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 77% on time.

Nonstops


Alaska	SAN	SMF	1h 49m	79%	2.2%	1,782	Flying now
Southwest	SAN	SMF	1h 45m	76%	0.6%	3,800	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 →	SAN 06:15 → LAX 07:34DL 3743 · flown by SkyWest	1h 39m Los Angeles	LAX 09:13 → SMF 10:46DL 3755 · flown by SkyWest	4h 31m	99%	93%
Southwest Details →	SAN 06:35 → LAS 08:15WN 2970	1h 20m Las Vegas	LAS 09:35 → SMF 11:10WN 1122	4h 35m	98%	90%
United Details →	SAN 06:20 → LAX 07:21UA 1006	1h 59m Los Angeles	LAX 09:20 → SMF 10:56UA 5372 · flown by SkyWest	4h 36m	98%	88%
Alaska Details →	SAN 06:50 → PDX 09:29AS 399	1h 31m Portland	PDX 11:00 → SMF 12:33AS 2399 · flown by Horizon	5h 43m	98%	88%
Delta Details →	SAN 17:01 → SLC 20:00DL 1210	3h 04m Salt Lake City	SLC 23:04 → SMF 23:44DL 1582	6h 47m	99%	87%
Delta Details →	SAN 11:05 → SEA 14:21DL 2508	2h 39m Seattle	SEA 17:00 → SMF 19:01DL 4043 · flown by SkyWest	7h 56m	98%	86%
Southwest Details →	SAN 07:45 → LAS 09:05WN 2310	2h 20m Las Vegas	LAS 11:25 → SMF 13:00WN 4532	5h 15m	96%	85%
Delta Details →	SAN 06:15 → SLC 09:22DL 1117	2h 13m Salt Lake City	SLC 11:35 → SMF 12:16DL 1423	6h 06m	99%	84%
Tight connection: often missed
Alaska Details →	SAN 15:16 → SEA 18:14AS 1381	1h 09m Seattle	SEA 19:23 → SMF 21:16AS 638	6h 00m	71%	52%
Southwest Details →	SAN 17:20 → DEN 20:40WN 4151	55m Denver	DEN 21:35 → SMF 23:05WN 1744	5h 45m	39%	13%
Southwest Details →	SAN 14:55 → DEN 18:20WN 3497	1h 05m Denver	DEN 19:25 → SMF 20:55WN 136	6h 00m	39%	3%

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

LAS · 1h 20m · leaves 06:35 2%

DFW · 52m · leaves 06:16 21%

Afternoon and evening

SEA · 1h 15m · leaves 13:55 35%

DEN · 1h 05m · leaves 14:55 61%

DAL · 48m · leaves 15:15 68%

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.


United UA 1006 SAN 06:20 → LAX Delta DL 3755 LAX 09:13 → SMF Connection details →	1h 52m	4h 26m	96%	91%
Delta DL 3743 SAN 06:15 → LAX Southwest WN 4454 LAX 09:30 → SMF Connection details →	1h 56m	4h 40m	97%	87%
Alaska AS 475 SAN 11:21 → SEA Delta DL 4043 SEA 17:00 → SMF Connection details →	2h 35m	7h 40m	98%	84%

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