Itineraries flown on 20+ days in the Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026 schedule · each leg’s record Aug 2025 – Jul 2026

Connect in the morning. The same one-hour layover misses 14% of the time at 10 am and 1 time in 3 at 10 pm.

Nonstops (seasonal or thin)


United	CMH	IAH	3h 05m	81%	1.2%	993	Flying now

Best connections, any airlines

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Houston on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Houston is 1 h behind Columbus). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	CMH 07:35 → TPA 09:45WN 2996	2h 10m Tampa	TPA 11:55 → IAH 13:22UA 2421	6h 47m	100%	87%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	CMH 05:10 → MCO 07:20WN 1193	1h 50m Orlando	MCO 09:10 → IAH 10:45UA 2611	6h 35m	98%	86%
United Details →	CMH 05:30 → ORD 06:09UA 3524 · flown by Republic	1h 26m Chicago	ORD 07:35 → IAH 10:36UA 1231	6h 06m	97%	86%
American + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	CMH 07:00 → MIA 09:44AA 3667 · flown by Envoy	2h 45m Miami	MIA 12:29 → IAH 14:23UA 470	8h 23m	99%	86%
Delta + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	CMH 07:05 → ATL 08:42DL 2909	2h 55m Atlanta	ATL 11:37 → IAH 12:47UA 425	6h 42m	97%	85%
United Details →	CMH 07:00 → ORD 07:39UA 3429 · flown by Republic	2h 46m Chicago	ORD 10:25 → IAH 13:23UA 2638	7h 23m	98%	85%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	CMH 07:12 → STL 07:38WN 1207	3h 32m St Louis	STL 11:10 → IAH 13:25UA 6213 · flown by Mesa	7h 13m	100%	84%
American + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	CMH 08:05 → PHL 09:45AA 4711 · flown by Republic	3h 19m Philadelphia	PHL 13:04 → IAH 15:35UA 2038	8h 30m	99%	84%
Tight connection: often missed
United Details →	CMH 09:00 → ORD 09:36UA 466	49m Chicago	ORD 10:25 → IAH 13:23UA 2638	5h 23m	63%	52%
American Details →	CMH 08:29 → ORD 09:10AA 3572 · flown by Envoy	50m Chicago	ORD 10:00 → IAH 12:46AA 1915	5h 17m	69%	46%
American Details →	CMH 20:05 → DFW 21:48AA 2337	59m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 22:47 → IAH 23:58AA 1914	4h 53m	65%	27%

Same layover, different day-part

How often the first flight arrives too late to connect (45 min minimum), for one-ticket layovers of 45–80 minutes.

Morning

DTW · 1h 01m · leaves 06:30 6%

ORD · 1h 12m · leaves 07:00 7%

MIA · 48m · leaves 05:08 7%

Afternoon and evening

DTW · 55m · leaves 14:07 15%

CLT · 1h 10m · leaves 15:44 23%

DFW · 59m · leaves 20:05 35%

Delays build through the day, so an afternoon first leg eats the layover. A short connection is fine early in the morning and a gamble later on.

Mixing airlines

One ticketMiss it and the airline rebooks you; bags go through. 45 min is enough.

Separate ticketsMiss it and you buy a new ticket. Re-check bags, clear security again: we require 90 min.

The table above includes two-ticket connections (marked “two tickets”), held to the 90-minute minimum. One ticket only →

Regional partners count as the airline that sells them: SkyWest flying Delta Connection is one Delta ticket.

How these are worked out. Makes the connection: share of the last year’s flights where the first flight arrived with at least 45 minutes to spare (90 on separate tickets). Arrives on time: first flight not cancelled × connection made × second flight not cancelled and arriving within 15 minutes. Not yet counted: the second flight also leaving late (which helps), gate-to-gate distance at the hub, and rebooking after a missed connection.

About this data: US DOT on-time records, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, all US airlines; regional flights count under the airline that sells them. Schedules (which flights and connections exist, and their times) are as of Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026; seasonal flights outside that window aren’t ranked. Rebuilt monthly. JSON