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 68% on time.

Nonstops


United	SNA	SFO	1h 35m	69%	1.1%	2,172	Flying now
Alaska	SNA	SFO	1h 36m	68%	2.1%	2,454	Flying now
Frontier	SNA	SFO	1h 42m	62%	1.3%	151	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

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


Alaska Details →	SNA 11:25 → GEG 13:59AS 2020 · flown by Horizon	2h 22m Spokane	GEG 16:21 → SFO 18:45AS 3070 · flown by SkyWest	7h 20m	100%	86%
United Details →	SNA 10:20 → DEN 13:43UA 2843	2h 04m Denver	DEN 15:47 → SFO 17:30UA 2633	7h 10m	100%	73%
United Details →	SNA 08:45 → DEN 12:09UA 489	1h 16m Denver	DEN 13:25 → SFO 15:09UA 1812	6h 24m	95%	71%
Alaska Details →	SNA 10:57 → PDX 13:21AS 1405	1h 28m Portland	PDX 14:49 → SFO 16:40AS 236	5h 43m	96%	70%
United Details →	SNA 06:45 → DEN 10:16UA 513	1h 05m Denver	DEN 11:21 → SFO 13:04UA 1561	6h 19m	97%	69%
Alaska Details →	SNA 06:47 → SEA 09:42AS 1325	2h 00m Seattle	SEA 11:42 → SFO 14:04AS 655	7h 17m	100%	68%
Alaska Details →	SNA 12:05 → SEA 14:54AS 548	1h 42m Seattle	SEA 16:36 → SFO 18:48AS 1385	6h 43m	96%	67%
Alaska Details →	SNA 08:05 → SEA 10:55AS 702	2h 25m Seattle	SEA 13:20 → SFO 15:31AS 680	7h 26m	99%	66%
Tight connection: often missed
Delta Details →	SNA 14:05 → SEA 17:00DL 952	52m Seattle	SEA 17:52 → SFO 20:19DL 3991 · flown by SkyWest	6h 14m	56%	36%
Southwest Details →	SNA 18:00 → LAS 19:15WN 2307	50m Las Vegas	LAS 20:05 → SFO 21:35WN 4397	3h 35m	71%	12%

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

PDX · 1h 18m · leaves 07:00 1%

DEN · 1h 15m · leaves 07:00 2%

SEA · 47m · leaves 08:05 18%

Afternoon and evening

PDX · 1h 07m · leaves 14:05 6%

SLC · 1h 00m · leaves 17:03 14%

SEA · 52m · leaves 14:05 44%

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.


Southwest WN 4296 SNA 07:45 → LAS United UA 574 LAS 11:30 → SFO Connection details →	2h 25m	5h 27m	100%	69%
Delta DL 3966 SNA 11:20 → SEA Alaska AS 1385 SEA 16:36 → SFO Connection details →	2h 12m	7h 28m	93%	66%
Southwest WN 3887 SNA 07:05 → PHX United UA 2619 PHX 11:12 → SFO Connection details →	2h 42m	6h 10m	100%	65%

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