SFO to DEN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from San Francisco International Airport to Denver International Airport · 967 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SFO or DEN right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from San Francisco (SFO) to Denver (DEN) arrived on time 75% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 0.4% were cancelled, and 8% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (83% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (60%).
- Departures scheduled around 5am did best (95% on time); around 10am did worst (53%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (79% on time) and Friday the least (72%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (53%).
Which airline is most on time from SFO 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 83% | 0.2% | 11 min | 5.3% | 3,410 |
| Frontier Airlines | 70% | 0.8% | 19 min | 11.1% | 638 |
| Southwest Airlines | 60% | 0.8% | 25 min | 13.5% | 1,413 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am95%661 flights
- 6am91%743 flights
- 8am82%568 flights
- 9am67%79 flights
- 10am53%197 flights
- 11am70%298 flights
- 12pm61%494 flights
- 1pm55%218 flights
- 2pm60%565 flights
- 3pm42%96 flights
- 4pm72%395 flights
- 6pm86%290 flights
- 7pm73%311 flights
- 8pm84%212 flights
- 9pm68%239 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday72%0.7% cancelled
- Tuesday79%0.8% cancelled
- Wednesday75%0.1% cancelled
- Thursday73%0.1% cancelled
- Friday72%0.5% cancelled
- Saturday79%0.4% cancelled
- Sunday78%0.1% 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 aircraft53%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)26%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion21%
- Extreme weather0%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)36%
- Extreme weather32%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion32%
- Security0%
SFO to DEN: common questions
- How often are SFO to DEN flights on time?
- 75% 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 San Francisco to Denver cancelled?
- 0.4% of scheduled flights were cancelled (22 of 5,461).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 15 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 59 min behind schedule on average, and 8.1% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SFO?
- Flights on this route spent 21 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: DEN to SFO — 65% on time
More flights from San Francisco
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: SFO → DEN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.