Flights Chicago → San Francisco
MDW → SFO
How long is the flight from Chicago to San Francisco?
The flight from Chicago (MDW) to San Francisco (SFO) takes about 4h 8m. This is an estimate based on the distance between the two airports: the real time depends on the aircraft, wind and any stops.
Route overview
This flight route connects Chicago to San Francisco, with a total of 135 flights recorded. The on-time performance is at 64%, and the average delay duration is 23 minutes, reflecting moderate punctuality. The destination airport sees an annual passenger traffic of 50,196,094, indicating it is a major hub for air travel.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The Chicago (MDW) → San Francisco (SFO) route is operated by Southwest Airlines. Across 327 flights monitored in recent months, 43% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 34 minutes. The cancellation rate is 1.53%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 21/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At San Francisco the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Chicago the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to San Francisco: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Chicago (MDW) to San Francisco (SFO) heads west for about 2,977 km, a flight time of roughly 4h 8m.
Departures from Chicago on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 52% of MDW-SFO flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Chicago the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into San Francisco it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 327 tracked MDW-SFO flights, 43% left on time with an average delay of 34 min and a 1.5% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines (WN) | 75% | 5 min | 0.3% |
Airlines operating MDW-SFO
Airports
Frequently asked questions about MDW-SFO
The flight from Chicago (MDW) to San Francisco (SFO) takes about 4h 8m. This is an estimate based on the distance between the two airports: the real time depends on the aircraft, wind and any stops.
On the Chicago (MDW) -> San Francisco (SFO) route, on-time performance is 43% with an average delay of 34 minutes, based on 327 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Chicago-San Francisco is 1.53% across 327 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: Southwest Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at San Francisco, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
