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

The nonstop is quickest: United STL → SFO (4h 43m), on time 62% of the time. Southwest via Love Field (6h 25m) is more reliable, 79%, but takes 1h 42m longer.

Nonstops (seasonal or thin)


United	STL	SFO	4h 43m	62%	1.2%	419	Flying now
Southwest	STL	SFO	4h 15m	60%	0.3%	342	Flying now

Best connections, any airlines

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach San Francisco on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (San Francisco is 2 h behind St Louis). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest Details →	STL 05:05 → DAL 06:45WN 1396	1h 00m Dallas	DAL 07:45 → SFO 09:30WN 485	6h 25m	90%	79%
United Details →	STL 08:43 → IAD 11:55UA 4506 · flown by GoJet	2h 56m Dulles	IAD 14:51 → SFO 17:38UA 2862	10h 55m	97%	79%
United Details →	STL 11:10 → IAH 13:25UA 6213 · flown by Mesa	2h 05m Houston	IAH 15:30 → SFO 17:35UA 589	8h 25m	97%	77%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	STL 08:42 → DEN 10:02WN 3910	3h 23m Denver	DEN 13:25 → SFO 15:09UA 1812	8h 27m	100%	76%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	STL 08:18 → SAN 09:58WN 4283	3h 41m San Diego	SAN 13:39 → SFO 15:19UA 1763	9h 01m	100%	74%
Delta Details →	STL 11:18 → MSP 12:55DL 3188	2h 12m Minneapolis	MSP 15:07 → SFO 17:14DL 756	7h 55m	100%	73%
United Details →	STL 10:20 → ORD 11:52UA 4517 · flown by GoJet	2h 38m Chicago	ORD 14:30 → SFO 17:19UA 1577	8h 59m	100%	72%
American + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	STL 09:43 → DFW 11:38AA 1410	3h 43m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 15:21 → SFO 17:13UA 454	9h 30m	94%	71%
Tight connection: often missed
Delta Details →	STL 15:57 → MSP 17:40DL 4167 · flown by SkyWest	1h 10m Minneapolis	MSP 18:50 → SFO 21:00DL 2809	7h 03m	71%	46%
American Details →	STL 13:14 → DFW 15:10AA 5655 · flown by PSA	1h 07m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 16:17 → SFO 17:59AA 2810	6h 45m	68%	27%
United Details →	STL 16:48 → DEN 18:23UA 1483	1h 11m Denver	DEN 19:34 → SFO 21:20UA 1389	6h 32m	61%	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

ATL · 1h 07m · leaves 06:00 4%

SAN · 1h 17m · leaves 08:18 5%

DFW · 1h 11m · leaves 05:30 5%

Afternoon and evening

DFW · 1h 07m · leaves 13:14 32%

IAH · 49m · leaves 14:57 44%

DEN · 50m · leaves 16:00 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.

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