SFO (SFO) Flight Delays: Rate, Worst Hours and Live Risk
SFO is ranked 16 of 22 for delays among DelayGuard's guide airports (1 is the highest rate): 20.8% of flights departing SFO arrived 15 or more minutes late across 409,744 flights, January 2023 to December 2025. United Airlines operated 37.8% of those departures, with a 18.6% delay rate of its own. The worst scheduled departure hours are 3 PM (27.5%) and 11 AM (26.7%); 5 AM is the best at 5.2%. 1.03% of scheduled SFO departures were cancelled in 2024 to 2025.
These figures are historical US domestic rates, not a forecast for one departure. Use the AI delay predictor 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 SFO: 11.89%.
48,738 of 410,035 arrivals, January 2023 to December 2025. Not a missed-connection rate.
Flight delays today at SFO
FAA now: No FAA program
Tomorrow: Typical
October delay rate: 16.8%
FAA now is the current National Airspace System program.
Historical delay rate (15+ min late) at SFO
Sample size: 409,744 flights, window: January 2023 to December 2025. Delay rate 20.8%. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). Cancellation rate 1.03% of 279,473 scheduled flights, 2024 to 2025.
Why SFO runs the way it does
No single carrier dominates SFO. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are United Airlines (37.8%), SkyWest Airlines (23.9%) and Delta Air Lines (9.6%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule.
SFO delays peak in March (24.2%), June (23.6%) and July (23.6%) and are lowest in October (16.8%). 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: 9.1% of flights scheduled before 8 AM ran late against 22.0% 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.
Most SFO arrivals use two closely spaced parallel runways, 28L and 28R, with centerlines 750 feet apart. That spacing limits how many approaches can run side by side when ceilings drop.
Best and worst times to fly from SFO
| Hour | Delayed 15+ min | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| 12 AM | 19.3% | 2,990 |
| 5 AM | 5.2% | 9,186 |
| 6 AM | 7.8% | 20,850 |
| 7 AM | 10.5% | 21,326 |
| 8 AM | 15.0% | 37,165 |
| 9 AM | 17.8% | 25,348 |
| 10 AM | 24.8% | 33,050 |
| 11 AM | 26.7% | 28,164 |
| 12 PM | 24.8% | 18,217 |
| 1 PM | 25.8% | 31,538 |
| 2 PM | 26.3% | 15,480 |
| 3 PM | 27.5% | 10,026 |
| 4 PM | 23.1% | 35,158 |
| 5 PM | 24.4% | 9,975 |
| 6 PM | 20.2% | 23,755 |
| 7 PM | 24.4% | 16,519 |
| 8 PM | 25.3% | 12,293 |
| 9 PM | 22.3% | 14,488 |
| 10 PM | 20.4% | 25,094 |
| 11 PM | 21.8% | 19,104 |
SFO delays and cancellations by month
| Month | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 19.9% | 30,266 | 3.12% |
| Feb | 20.2% | 28,797 | 1.46% |
| Mar | 24.2% | 33,545 | 0.72% |
| Apr | 19.9% | 33,401 | 0.51% |
| May | 23.2% | 35,468 | 0.61% |
| Jun | 23.6% | 34,123 | 0.65% |
| Jul | 23.6% | 36,232 | 1.73% |
| Aug | 19.9% | 36,386 | 0.77% |
| Sep | 17.4% | 34,914 | 0.29% |
| Oct | 16.8% | 36,922 | 0.34% |
| Nov | 18.6% | 34,922 | 1.52% |
| Dec | 22.2% | 34,768 | 0.90% |
Airlines at SFO
| Airline | Share of departures | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 37.8% | 18.6% | 154,731 | 0.90% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 23.9% | 20.1% | 97,969 | 1.17% |
| Delta Air Lines | 9.6% | 17.1% | 39,170 | 0.64% |
| Alaska Airlines | 8.3% | 23.5% | 34,061 | 1.80% |
| American Airlines | 7.8% | 20.7% | 32,019 | 1.07% |
| Southwest Airlines | 5.9% | 31.7% | 24,222 | 0.49% |
| JetBlue Airways | 3.3% | 21.4% | 13,520 | 0.66% |
| Frontier Airlines | 2.8% | 36.6% | 11,640 | 1.85% |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 0.6% | 23.6% | 2,361 | 1.86% |
Regional operators are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
Routes from SFO
| Route | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO to LAX | 21.4% | 33,711 | 0.73% | Route page |
| SFO to JFK | 19.8% | 20,286 | 1.06% | Route page |
| SFO to SEA | 22.6% | 19,926 | 1.31% | Route page |
| SFO to SAN | 26.5% | 18,965 | 1.21% | Predict |
| SFO to LAS | 26.9% | 17,244 | 1.16% | Route page |
| SFO to DEN | 23.9% | 16,280 | 0.71% | Route page |
| SFO to ORD | 20.4% | 14,908 | 1.27% | Route page |
| SFO to PHX | 22.7% | 13,756 | 0.64% | Route page |
| SFO to BOS | 22.0% | 13,521 | 0.69% | Route page |
| SFO to SNA | 19.0% | 13,015 | 1.24% | Predict |
| SFO to EWR | 25.7% | 12,341 | 1.75% | Route page |
| SFO to DFW | 24.7% | 11,792 | 1.79% | Route page |
| SFO to SLC | 19.9% | 10,497 | 0.56% | Predict |
| SFO to PDX | 19.8% | 10,376 | 0.91% | Predict |
| SFO to ATL | 18.8% | 9,596 | 0.89% | Route page |
Nearby airports
- Oakland (OAK): 18.0% delayed
- San Jose (SJC): 15.8% delayed
- Summer thunderstorm delays: which airports suffer most
- Thanksgiving and Christmas 2026 flight delay guide
- US airline cancellation rates
Questions
- How often are flights delayed at SFO?
- 20.8% of flights departing SFO arrived 15 or more minutes late across 409,744 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 SFO?
- Early departures run best. 5 AM flights ran 5.2% late (9,186 flights), 6 AM flights ran 7.8% late (20,850 flights) and 7 AM flights ran 10.5% late (21,326 flights). The worst hours are 3 PM (27.5%), 11 AM (26.7%) and 2 PM (26.3%).
- Which month is worst for delays at SFO?
- March has the highest delay rate at 24.2%. October is the lowest at 16.8%.
- Which airline has the best on-time record at SFO?
- Among carriers still flying with at least 5,000 flights from SFO, Delta Air Lines has the lowest delay rate at 17.1% (39,170 flights). Frontier Airlines is highest at 36.6%. Regional operators such as SkyWest are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
- How often are SFO flights cancelled?
- 1.03% of 279,473 scheduled departures from SFO 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 SFO?
- 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 SFO have delays?
- No single carrier dominates SFO. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are United Airlines (37.8%), SkyWest Airlines (23.9%) and Delta Air Lines (9.6%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule. SFO delays peak in March (24.2%), June (23.6%) and July (23.6%) and are lowest in October (16.8%). That shape is consistent with the summer thunderstorm season, when convective weather builds through the afternoon and slows arrivals and departures.
- Is SFO better than nearby airports?
- Compare SFO with OAK (18.0%) and SJC (15.8%) on the San Francisco Bay Area: SFO vs OAK vs SJC compared page. Those are the delay rates for flights departing each airport over the same window.