MDW to HOU flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Chicago Midway International Airport to William P. Hobby Airport · 937 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at MDW or HOU right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Chicago (MDW) to Houston (HOU) arrived on time 74% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 1.2% were cancelled, and 6% arrived an hour or more late.
- Southwest Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 5am did best (92% on time); around 9pm did worst (55%).
- Thursday was the most reliable day to fly (79% on time) and Sunday the least (68%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (38%).
Which airline is most on time from MDW to HOU?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 74% | 1.2% | 14 min | 5.7% | 1,857 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am92%119 flights
- 6am91%164 flights
- 7am81%123 flights
- 8am88%111 flights
- 9am84%38 flights
- 10am82%179 flights
- 11am69%79 flights
- 12pm68%106 flights
- 1pm75%63 flights
- 2pm65%69 flights
- 3pm72%62 flights
- 4pm67%50 flights
- 5pm65%141 flights
- 6pm55%123 flights
- 7pm68%123 flights
- 8pm80%122 flights
- 9pm55%156 flights
- 10pm64%29 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday72%2.2% cancelled
- Tuesday76%0.4% cancelled
- Wednesday78%0.8% cancelled
- Thursday79%1.1% cancelled
- Friday72%0.7% cancelled
- Saturday75%2.9% cancelled
- Sunday68%0.8% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)38%
- Late-arriving aircraft36%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion21%
- Extreme weather4%
- Security1%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather78%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion13%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)9%
- Security0%
MDW to HOU: common questions
- How often are MDW to HOU flights on time?
- 74% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Chicago to Houston cancelled?
- 1.2% of scheduled flights were cancelled (23 of 1,857).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 14 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 48 min behind schedule on average, and 5.7% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at MDW?
- Flights on this route spent 15 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: HOU to MDW — 72% on time
More flights from Chicago
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: MDW → HOU, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.