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

No clear winner: airlines and hours on this route all land within a few points of 4 in 5 on time.

Nonstops


American	PHX	SMF	2h 05m	82%	0.5%	1,497	Flying now
Southwest	PHX	SMF	2h 00m	80%	0.3%	2,125	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Sacramento on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included. Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Delta Details →	PHX 06:00 → LAX 07:35DL 4057 · flown by SkyWest	1h 38m Los Angeles	LAX 09:13 → SMF 10:46DL 3755 · flown by SkyWest	4h 46m	100%	95%
Southwest Details →	PHX 05:45 → LAS 06:50WN 3281	1h 45m Las Vegas	LAS 08:35 → SMF 10:05WN 860	4h 20m	100%	91%
Southwest Details →	PHX 06:40 → LAS 07:50WN 3039	1h 45m Las Vegas	LAS 09:35 → SMF 11:10WN 1122	4h 30m	100%	89%
Southwest Details →	PHX 07:50 → ONT 09:05WN 759	2h 55m Ontario	ONT 12:00 → SMF 13:20WN 3167	5h 30m	100%	88%
Southwest Details →	PHX 07:55 → LAX 09:20WN 2427	2h 55m Los Angeles	LAX 12:15 → SMF 13:35WN 265	5h 40m	100%	88%
Southwest Details →	PHX 07:30 → LAS 08:40WN 2336	2h 45m Las Vegas	LAS 11:25 → SMF 13:00WN 4532	5h 30m	100%	88%
Southwest Details →	PHX 08:35 → LGB 09:55WN 165	3h 35m Long Beach	LGB 13:30 → SMF 14:55WN 2505	6h 20m	100%	88%
United Details →	PHX 06:00 → LAX 07:37UA 5849 · flown by SkyWest	1h 43m Los Angeles	LAX 09:20 → SMF 10:56UA 5372 · flown by SkyWest	4h 56m	99%	88%
Tight connection: often missed
Southwest Details →	PHX 13:35 → SAN 14:45WN 897	1h 10m San Diego	SAN 15:55 → SMF 17:30WN 4464	3h 55m	74%	44%
American Details →	PHX 15:15 → DFW 19:53AA 2113	1h 06m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 20:59 → SMF 22:33AA 3314	7h 18m	59%	33%
Southwest Details →	PHX 15:25 → DEN 18:10WN 3265	1h 15m Denver	DEN 19:25 → SMF 20:55WN 136	5h 30m	51%	4%

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

DEN · 1h 20m · leaves 06:15 0%

SAN · 1h 05m · leaves 07:00 0%

PDX · 1h 17m · leaves 07:00 4%

Afternoon and evening

LAS · 1h 20m · leaves 16:00 33%

DFW · 1h 06m · leaves 15:15 41%

DEN · 1h 15m · leaves 15:25 49%

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.


Delta DL 4057 PHX 06:00 → LAX Southwest WN 4454 LAX 09:30 → SMF Connection details →	1h 55m	4h 55m	99%	90%
Southwest WN 2427 PHX 07:55 → LAX Delta DL 3812 LAX 12:05 → SMF Connection details →	2h 45m	5h 38m	100%	89%
Frontier F9 3303 PHX 11:35 → LAX United UA 5858 LAX 16:30 → SMF Connection details →	3h 29m	6h 31m	98%	88%

Rank all connections, any airlines →

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