Route · SFO → SEA · 2020–2025 BTS data
San Francisco to Seattle
According to PlainFlights' route traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), SFO to SEA (San Francisco to Seattle) ranks #43 of 4927 tracked domestic routes by total flights (most flights = #1).
Data updated 2026-06-13
- 82.1%
- On-time
- +3.1 pts
- vs US avg
- 63 min
- Delay when late
- 37,671
- Flights
- #43 of 4927
- Corpus placement
Cancelled
1.3%
Best Month
Jan 2025 88%
Worst Month
Jun 2025 66%
Distance
679 mi
Carriers
26
Monthly Performance
Recent 24 months of route data.
| Period | Flights | Delayed | Cancelled | Diverted | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2025 | 559 | 145 | 4 | 3 | DL,AS,UA,OO |
| Nov 2025 | 565 | 114 | 12 | 0 | OO,UA,DL,AS |
| Oct 2025 | 585 | 155 | 6 | 0 | AS,OO,UA,DL |
| Sep 2025 | 585 | 128 | 3 | 1 | UA,OO,DL,AS |
| Aug 2025 | 620 | 176 | 4 | 0 | OO,UA,AS,DL |
| Jul 2025 | 639 | 207 | 13 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Jun 2025 | 631 | 214 | 4 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| May 2025 | 636 | 179 | 2 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Apr 2025 | 540 | 82 | 4 | 0 | DL,OO,UA,AS |
| Mar 2025 | 553 | 119 | 2 | 2 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Feb 2025 | 482 | 99 | 11 | 1 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Jan 2025 | 526 | 65 | 0 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Dec 2024 | 533 | 126 | 2 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Nov 2024 | 547 | 100 | 9 | 0 | OO,UA,AS,DL |
| Oct 2024 | 609 | 98 | 5 | 0 | UA,AS,OO,DL |
| Sep 2024 | 617 | 154 | 5 | 0 | OO,UA,AS,DL |
| Aug 2024 | 628 | 189 | 12 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Jul 2024 | 624 | 173 | 15 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Jun 2024 | 523 | 168 | 2 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| May 2024 | 547 | 165 | 4 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Apr 2024 | 515 | 150 | 1 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Mar 2024 | 521 | 155 | 3 | 1 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Feb 2024 | 445 | 96 | 3 | 1 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
| Jan 2024 | 489 | 83 | 51 | 0 | AS,DL,OO,UA |
SFO–SEA seasonal on-time pattern
Best: November (85.4%) · weakest: June (75.1%)
Strongest calendar month
November
85.4% on-time · ~519 flights/mo
Busiest calendar month
August
~570 flights/mo avg
Weakest calendar month
June
75.1% on-time · ~497 flights/mo
Cancellation Rate
1.3%
177 of 13,519 flights
Diversion Rate
0.1%
9 of 13,519 flights
Explore origin & destination
On-time and delay data for the airports this route connects.
SFO - San Francisco
Full on-time, delay-cause, and seasonal performance for San Francisco, CA.
SFO on-time profileSEA - Seattle
Full on-time, delay-cause, and seasonal performance for Seattle, WA.
SEA on-time profileCompare the two airports
See SFO and SEA side by side on delays, cancellations, and reliability.
Compare SFO vs SEAOrigin-hub reliability standing
Mid-pack among SFO departures
From SFO, this corridor sits with 50 other 75–85% on-time routes out of 73 tracked departures, not the hub's reliability leaders (20 at ≥85%) and not the softest ( 3 below 75%). Destination: Seattle · fleet on-time rank #2326 of 4927.
Similar routes
Other BTS-tracked routes with comparable performance or trip length to SFO–SEA.
Routes with a similar on-time rate
What the Data Says About SFO to SEA
Bureau of Transportation Statistics records show San Francisco to Seattle (SFO to SEA) running a 82.1% on-time rate over 37,671 tracked flights, on the stronger end of a typical domestic pairing. When flights do run late, the average delay is 62.8 minutes. The 679-mile corridor is served by 26 carriers, and over the last 24 months 1.3% of 13,519 flights were cancelled, 0.1% diverted.
The monthly split is wide on this route: Jan 2025 posted the strongest performance at 88% on-time, while Jun 2025 came in at just 66% - a 22-point swing worth factoring into travel timing.
On the multi-year calendar, SFO–SEA peaks in November at 85.4% on-time while August carries the heaviest traffic (~570 flights per month) ; the softest month is June at 75.1%, a 10.3-point swing that repeats because the corridor's weather and holiday mix stays stable year to year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does SFO to SEA rank among US routes by traffic? ▼
How often are flights delayed from SFO to SEA? ▼
What is the cancellation rate for SFO to SEA? ▼
How far is the flight from SFO to SEA? ▼
When is the best time to fly from SFO to SEA? ▼
Airports on this route
Data source
Data Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), On-Time Performance Data. Statistics reflect cumulative performance across all available reporting periods.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Using SFO–SEA data
SFO–SEA runs 3.1 pts above the national 79% average; the remaining risk is month-to-month swing and carrier mix, not a weak headline rate.
- Compare SFO and SEA airport profiles: delay causes and top routes differ even on the same corridor. SFO airport
- If your dates flex, November (85.4% on-time) beats June (75.1%) on this corridor. Seasonal chart
- 4 other routes post a similar 82.1% on-time rate; compare before you commit to this pairing. Similar routes
On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers on this origin–destination pair, not any single flight or booking recommendation.
Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page aggregates this specific route's on-time performance and monthly trend, live from the dataset. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.