San Francisco to Los Angeles flights
about 421 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 San Francisco to Los Angeles take?
Flight time from San Francisco (SFO) to Los Angeles (LAX) 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 San Francisco to Los Angeles?
Airline availability for SFO to LAX 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 San Francisco to Los Angeles?
Direct (nonstop) availability on SFO to LAX 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
- Southwest Airlines5-yr attributed events: 40Last 90 days: none recorded
- Frontier Airlines5-yr attributed events: 7Last 90 days: none recorded
| Carrier | Sightings / 90d | Safety events |
|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 9 sightings | No recorded events |
| Delta Air Lines | 5 sightings | No recorded events |
| SkyWest | 3 sightings | No recorded events |
| Southwest Airlines | 1 sighting | No recorded events |
| Frontier Airlines | 1 sighting | No recorded events |
Flight patterns on SFO → LAX
We observed 5413 flights on this route over the last 90 days (about 421 per week) across 45 airlines.
Departures cluster around 23:00–00:00 UTC, 17:00–18:00 UTC, 20:00–21:00 UTC, busiest on Tuesday and Monday.
On-time performance: 49.6% of departures left within 15 minutes of schedule (average delay 30.5 min, based on 2659 timed flights).
Historically, 77.8% of flights on SFO → LAX arrived within 15 minutes of schedule (average arrival delay 7.4 min; 3% cancelled), across 365,104 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 SFO → LAX
SFO to LAX is a short-haul route of 543 km (337 mi). See the return LAX → SFO route.
Alternative airports near San Francisco: San Carlos (SQL) — 16 km, Half Moon Bay (HAF) — 16 km, Oakland (OAK) — 18 km.
Alternative airports near Los Angeles: Hawthorne (HHR) — 7 km, Santa Monica (SMO) — 9 km, Torrance (TOA) — 17 km.