Airport · SFO · San Francisco, California

San Francisco, CA

San Francisco, CA posts bottom-quartile on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as one of the busiest U.S. airports. According to the U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, drawn from 1,466,784 flights (2020–2025); its biggest delay driver is late aircraft.

Compiled by PlainFlights Editorial, Flight Performance Editorial Team

Data updated 2026-06-13

81%
On-time: Top 77%
on-time, US airports: 73 min
Delay when late: 0.85%
Cancelled

Key Performance Metrics

Total Flights

1,466,784

Best Month

Sep 93%

Worst Month

Dec 89.1%

Delayed

278,538

Cancelled

12,405

60-65%

1
65-70%

4
70-75%

9
75-80%

48
80-85%

192
85-90%

116
90-95%

12

What this shows SFO is marked in the 80-85% band.

Delay Cause Breakdown

Top delay cause: Late Aircraft. Total delay minutes: 8,260,329.

Late Aircraft 42.0% (3,467,118 min)

Carrier 36.9% (3,047,988 min)

NAS (National Aviation System) 17.9% (1,476,905 min)

Weather 3.2% (262,019 min)

Security 0.1% (6,299 min)

Seasonal Performance Patterns

Monthly averages across all years of data. Best month: September (93% on-time). Most delays: December (89.1% on-time).

Month	Avg Flights	Avg Delayed	Avg Cancelled	On-Time %
December	20,655	4,746	162	89.1%
November	20,615	3,482	89	92.2%
October	21,653	3,541	68	92.4%
September	20,601	3,131	54	93%
August	21,580	3,921	106	91.5%
July	21,466	4,492	142	90.1%
June	19,410	4,265	99	89.7%
May	18,993	3,841	77	91%
April	18,502	3,506	336	91.8%
March	21,755	4,325	522	91.2%
February	18,965	3,570	136	91.6%
January	20,270	3,602	277	91.6%

Year-Over-Year Performance

Annual flight volume and on-time trends at SFO.

Year	Flights	Delayed	Cancelled	On-Time %
2025	289,014	27,164	1,080	90.6%
2024	270,053	31,124	1,793	88.5%
2023	271,415	26,854	1,459	90.1%
2022	259,913	22,039	2,032	91.5%
2021	197,572	13,336	1,150	93.3%
2020	178,817	7,666	4,891	95.7%

Cancellation & Diversion Analysis

Flight disruption statistics for San Francisco, CA.

Cancellation Rate

0.85%

12,405 of 1,466,784 flights

Diversion Rate

0.12%

1,783 of 1,466,784 flights

Delay Rate

19.0%

278,538 of 1,466,784 flights

Monthly Performance

Recent 24 months of flight data.

Period	Flights	Dep Delayed	Arr Delayed	Cancelled	Diverted
Dec 2025	23,958	2,999	3,597	128	35
Nov 2025	24,054	2,384	3,133	224	35
Oct 2025	25,542	2,503	3,463	46	31
Sep 2025	23,659	1,838	2,526	30	31
Aug 2025	25,205	2,332	2,836	81	43
Jul 2025	25,918	3,014	3,707	148	74
Jun 2025	25,242	2,494	3,090	80	40
May 2025	25,759	2,254	2,698	52	21
Apr 2025	24,345	1,658	2,311	31	29
Mar 2025	23,786	2,242	2,864	71	36
Feb 2025	19,875	1,950	2,634	108	29
Jan 2025	21,671	1,496	1,651	81	38
Dec 2024	24,204	2,705	3,032	88	34
Nov 2024	24,347	2,578	3,233	144	17
Oct 2024	25,134	2,022	2,273	41	26
Sep 2024	23,540	1,949	2,278	38	27
Aug 2024	24,077	2,529	2,858	108	42
Jul 2024	23,656	2,728	2,855	282	36
Jun 2024	20,519	2,616	3,271	69	36
May 2024	21,965	3,073	4,521	93	31
Apr 2024	21,266	3,067	4,564	86	19
Mar 2024	21,814	3,173	4,578	93	24
Feb 2024	19,270	2,598	3,663	177	22
Jan 2024	20,261	2,086	2,537	574	25

Top Routes from SFO

Busiest routes to and from San Francisco, CA.

Route	Flights	On-Time	Distance
LAX (Los Angeles) → SFO (San Francisco)	63,553	78.7%	337 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → LAX (Los Angeles)	63,540	82.9%	337 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → SEA (Seattle)	37,671	82.1%	679 mi
SEA (Seattle) → SFO (San Francisco)	37,651	79.1%	679 mi
JFK (New York) → SFO (San Francisco)	35,481	81.9%	2,586 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → JFK (New York)	35,481	83.2%	2,586 mi
SAN (San Diego) → SFO (San Francisco)	34,589	77.3%	447 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → SAN (San Diego)	34,477	80.3%	447 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → LAS (Las Vegas)	31,598	78.5%	414 mi
LAS (Las Vegas) → SFO (San Francisco)	31,552	74.9%	414 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → DEN (Denver)	28,782	81.4%	967 mi
DEN (Denver) → SFO (San Francisco)	28,758	74.9%	967 mi
ORD (Chicago) → SFO (San Francisco)	26,476	78.8%	1,846 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → ORD (Chicago)	26,450	83.8%	1,846 mi
PHX (Phoenix) → SFO (San Francisco)	24,798	78.5%	651 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → PHX (Phoenix)	24,676	82%	651 mi
EWR (Newark) → SFO (San Francisco)	22,094	76.2%	2,565 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → EWR (Newark)	22,079	77.5%	2,565 mi
SNA (Santa Ana) → SFO (San Francisco)	22,074	81%	372 mi
SFO (San Francisco) → SNA (Santa Ana)	22,048	84.4%	372 mi

Airports With a Similar On-Time Rate

Other U.S. airports nationwide whose on-time rate is closest to San Francisco, CA's 81%.

Chicago, IL

81% on-time 3,114,086 flights

Fort Myers, FL

80.9% on-time 420,518 flights

Savannah, GA

80.9% on-time 204,730 flights

Albany, NY

80.9% on-time 129,222 flights

Valparaiso, FL

81.1% on-time 114,819 flights

Fort Wayne, IN

80.9% on-time 62,234 flights

Other Airports in California

Compare performance with other California airports.

LAX 82.8%

Los Angeles, CA

Los Angeles · 2,137,032 flights

SAN 80.8%

San Diego, CA

San Diego · 973,807 flights

SMF 82.7%

Sacramento, CA

Sacramento · 592,833 flights

SJC 84.2%

San Jose, CA

San Jose · 546,547 flights

SNA 82.5%

Santa Ana, CA

Santa Ana · 482,186 flights

OAK 81.7%

Oakland, CA

Oakland · 472,036 flights

BUR 82.4%

Burbank, CA

Burbank · 319,148 flights

ONT 82.3%

Ontario, CA

Ontario · 272,856 flights

Keep exploring

More flight data around San Francisco, CA.

California flight data

Statewide on-time and delay aggregates, plus every reporting airport in California.

View CA data →

Airport rankings

See where SFO sits among U.S. airports on on-time rate and average delay.

Best on-time airports →

Compare airports

Put SFO head-to-head with another airport on delays and reliability.

Open comparison tool →

What the Data Says About SFO

San Francisco, CA in San Francisco, California handled 1,466,784 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 81% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 278,538 experienced delays, 12,405 were cancelled, and 1,783 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 0.85%, the diversion rate to 0.12%, and the average delay when departures run late is 72.5 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing SFO against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at SFO, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 42.0% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 36.9% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 17.9%. Weather contributes 3.2% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.1%. Travelers often overestimate the weather share; the BTS categorization shows late-arriving aircraft and carrier operations as the larger contributors.

Seasonally, September runs the cleanest at SFO with a 93% on-time rate, while December is the roughest at 89.1% - a 4-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in March, when average flights hit 21,755. The busiest route connecting SFO is to LAX (Los Angeles), with 63,553 flights at a 78.7% on-time rate. Combine these numbers - 81% on-time, 72.5-minute average delay, 0.85% cancellation rate, and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at San Francisco, CA.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the on-time performance rate at San Francisco, CA (SFO)? ▼

San Francisco, CA has an overall on-time departure rate of 81%. Out of 1,466,784 total flights tracked, 278,538 experienced delays and 12,405 were cancelled.

What is the most common cause of delays at SFO? ▼

The top delay cause at San Francisco, CA is Late Aircraft. Late Aircraft accounts for 42.0% of all delay minutes.

What is the average delay time at SFO? ▼

The average delay at San Francisco, CA is 72.5 minutes. This includes delays from carrier issues, weather, National Aviation System constraints, security, and late-arriving aircraft.

What is the best month to fly from SFO? ▼

Based on historical data, September has the best on-time performance at SFO with 93% of flights departing on time.

What is the worst month for delays at SFO? ▼

December tends to have the most delays at SFO, with an on-time rate of only 89.1%.

How many routes operate from SFO? ▼

San Francisco, CA serves at least 20 routes. The busiest route is LAX to SFO (Los Angeles - San Francisco) with 63,553 flights.

What is the cancellation rate at SFO? ▼

San Francisco, CA has a cancellation rate of 0.85%, based on 12,405 cancelled flights out of 1,466,784 total flights tracked.

Flight Guides

Data-driven guides to help you understand airport and flight performance.

Best & Worst Airlines for On-Time Performance

Which carriers consistently outperform peers

Why Flights Get Cancelled

Cancellation causes broken down by data

How to Choose Reliable Flight Routes

Use delay data to pick flights that arrive on time

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Data Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), On-Time Performance Data (2020–2025). Statistics reflect cumulative performance across all available reporting periods. On-time rates exclude cancelled and diverted flights.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Using SFO's data

An airport-level on-time rate is a starting point, not a guarantee for your specific flight.

Check the busiest route from SFO before you book a connection. See top routes
Travel in September rather than December if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns
Scores vary by airline and route within the same airport; check the specific carrier you're flying. Browse airlines

On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers at this airport, not any single flight or airline.

All airports → | Rankings →

Data sourced from U.S. Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) On-Time Performance data. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFlights Editorial

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Airline on-time performance and operational reliability · 2025 Accessed 2026-07-23

Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. Airport figures are computed directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.