PHX to SFO flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to San Francisco International Airport · 651 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at PHX or SFO right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Phoenix (PHX) to San Francisco (SFO) arrived on time 66% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 0.6% were cancelled, and 13% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (70% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (60%).
- Departures scheduled around 6am did best (95% on time); around 7pm did worst (51%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (75% on time) and Monday the least (60%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was air traffic control & airport congestion (41%).
Which airline is most on time from PHX to SFO?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Envoy AirRegional airline operating American Eagle flights. | 100% | 0.0% | 0 min | 0.0% | 1 |
| United Airlines | 70% | 0.5% | 19 min | 10.0% | 1,475 |
| Frontier Airlines | 69% | 1.1% | 22 min | 11.5% | 273 |
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 67% | 0.2% | 23 min | 12.5% | 545 |
| American Airlines | 64% | 0.9% | 29 min | 16.1% | 1,318 |
| Southwest Airlines | 60% | 0.4% | 24 min | 12.3% | 1,080 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am95%144 flights
- 7am66%531 flights
- 8am75%419 flights
- 9am56%188 flights
- 10am69%483 flights
- 11am67%292 flights
- 1pm55%234 flights
- 2pm61%352 flights
- 3pm78%273 flights
- 4pm72%278 flights
- 5pm65%361 flights
- 6pm71%246 flights
- 7pm51%277 flights
- 8pm53%260 flights
- 9pm59%161 flights
- 10pm55%148 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday60%0.3% cancelled
- Tuesday75%0.2% cancelled
- Wednesday65%0.5% cancelled
- Thursday60%0.3% cancelled
- Friday66%0.6% cancelled
- Saturday75%0.6% cancelled
- Sunday63%1.6% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion41%
- Late-arriving aircraft35%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)21%
- Extreme weather2%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather41%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion37%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)22%
- Security0%
PHX to SFO: common questions
- How often are PHX to SFO flights on time?
- 66% 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 Phoenix to San Francisco cancelled?
- 0.6% of scheduled flights were cancelled (27 of 4,692).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 23 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 65 min behind schedule on average, and 12.6% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at PHX?
- Flights on this route spent 19 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SFO to PHX — 74% on time
More flights from Phoenix
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: PHX → SFO, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.