SFO to LAX flights: delays, most on-time airline and best time to fly
By Matt — Founder & Airline Pilot · Updated 16 October 2026
21.4% of 33,711 nonstop flights from San Francisco (SFO) to Los Angeles (LAX) arrived 15 or more minutes late from January 2023 to December 2025 (BTS data). Alaska Airlines (16.6%) and United (17.2%) were the most on time; Frontier was the least, at 34.6%. Departures at 05:00 were best, at 3.0% late.
These figures are historical US domestic rates, not a forecast for one departure. Use the US domestic delay forecast before you book.
Median flight time: 1 h 25 min gate to gate (BTS data).
Covers nonstop flights from San Francisco International (SFO) to Los Angeles International (LAX) only. Oakland (OAK), San Jose (SJC), Burbank (BUR) and Long Beach (LGB) flights are not included.
SFO to LAX flight time and distance
Scheduled gate-to-gate time from SFO to LAX is a median 1 h 32 min. Flights actually took a median 1 h 25 min gate to gate, including 56 min in the air. 1.2% ran 30 or more minutes over schedule and 73.7% arrived sooner than scheduled (BTS data, January 2023 to December 2025).
SFO to LAX is 337 miles (BTS data).
| Airline | Scheduled (median) | Actual (median) | In the air (median) | 30+ min over schedule | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkyWest Airlines | 1 h 33 min | 1 h 28 min | 57 min | 1.6% | 9,611 |
| United Airlines | 1 h 33 min | 1 h 28 min | 55 min | 1.2% | 8,973 |
| Delta Air Lines | 1 h 32 min | 1 h 21 min | 55 min | 0.7% | 6,938 |
| Southwest Airlines | 1 h 25 min | 1 h 16 min | 55 min | 0.5% | 4,335 |
| American Airlines | 1 h 27 min | 1 h 23 min | 55 min | 2.2% | 1,210 |
| Alaska Airlines | 1 h 40 min | 1 h 28 min | 56 min | 1.4% | 921 |
| JetBlue Airways (No flights after Jun 2024 in our data) | 1 h 29 min | 1 h 24 min | 55 min | 2.6% | 916 |
| Frontier Airlines | 1 h 30 min | 1 h 28 min | 56 min | 2.5% | 806 |
Most on-time airline SFO to LAX
| Airline | Delayed 15+ min | Cancelled | Completed flights | Scheduled flights | Months in data | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines | 16.6% | 0.65% | 921 | 929 | 2023-01 to 2025-12 | |
| United Airlines | 17.2% | 1.05% | 8,973 | 9,071 | 2023-01 to 2025-12 | |
| Delta Air Lines | 18.8% | 0.96% | 6,938 | 7,006 | 2023-01 to 2025-12 | |
| SkyWest Airlines | 21.6% | 0.7% | 9,611 | 9,684 | 2023-01 to 2025-12 | |
| American Airlines | 22.1% | 0.33% | 1,210 | 1,214 | 2023-01 to 2025-12 | |
| JetBlue | 28.4% | 1.19% | 916 | 928 | 2023-01 to 2024-06 | No flights after Jun 2024 in our data |
| Southwest Airlines | 30.9% | 0.46% | 4,335 | 4,357 | 2023-01 to 2025-12 | |
| Frontier Airlines | 34.6% | 1.23% | 806 | 816 | 2024-04 to 2025-12 | Flights start 2024-04 |
JetBlue is shown as history: its last flights on this route in our data are in June 2024.
Best and worst time of day to fly SFO to LAX
| Departure hour | Delayed 15+ min | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| 05:00 | 3.0% | 337 |
| 06:00 | 5.4% | 3,322 |
| 07:00 | 12.6% | 1,920 |
| 08:00 | 11.1% | 2,246 |
| 09:00 | 14.5% | 1,968 |
| 10:00 | 28.4% | 2,696 |
| 11:00 | 24.1% | 2,366 |
| 12:00 | 28.2% | 1,484 |
| 13:00 | 21.5% | 2,201 |
| 14:00 | 26.6% | 1,679 |
| 15:00 | 26.0% | 1,460 |
| 16:00 | 26.3% | 2,383 |
| 17:00 | 25.3% | 1,419 |
| 18:00 | 22.1% | 2,905 |
| 19:00 | 27.4% | 1,745 |
| 20:00 | 31.8% | 1,706 |
| 21:00 | 41.2% | 621 |
| 22:00 | 23.8% | 1,155 |
Best and worst month for SFO to LAX
| Month | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19.7% | 2,530 | 2.31% |
| February | 23.6% | 2,441 | 1.13% |
| March | 27.5% | 2,800 | 1.23% |
| April | 22.2% | 2,892 | 0.62% |
| May | 22.7% | 3,099 | 0.35% |
| June | 21.3% | 2,735 | 0.83% |
| July | 20.6% | 2,754 | 1.47% |
| August | 18.4% | 2,907 | 0.48% |
| September | 17.5% | 2,919 | 0.17% |
| October | 19.4% | 3,064 | 0.0% |
| November | 20.5% | 2,882 | 1.3% |
| December | 24.6% | 2,688 | 0.3% |
SFO to LAX cancellations
0.83% of 34,006 scheduled SFO to LAX flights were cancelled, January 2023 to December 2025 (BTS data). Worst month January (2.31%), best October (no cancellations recorded).
How late, and why
When a SFO to LAX flight was late (15+ minutes), it arrived an average of 64 minutes late (median 40). 7.0% of all completed flights arrived an hour or more late (BTS data, 2023 to 2025).
Of the delay minutes on late SFO to LAX flights, 55.5% were caused by a late incoming aircraft, 28.4% by the airline (crew, maintenance, ground handling), 14.6% by the air-traffic system (volume, non-extreme weather, airport operations), 1.5% by extreme weather and 0.1% by security (BTS data, 2023 to 2025).
| Cause | Share of delay minutes |
|---|---|
| late incoming aircraft | 55.5% |
| airline | 28.4% |
| air-traffic system | 14.6% |
| extreme weather | 1.5% |
| security | 0.1% |
BTS assigns causes to delay minutes on flights that arrived 15+ minutes late. "Air-traffic system" includes non-extreme weather that slows traffic.
What stands out on SFO to LAX
The first flights of the day are the safe bet: 05:00 departures ran 3.0% late and 06:00 ran 5.4%, but from 10:00 onward most hours ran 21% to 32% late, peaking at 41.2% at 21:00.
United (17.2% late) beat Delta (18.8%) on this route, and Southwest ran 30.9% late even though it cancelled less often (0.46%) than United (1.05%) or Delta (0.96%).
March was the worst month at 27.5% late and September the best at 17.5%. JetBlue has no flights on this route in our data after June 2024, and Frontier’s flights start in April 2024.
Check your SFO to LAX flight today
Delay odds change with weather, air-traffic programs and your exact departure time. DelayGuard's prediction uses an ML model trained on BTS data (2023 to mid-2025) plus live weather and FAA information.
Related pages
- SFO delays: rate, worst hours and live risk
- LAX delays: rate, worst hours and live risk
- LAX to SFO flights
- US airline cancellation rates
- Thanksgiving and Christmas 2026 flight delay guide
Check your odds: Will my flight be delayed? · Will my flight be cancelled?
SFO to LAX questions
- How long is the flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles?
- Scheduled gate-to-gate time from SFO to LAX is a median 1 h 32 min, and flights actually took a median 1 h 25 min including 56 min in the air. 1.2% ran 30+ minutes over schedule (BTS data, January 2023 to December 2025).
- Which airline is most on time from SFO to LAX?
- Alaska Airlines, with 16.6% of 921 flights arriving 15+ minutes late, followed by United at 17.2% of 8,973 flights. Frontier was the least on time at 34.6% (BTS data, Jan 2023 to Dec 2025).
- Is United or Delta more on time from SFO to LAX?
- United. 17.2% of United’s 8,973 SFO to LAX flights arrived 15+ minutes late, against 18.8% of Delta’s 6,938 flights (BTS data, 2023 to 2025).
- Which airlines fly nonstop from SFO to LAX?
- Eight airlines each flew at least 300 SFO to LAX flights in 2023 to 2025: SkyWest, United, Delta, Southwest, American, Alaska, JetBlue and Frontier. JetBlue’s last flights in our data are in June 2024 (BTS data).
- What is the best time of day to fly SFO to LAX?
- Early morning. The 05:00 departure hour ran 3.0% late and 06:00 ran 5.4%. The worst was 21:00, at 41.2% of 621 flights (BTS data, 2023 to 2025).
- How late are SFO to LAX flights when they are delayed?
- When a SFO to LAX flight was late (15+ minutes), it arrived an average of 64 minutes late (median 40). 7.0% of all completed flights arrived an hour or more late (BTS data, 2023 to 2025).
- Will my SFO to LAX flight be delayed today?
- Check your flight on DelayGuard. The prediction comes from an ML model trained on BTS data (2023 to mid-2025), combined with live weather and FAA delay information. It gives a likelihood of delay, not a guarantee.
Sources and data window
Statistics: BTS data (US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, On-Time Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance), January 2023 to December 2025. A flight counts as delayed if it arrived 15 or more minutes late; delay rates use completed flights only (cancelled and diverted flights excluded); cancellation rates are cancelled ÷ scheduled. Hours with fewer than 200 flights and airlines with fewer than 300 flights are not shown. Predictions: ML model trained on BTS data (2023 to mid-2025). By Matt — Founder & Airline Pilot.