Flights Sacramento → Chicago
SMF → ORD
How long is the flight from Sacramento to Chicago?
The flight from Sacramento (SMF) to Chicago (ORD) takes 3h 30m on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
Route overview
The flight route from Sacramento to Chicago operates with an average on-time performance of 81%, experiencing a mean delay of 19.7 minutes per flight. Over the course of a year, this route sees approximately 318 flights using aircraft such as Boeing 737-900, Airbus A319, and Airbus A320, serving a destination airport that handles nearly 80 million passengers annually.
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 Sacramento (SMF) → Chicago (ORD) route is operated by United Airlines. Across 838 flights monitored in recent months, 81% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 17 minutes. The cancellation rate is 2.03%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 22.8/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Chicago the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Sacramento the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Chicago: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Sacramento (SMF) to Chicago (ORD) heads east for about 2,860 km, a flight time of roughly 3h 30m.
Departures from Sacramento on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 45% of SMF-ORD flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Sacramento the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Chicago it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 838 tracked SMF-ORD flights, 81% left on time with an average delay of 17 min and a 2.0% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines (UA) | 83% | 5 min | 1.3% |
Airlines operating SMF-ORD
Airports
Frequently asked questions about SMF-ORD
The flight from Sacramento (SMF) to Chicago (ORD) takes 3h 30m on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the Sacramento (SMF) -> Chicago (ORD) route, on-time performance is 81% with an average delay of 17 minutes, based on 838 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Sacramento-Chicago is 2.03% across 838 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: United Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Chicago, 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.
