Hobby (HOU) Flight Delays: Rate, Best Hours and Airlines
Hobby (HOU) is covered here with a statistics page (it is not one of the 22 full guide airports): 20.1% of flights departing HOU arrived 15 or more minutes late across 165,438 flights, January 2023 to December 2025. Southwest Airlines operated 92.3% of those departures. The worst scheduled departure hours are 10 PM (35.7%) and 9 PM (29.2%); 5 AM is the best at 5.6%. 1.20% of scheduled HOU departures were cancelled in 2024 to 2025.
Delay window: January 2023 to December 2025. Cancellation window: 2024 to 2025. Last updated: 2026-10-01. 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.
Predict a HOU flight
Historical BTS on-time (15+ min) at HOU
Sample size: 165,438 flights, window: January 2023 to December 2025. Delay rate 20.1%. Cancellation rate 1.20% of 112,313 scheduled flights, 2024 to 2025.
Why HOU runs the way it does
Southwest Airlines flew 92.3% of HOU departures in the window, and its flights ran 20.0% late, in line with the airport as a whole. With one carrier that large, HOU's delay record largely follows how Southwest Airlines runs its schedule.
HOU delays peak in June (29.6%), July (29.6%) and May (25.3%) and are lowest in February (14.1%). 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: 6.7% of flights scheduled before 8 AM ran late against 29.9% 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 HOU
HOU delay rate by scheduled departure hour (hours with 100+ flights)| Hour | Delayed 15+ min | Flights |
|---|
| 5 AM | 5.6% | 6,577 |
| 6 AM | 6.6% | 8,926 |
| 7 AM | 7.9% | 7,141 |
| 8 AM | 9.3% | 16,642 |
| 9 AM | 10.9% | 7,137 |
| 10 AM | 14.5% | 9,866 |
| 11 AM | 17.1% | 8,365 |
| 12 PM | 19.8% | 8,130 |
| 1 PM | 21.1% | 9,300 |
| 2 PM | 24.8% | 9,437 |
| 3 PM | 26.2% | 9,133 |
| 4 PM | 27.4% | 9,613 |
| 5 PM | 26.9% | 7,524 |
| 6 PM | 26.1% | 10,806 |
| 7 PM | 27.5% | 8,714 |
| 8 PM | 27.1% | 11,129 |
| 9 PM | 29.2% | 10,086 |
| 10 PM | 35.7% | 6,891 |
HOU delays and cancellations by month
HOU by month| Month | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|
| Jan | 18.6% | 12,514 | 4.06% |
| Feb | 14.1% | 11,838 | 0.26% |
| Mar | 17.9% | 13,907 | 0.92% |
| Apr | 21.4% | 13,750 | 0.55% |
| May | 25.3% | 14,118 | 1.71% |
| Jun | 29.6% | 14,355 | 1.03% |
| Jul | 29.6% | 14,822 | 2.64% |
| Aug | 17.4% | 13,934 | 0.52% |
| Sep | 14.7% | 13,296 | 0.27% |
| Oct | 17.8% | 14,814 | 0.55% |
| Nov | 14.8% | 13,831 | 1.29% |
| Dec | 18.3% | 14,259 | 0.46% |
Airlines at HOU
Carriers flying from HOU (1,000+ flights)| Airline | Share of departures | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 92.3% | 20.0% | 152,766 | 1.06% |
| Delta Air Lines | 2.7% | 15.4% | 4,390 | 1.30% |
| Envoy Air | 2.6% | 20.3% | 4,336 | 3.68% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 0.9% | 24.8% | 1,553 | 3.83% |
| Allegiant Air | 0.6% | 29.3% | 1,049 | 1.10% |
Regional operators are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
Routes from HOU
Routes from HOU (500+ flights)| Route | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled | Link |
|---|
| HOU to DAL | 18.0% | 12,078 | 2.40% | Predict |
| HOU to ATL | 17.2% | 9,255 | 1.17% | Predict |
| HOU to DEN | 20.3% | 7,704 | 1.23% | Predict |
| HOU to MSY | 16.5% | 6,685 | 0.92% | Predict |
| HOU to DFW | 21.8% | 6,310 | 3.96% | Predict |
| HOU to LAS | 20.7% | 6,126 | 0.80% | Predict |
| HOU to PHX | 20.3% | 6,054 | 0.87% | Predict |
| HOU to MCO | 20.5% | 5,932 | 1.60% | Predict |
| HOU to MDW | 19.8% | 5,274 | 1.45% | Predict |
| HOU to BNA | 17.7% | 5,199 | 0.90% | Predict |
| HOU to SAT | 19.7% | 4,869 | 0.63% | Predict |
| HOU to AUS | 21.6% | 4,754 | 0.69% | Predict |
| HOU to STL | 16.1% | 4,469 | 1.04% | Predict |
| HOU to BWI | 19.4% | 4,136 | 1.59% | Predict |
| HOU to HRL | 20.2% | 3,992 | 1.24% | Predict |
Houston Intercontinental (IAH) full delay guide
Questions
- How often are flights delayed at HOU?
- 20.1% of flights departing HOU arrived 15 or more minutes late across 165,438 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 HOU?
- Early departures run best. 5 AM flights ran 5.6% late (6,577 flights), 6 AM flights ran 6.6% late (8,926 flights) and 7 AM flights ran 7.9% late (7,141 flights). The worst hours are 10 PM (35.7%), 9 PM (29.2%) and 7 PM (27.5%).
- Which month is worst for delays at HOU?
- June has the highest delay rate at 29.6%. February is the lowest at 14.1%.
- Which airline has the best on-time record at HOU?
- Among carriers still flying with at least 5,000 flights from HOU, Southwest Airlines has the lowest delay rate at 20.0% (152,766 flights). Southwest Airlines is highest at 20.0%. Regional operators such as SkyWest are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
- How often are HOU flights cancelled?
- 1.20% of 112,313 scheduled departures from HOU 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 HOU?
- The predictor covers HOU flights with a model probability that combines history, weather and FAA data. This page shows historical BTS figures only.
- Is HOU better than nearby airports?
- Compare HOU with IAH (23.3%) on the Houston: IAH vs HOU compared page. Those are the delay rates for flights departing each airport over the same window.