JFK Flight Delays: Rate, Worst Hours and Live Risk
JFK is ranked 12 of 22 for delays among DelayGuard's guide airports (1 is the highest rate): 22.9% of flights departing JFK arrived 15 or more minutes late across 352,760 flights, January 2023 to December 2025. JetBlue Airways operated 31.9% of those departures, with a 30.5% delay rate of its own. The worst scheduled departure hours are 8 PM (32.3%) and 9 PM (31.9%); 6 AM is the best at 13.0%. 1.93% of scheduled JFK 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 JFK: 11.74%.
41,354 of 352,300 arrivals, January 2023 to December 2025. Not a missed-connection rate.
Flight delays today at JFK
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 JFK
Sample size: 352,760 flights, window: January 2023 to December 2025. Delay rate 22.9%. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). Cancellation rate 1.93% of 228,108 scheduled flights, 2024 to 2025.
Why JFK runs the way it does
No single carrier dominates JFK. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are JetBlue Airways (31.9%), Delta Air Lines (25.2%) and Republic Airways (14.0%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule.
JFK delays peak in July (33.0%), June (27.5%) and August (25.9%) and are lowest in November (16.3%). 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: 13.4% of flights scheduled before 8 AM ran late against 31.8% 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.
Newark, JFK and LaGuardia are served by the same approach control, the FAA's New York TRACON (N90), so a flow restriction in that airspace can constrain all three at once.
JFK is one of three US airports the FAA classes as Level 3 (slot-coordinated), where scheduled operations are capped per hour during slot-controlled hours.
Best and worst times to fly from JFK
| Hour | Delayed 15+ min | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| 5 AM | 13.5% | 2,508 |
| 6 AM | 13.0% | 20,107 |
| 7 AM | 13.6% | 26,919 |
| 8 AM | 16.0% | 30,571 |
| 9 AM | 18.1% | 27,467 |
| 10 AM | 20.3% | 12,555 |
| 11 AM | 17.2% | 22,792 |
| 12 PM | 17.8% | 16,780 |
| 1 PM | 24.9% | 17,699 |
| 2 PM | 24.5% | 20,657 |
| 3 PM | 25.5% | 25,888 |
| 4 PM | 24.9% | 20,704 |
| 5 PM | 30.3% | 22,762 |
| 6 PM | 31.7% | 18,171 |
| 7 PM | 30.5% | 21,474 |
| 8 PM | 32.3% | 18,434 |
| 9 PM | 31.9% | 17,208 |
| 10 PM | 30.9% | 9,554 |
| 11 PM | 27.7% | 510 |
JFK delays and cancellations by month
| Month | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22.4% | 28,151 | 2.38% |
| Feb | 21.9% | 27,131 | 1.66% |
| Mar | 23.6% | 30,656 | 0.75% |
| Apr | 22.1% | 29,864 | 0.65% |
| May | 20.3% | 31,204 | 0.68% |
| Jun | 27.5% | 29,094 | 2.98% |
| Jul | 33.0% | 29,304 | 4.99% |
| Aug | 25.9% | 30,030 | 3.93% |
| Sep | 20.0% | 28,989 | 0.46% |
| Oct | 18.0% | 30,326 | 1.01% |
| Nov | 16.3% | 28,997 | 1.32% |
| Dec | 24.4% | 29,014 | 2.13% |
Airlines at JFK
| Airline | Share of departures | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JetBlue Airways | 31.9% | 30.5% | 112,546 | 2.02% |
| Delta Air Lines | 25.2% | 20.6% | 88,962 | 1.14% |
| Republic Airways | 14.0% | 16.8% | 49,288 | 2.88% |
| American Airlines | 12.0% | 18.8% | 42,473 | 1.28% |
| Endeavor Air | 10.0% | 16.9% | 35,147 | 3.45% |
| Alaska Airlines | 3.3% | 21.8% | 11,495 | 2.43% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 2.2% | 24.3% | 7,844 | 2.62% |
| Frontier Airlines | 1.1% | 30.5% | 3,916 | 1.45% |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 0.3% | 33.8% | 1,089 | 0.82% |
Regional operators are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
Routes from JFK
| Route | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JFK to LAX | 20.1% | 29,966 | 0.65% | Route page |
| JFK to SFO | 21.5% | 20,354 | 0.95% | Route page |
| JFK to BOS | 25.0% | 17,076 | 2.59% | Route page |
| JFK to MIA | 25.8% | 16,071 | 1.83% | Route page |
| JFK to MCO | 30.1% | 14,171 | 1.85% | Route page |
| JFK to ATL | 24.6% | 11,467 | 1.15% | Route page |
| JFK to FLL | 28.1% | 11,391 | 2.26% | Predict |
| JFK to SJU | 30.1% | 10,805 | 1.05% | Predict |
| JFK to RDU | 20.9% | 10,681 | 3.19% | Predict |
| JFK to LAS | 20.7% | 10,098 | 0.92% | Route page |
| JFK to CLT | 17.5% | 9,037 | 1.86% | Route page |
| JFK to SEA | 21.0% | 8,807 | 1.63% | Route page |
| JFK to PHX | 20.5% | 7,842 | 1.29% | Route page |
| JFK to DCA | 20.7% | 7,498 | 4.11% | Predict |
| JFK to ORD | 23.0% | 7,235 | 2.72% | Route page |
Nearby airports
- LaGuardia (LGA): 20.6% delayed
- Newark (EWR): 23.4% delayed
- Summer thunderstorm delays: which airports suffer most
- Northeast winter flights: what the data shows
- Thanksgiving and Christmas 2026 flight delay guide
- US airline cancellation rates
Questions
- How often are flights delayed at JFK?
- 22.9% of flights departing JFK arrived 15 or more minutes late across 352,760 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 JFK?
- Early departures run best. 6 AM flights ran 13.0% late (20,107 flights), 5 AM flights ran 13.5% late (2,508 flights) and 7 AM flights ran 13.6% late (26,919 flights). The worst hours are 8 PM (32.3%), 9 PM (31.9%) and 6 PM (31.7%).
- Which month is worst for delays at JFK?
- July has the highest delay rate at 33.0%. November is the lowest at 16.3%.
- Which airline has the best on-time record at JFK?
- Among carriers still flying with at least 5,000 flights from JFK, Republic Airways has the lowest delay rate at 16.8% (49,288 flights). JetBlue Airways is highest at 30.5%. Regional operators such as SkyWest are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
- How often are JFK flights cancelled?
- 1.93% of 228,108 scheduled departures from JFK 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 JFK?
- 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 JFK have delays?
- No single carrier dominates JFK. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are JetBlue Airways (31.9%), Delta Air Lines (25.2%) and Republic Airways (14.0%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule. JFK delays peak in July (33.0%), June (27.5%) and August (25.9%) and are lowest in November (16.3%). That shape is consistent with the summer thunderstorm season, when convective weather builds through the afternoon and slows arrivals and departures.
- Is JFK better than nearby airports?
- Compare JFK with LGA (20.6%) and EWR (23.4%) on the New York: JFK vs LGA vs EWR compared page. Those are the delay rates for flights departing each airport over the same window.