Los Angeles to San Francisco flights
about 426 flights a week across 45 operators, most often on the Boeing 737 (all variants). Below: the aircraft mix, and what the safety record and the turbulence model say for this route.
Route FAQ
How long does the flight from Los Angeles to San Francisco take?
Flight time from Los Angeles (LAX) to San Francisco (SFO) depends on routing, aircraft type, and whether the flight is direct or connecting. A direct flight typically reflects great-circle distance plus winds, while one-stop options can add several hours depending on the layover airport. The typical block time and frequency we have observed for this route are shown above.
Which airlines fly from Los Angeles to San Francisco?
Airline availability for LAX to SFO changes by season and sometimes week to week as carriers adjust capacity. The airlines and aircraft types observed operating this route, both direct and connecting, are listed below based on real flight-tracking data.
Are there direct flights from Los Angeles to San Francisco?
Direct (nonstop) availability on LAX to SFO varies by date, day of week, and season. Busy city pairs usually have multiple daily nonstops, while thinner routes may only have direct service a few days per week or only during peak seasons.
No fatal or serious occurrence recorded and attributed to operators on this pair in the last 90 days.
- United Airlines5-yr attributed events: 58Last 90 days: none recorded
- Delta Air Lines5-yr attributed events: 52Last 90 days: none recorded
- SkyWest5-yr attributed events: 5Last 90 days: none recorded
- Alaska Airlines5-yr attributed events: 7Last 90 days: none recorded
- American Airlines5-yr attributed events: 26Last 90 days: none recorded
| Carrier | Sightings / 90d | Safety events |
|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 7 sightings | No recorded events |
| Delta Air Lines | 7 sightings | No recorded events |
| SkyWest | 3 sightings | No recorded events |
| Alaska Airlines | 2 sightings | No recorded events |
| American Airlines | 2 sightings | No recorded events |
Flight patterns on LAX → SFO
We observed 5480 flights on this route over the last 90 days (about 426.2 per week) across 45 airlines.
Departures cluster around 03:00–04:00 UTC, 05:00–06:00 UTC, 21:00–22:00 UTC, busiest on Tuesday and Monday.
On-time performance: 32.7% of departures left within 15 minutes of schedule (average delay 38.7 min, based on 2934 timed flights).
Historically, 74.1% of flights on LAX → SFO arrived within 15 minutes of schedule (average arrival delay 10.2 min; 3.1% cancelled), across 361,993 flights from 1987–2025. Source: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).
In 2025, 2,708,280 passengers flew between LAX and SFO (both directions) on 23,773 flights, led by UA. Source: U.S. DOT BTS T-100. US air traffic.
Carrier on-time performance (last 12 months)
| Carrier | On-time % | Avg delay | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 74.2% | 14.9 min | 6,490 |
| SkyWest Airlines | 76.9% | 14.9 min | 5,164 |
| Delta Air Lines | 71.4% | 17.9 min | 4,675 |
| Southwest Airlines | 63.8% | 22.8 min | 2,638 |
| Alaska Airlines | 63% | 19.8 min | 1,004 |
| Frontier Airlines | 60.6% | 31.7 min | 761 |
| American Airlines | 70.1% | 26.1 min | 747 |
| Envoy Air | 0% | 35 min | 1 |
On-time = arrival within 15 minutes of schedule, per U.S. DOT definitions. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (public domain). Delay-cause attribution is reported by carriers since June 2003.
Planning LAX → SFO
LAX to SFO is a short-haul route of 543 km (337 mi). See the return SFO → LAX route.
Alternative airports near Los Angeles: Hawthorne (HHR) — 7 km, Santa Monica (SMO) — 9 km, Torrance (TOA) — 17 km.
Alternative airports near San Francisco: San Carlos (SQL) — 16 km, Half Moon Bay (HAF) — 16 km, Oakland (OAK) — 18 km.