OAK to DEN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport to Denver International Airport · 957 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at OAK or DEN right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Oakland (OAK) to Denver (DEN) arrived on time 72% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 0.3% 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 1pm did worst (42%).
- Saturday was the most reliable day to fly (79% on time) and Friday the least (68%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (43%).
Which airline is most on time from OAK 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 72% | 0.3% | 14 min | 6.0% | 1,602 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am92%208 flights
- 6am92%156 flights
- 8am91%199 flights
- 9am87%103 flights
- 11am65%74 flights
- 12pm67%151 flights
- 1pm42%90 flights
- 2pm47%181 flights
- 3pm60%72 flights
- 4pm61%46 flights
- 5pm79%24 flights
- 6pm87%30 flights
- 7pm53%179 flights
- 8pm75%67 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday69%0.4% cancelled
- Tuesday75%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday74%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday72%0.9% cancelled
- Friday68%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday79%0.9% cancelled
- Sunday71%0.0% 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 aircraft43%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)31%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion24%
- Extreme weather2%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)40%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion40%
- Extreme weather20%
- Security0%
OAK to DEN: common questions
- How often are OAK to DEN flights on time?
- 72% 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 Oakland to Denver cancelled?
- 0.3% of scheduled flights were cancelled (5 of 1,602).
- 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 46 min behind schedule on average, and 6.0% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at OAK?
- Flights on this route spent 12 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: DEN to OAK — 66% on time
More flights from Oakland
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: OAK → DEN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.