
FAA now: No FAA program
Tomorrow: Typical
October delay rate: 18.0%
FAA now is the current National Airspace System program.
Historical delay rate (15+ min late) at DEN
Sample size: 902,804 flights, window: January 2023 to December 2025. Delay rate 24.7%. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). Cancellation rate 0.95% of 626,331 scheduled flights, 2024 to 2025.
Why DEN runs the way it does
No single carrier dominates DEN. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are United Airlines (33.1%), Southwest Airlines (31.0%) and SkyWest Airlines (19.9%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule.
DEN delays peak in June (33.8%), July (33.6%) and May (28.1%) and are lowest in November (17.5%). That shape is consistent with the summer thunderstorm season, when convective weather builds through the afternoon and slows arrivals and departures.
Delays build through the day: 12.1% of flights scheduled before 8 AM ran late against 32.2% after 8 PM. That is the pattern BTS describes as late-arriving aircraft, where a previous flight with the same aircraft arriving late makes the next departure late.
Best and worst times to fly from DEN
| Hour | Delayed 15+ min | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| 12 AM | 24.2% | 4,534 |
| 1 AM | 24.4% | 168 |
| 5 AM | 10.0% | 17,491 |
| 6 AM | 10.0% | 33,708 |
| 7 AM | 13.3% | 41,822 |
| 8 AM | 14.1% | 49,913 |
| 9 AM | 18.3% | 65,061 |
| 10 AM | 19.1% | 56,660 |
| 11 AM | 20.3% | 88,754 |
| 12 PM | 22.0% | 34,743 |
| 1 PM | 21.3% | 77,180 |
| 2 PM | 29.1% | 32,852 |
| 3 PM | 28.2% | 49,702 |
| 4 PM | 30.7% | 43,495 |
| 5 PM | 33.7% | 86,686 |
| 6 PM | 37.4% | 34,040 |
| 7 PM | 33.1% | 74,614 |
| 8 PM | 31.7% | 51,605 |
| 9 PM | 33.1% | 31,634 |
| 10 PM | 38.4% | 15,982 |
| 11 PM | 23.3% | 12,160 |
DEN delays and cancellations by month
| Month | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27.2% | 68,268 | 2.71% |
| Feb | 24.7% | 64,254 | 0.85% |
| Mar | 22.3% | 74,273 | 1.31% |
| Apr | 24.0% | 71,933 | 0.50% |
| May | 28.1% | 76,387 | 0.77% |
| Jun | 33.8% | 78,494 | 0.74% |
| Jul | 33.6% | 81,567 | 1.54% |
| Aug | 27.8% | 80,765 | 0.73% |
| Sep | 19.1% | 77,057 | 0.16% |
| Oct | 18.0% | 79,851 | 0.27% |
| Nov | 17.5% | 73,563 | 1.42% |
| Dec | 19.7% | 76,392 | 0.49% |
Airlines at DEN
| Airline | Share of departures | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 33.1% | 23.2% | 298,448 | 0.80% |
| Southwest Airlines | 31.0% | 28.8% | 279,939 | 0.75% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 19.9% | 21.2% | 179,943 | 1.27% |
| Frontier Airlines | 7.6% | 26.7% | 68,902 | 1.17% |
| Delta Air Lines | 4.0% | 18.1% | 36,145 | 0.89% |
| American Airlines | 2.8% | 23.7% | 25,205 | 1.67% |
| Alaska Airlines | 0.7% | 24.3% | 6,492 | 1.25% |
| JetBlue Airways | 0.5% | 35.2% | 4,195 | 1.38% |
| Spirit Airlines (ceased 2 May 2026) | 0.2% | 29.9% | 1,749 | n/a |
| Allegiant Air | 0.2% | 33.0% | 1,390 | 1.49% |
Regional operators are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
Routes from DEN
| Route | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN to PHX | 24.9% | 27,293 | 0.99% | Route page |
| DEN to LAS | 27.3% | 24,451 | 0.82% | Route page |
| DEN to SLC | 24.0% | 23,393 | 0.62% | Predict |
| DEN to LAX | 21.9% | 22,628 | 0.84% | Route page |
| DEN to SEA | 25.5% | 19,604 | 0.78% | Route page |
| DEN to ORD | 25.6% | 18,810 | 1.04% | Route page |
| DEN to MSP | 23.2% | 18,268 | 0.68% | Predict |
| DEN to DFW | 26.4% | 17,690 | 1.98% | Route page |
| DEN to ATL | 22.3% | 17,651 | 0.81% | Route page |
| DEN to SFO | 31.0% | 16,291 | 0.83% | Route page |
| DEN to SAN | 25.6% | 16,192 | 1.07% | Predict |
| DEN to IAH | 25.7% | 14,506 | 1.08% | Predict |
| DEN to COS | 24.8% | 14,294 | 1.47% | Predict |
| DEN to LGA | 26.3% | 14,062 | 1.36% | Predict |
| DEN to AUS | 24.5% | 13,830 | 0.62% | Predict |
- Summer thunderstorm delays: which airports suffer most
- Thanksgiving and Christmas 2026 flight delay guide
- US airline cancellation rates
See the minimum connection time guide for how often flights arriving at Denver were late.
Questions
- How often are flights delayed at DEN?
- 24.7% of flights departing DEN arrived 15 or more minutes late across 902,804 flights, January 2023 to December 2025 (BTS). Across all US domestic flights in the data, the rate is 21.2%.
- What is the best time to fly from DEN?
- Early departures run best. 6 AM flights ran 10.0% late (33,708 flights), 5 AM flights ran 10.0% late (17,491 flights) and 7 AM flights ran 13.3% late (41,822 flights). The worst hours are 10 PM (38.4%), 6 PM (37.4%) and 5 PM (33.7%).
- Which month is worst for delays at DEN?
- June has the highest delay rate at 33.8%. November is the lowest at 17.5%.
- Which airline has the best on-time record at DEN?
- Among carriers still flying with at least 5,000 flights from DEN, Delta Air Lines has the lowest delay rate at 18.1% (36,145 flights). Southwest Airlines is highest at 28.8%. Regional operators such as SkyWest are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
- How often are DEN flights cancelled?
- 0.95% of 626,331 scheduled departures from DEN were cancelled in 2024 to 2025. The US figure over the same period is 1.41%. See the full ranking on the cancellation rates page.
- Does DelayGuard show live delays at DEN?
- Yes. The live module on this page shows DelayGuard's hourly risk score and any active FAA ground stop or ground delay program. It is separate from the historical BTS figures above. For a specific flight, the predictor gives a model probability that combines history, weather and FAA data.
- Why does DEN have delays?
- No single carrier dominates DEN. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are United Airlines (33.1%), Southwest Airlines (31.0%) and SkyWest Airlines (19.9%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule. DEN delays peak in June (33.8%), July (33.6%) and May (28.1%) and are lowest in November (17.5%). That shape is consistent with the summer thunderstorm season, when convective weather builds through the afternoon and slows arrivals and departures.