Route · SMF → SFO · 2020–2025 BTS data
Sacramento to San Francisco
According to PlainFlights' route traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), SMF to SFO (Sacramento to San Francisco) ranks #1998 of 4927 tracked domestic routes by total flights (most flights = #1).
Data updated 2026-06-13
- 82.2%
- On-time
- +3.2 pts
- vs US avg
- 83 min
- Delay when late
- 6,310
- Flights
- #1998 of 4927
- Corpus placement
Cancelled
1.6%
Best Month
Jul 2024 92%
Worst Month
Apr 2024 57%
Distance
86 mi
Carriers
5
Monthly Performance
Recent 24 months of route data.
| Period | Flights | Delayed | Cancelled | Diverted | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2025 | 106 | 36 | 2 | 0 | UA,OO |
| Nov 2025 | 118 | 49 | 12 | 0 | OO |
| Oct 2025 | 145 | 53 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Sep 2025 | 118 | 41 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Aug 2025 | 113 | 36 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Jul 2025 | 114 | 27 | 1 | 0 | OO |
| Jun 2025 | 111 | 22 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| May 2025 | 115 | 16 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Apr 2025 | 118 | 17 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Mar 2025 | 94 | 24 | 0 | 0 | OO,UA |
| Feb 2025 | 98 | 15 | 6 | 0 | OO |
| Jan 2025 | 92 | 11 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Dec 2024 | 94 | 25 | 1 | 0 | OO,UA |
| Nov 2024 | 118 | 28 | 6 | 0 | OO,UA |
| Oct 2024 | 122 | 22 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Sep 2024 | 95 | 14 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Aug 2024 | 74 | 8 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Jul 2024 | 62 | 5 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Jun 2024 | 60 | 16 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| May 2024 | 61 | 19 | 0 | 0 | OO |
| Apr 2024 | 60 | 26 | 3 | 0 | OO |
| Mar 2024 | 68 | 13 | 1 | 0 | OO |
| Feb 2024 | 87 | 24 | 4 | 0 | OO,UA |
| Jan 2024 | 91 | 20 | 1 | 0 | OO |
SMF–SFO seasonal on-time pattern
Best: April (85.9%) · weakest: August (77.1%)
Strongest calendar month
April
85.9% on-time · ~73 flights/mo
Busiest calendar month
October
~113 flights/mo avg
Weakest calendar month
August
77.1% on-time · ~85 flights/mo
Cancellation Rate
1.6%
37 of 2,334 flights
Diversion Rate
0.0%
0 of 2,334 flights
Explore origin & destination
On-time and delay data for the airports this route connects.
SMF - Sacramento
Full on-time, delay-cause, and seasonal performance for Sacramento, CA.
SMF on-time profileSFO - San Francisco
Full on-time, delay-cause, and seasonal performance for San Francisco, CA.
SFO on-time profileCompare the two airports
See SMF and SFO side by side on delays, cancellations, and reliability.
Compare SMF vs SFOOrigin-hub reliability standing
Mid-pack among SMF departures
From SMF, this corridor sits with 14 other 75–85% on-time routes out of 35 tracked departures, not the hub's reliability leaders (20 at ≥85%) and not the softest ( 1 below 75%). Destination: San Francisco · fleet on-time rank #2288 of 4927.
Similar routes
Other BTS-tracked routes with comparable performance or trip length to SMF–SFO.
Routes with a similar on-time rate
Routes of a similar trip length
What the Data Says About SMF to SFO
Bureau of Transportation Statistics records show Sacramento to San Francisco (SMF to SFO) running a 82.2% on-time rate over 6,310 tracked flights, on the stronger end of a typical domestic pairing. When flights do run late, the average delay is 83.0 minutes. The 86-mile corridor is served by 5 carriers, and over the last 24 months 1.6% of 2,334 flights were cancelled, 0.0% diverted.
The monthly split is wide on this route: Jul 2024 posted the strongest performance at 92% on-time, while Apr 2024 came in at just 57% - a 35-point swing worth factoring into travel timing.
On the multi-year calendar, SMF–SFO peaks in April at 85.9% on-time while October carries the heaviest traffic (~113 flights per month) ; the softest month is August at 77.1%, a 8.8-point swing that repeats because the corridor's weather and holiday mix stays stable year to year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does SMF to SFO rank among US routes by traffic? ▼
How often are flights delayed from SMF to SFO? ▼
What is the cancellation rate for SMF to SFO? ▼
How far is the flight from SMF to SFO? ▼
When is the best time to fly from SMF to SFO? ▼
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 SMF–SFO data
SMF–SFO runs 3.2 pts above the national 79% average; the remaining risk is month-to-month swing and carrier mix, not a weak headline rate.
- Compare SMF and SFO airport profiles: delay causes and top routes differ even on the same corridor. SMF airport
- If your dates flex, April (85.9% on-time) beats August (77.1%) on this corridor. Seasonal chart
- 4 other routes post a similar 82.2% 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.