MSP to DEN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport / Wold–Chamberlain Field to Denver International Airport · 680 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at MSP or DEN right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Minneapolis (MSP) to Denver (DEN) arrived on time 78% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, in line with the national average.
- 0.7% were cancelled, and 7% arrived an hour or more late.
- Frontier Airlines was the most punctual airline here (80% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (76%).
- Departures scheduled around 5am did best (96% on time); around 4pm did worst (61%).
- Saturday was the most reliable day to fly (81% on time) and Sunday the least (76%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (34%).
Which airline is most on time from MSP to DEN?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 91% | 2.0% | 13 min | 2.1% | 244 |
| Frontier Airlines | 80% | 0.8% | 20 min | 9.1% | 633 |
| United Airlines | 79% | 0.4% | 17 min | 9.1% | 1,463 |
| Delta Air Lines | 77% | 0.9% | 14 min | 6.8% | 1,806 |
| Southwest Airlines | 76% | 0.5% | 15 min | 6.6% | 1,675 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am96%382 flights
- 6am91%408 flights
- 7am88%122 flights
- 8am80%477 flights
- 9am82%391 flights
- 10am80%241 flights
- 11am86%656 flights
- 12pm83%321 flights
- 1pm85%542 flights
- 2pm79%404 flights
- 3pm69%161 flights
- 4pm61%304 flights
- 5pm66%174 flights
- 6pm63%666 flights
- 7pm54%110 flights
- 8pm57%94 flights
- 9pm74%189 flights
- 10pm69%179 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday80%0.3% cancelled
- Tuesday79%0.1% cancelled
- Wednesday78%0.2% cancelled
- Thursday78%0.2% cancelled
- Friday77%0.8% cancelled
- Saturday81%0.7% cancelled
- Sunday76%2.3% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft34%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion32%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)31%
- Extreme weather2%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)40%
- Extreme weather40%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion20%
- Security0%
MSP to DEN: common questions
- How often are MSP to DEN flights on time?
- 78% 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 Minneapolis to Denver cancelled?
- 0.7% of scheduled flights were cancelled (40 of 5,821).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 16 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 67 min behind schedule on average, and 7.4% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at MSP?
- Flights on this route spent 18 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: DEN to MSP — 78% on time
More flights from Minneapolis
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: MSP → DEN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.