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 (seasonal or thin)


Southwest	SMF	HNL	5h 40m	87%	0.0%	365	Flying now
Alaska	SMF	HNL	5h 42m	78%	0.5%	212	Flying now
Hawaiian	SMF	HNL	5h 55m	73%	0.0%	153	Not flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Honolulu on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Honolulu is 3 h behind Sacramento). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest Details →	SMF 10:00 → KOA 12:20WN 3783	3h 15m Kailua/Kona	KOA 15:35 → HNL 16:30WN 2169	9h 30m	100%	100%
United Details →	SMF 06:00 → SFO 06:54UA 1954	2h 26m San Francisco	SFO 09:20 → HNL 11:43UA 1175	8h 43m	97%	90%
Southwest Details →	SMF 09:00 → OGG 11:20WN 479	2h 55m Kahului	OGG 14:15 → HNL 15:00WN 676	9h 00m	100%	90%
Southwest Details →	SMF 05:25 → LAS 06:50WN 3784	1h 25m Las Vegas	LAS 08:15 → HNL 11:35WN 2238	9h 10m	96%	89%
United Details →	SMF 10:13 → LAX 12:05UA 5220 · flown by SkyWest	1h 10m Los Angeles	LAX 13:15 → HNL 15:59UA 1431	8h 46m	100%	85%
Southwest Details →	SMF 06:15 → LAS 07:40WN 2178	2h 40m Las Vegas	LAS 10:20 → HNL 13:40WN 2240	10h 25m	100%	83%
Delta Details →	SMF 14:15 → LAX 15:52DL 3812 · flown by SkyWest	2h 43m Los Angeles	LAX 18:35 → HNL 21:14DL 443	9h 59m	99%	83%
United Details →	SMF 11:46 → SFO 12:53UA 5248 · flown by SkyWest	3h 52m San Francisco	SFO 16:45 → HNL 19:25UA 1509	10h 39m	99%	82%
Tight connection: often missed
United Details →	SMF 11:46 → SFO 12:53UA 5248 · flown by SkyWest	1h 02m San Francisco	SFO 13:55 → HNL 16:18UA 300	7h 32m	59%	48%
Alaska Details →	SMF 08:03 → SEA 10:09AS 795	46m Seattle	SEA 10:55 → HNL 14:04AS 626	9h 01m	59%	37%

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

KOA · 51m · leaves 07:37 6%

LAX · 50m · leaves 06:00 7%

OGG · 1h 01m · leaves 08:30 13%

Afternoon and evening

SEA · 49m · leaves 13:00 14%

PDX · 1h 05m · leaves 14:55 21%

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.


Alaska AS 965 SMF 07:37 → KOA Southwest WN 2168 KOA 11:35 → HNL Connection details →	1h 35m	7h 53m	93%	87%
Alaska AS 959 SMF 08:30 → OGG Southwest WN 676 OGG 14:15 → HNL Connection details →	3h 19m	9h 30m	98%	86%
Southwest WN 3788 SMF 20:45 → LAS Alaska AS 817 LAS 01:55 → HNL Connection details →	3h 40m	11h 31m	96%	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