SFO to PHX flight delays

SFO PHX San Francisco to Phoenix Sky Harbor · 651 miles

14,125 flights were scheduled from SFO to PHX over July 2023 through June 2026. Of the 14,031 that made the trip, 76.7% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. These are arrival figures: “on time” means the flight reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Arrivals are what decide whether you make the connection, so route and airline pages are scored on them rather than on pushback.

Data through June 2026 · Bureau of Transportation Statistics

The route in brief

Flights in the window
14,125
Arrived on time
76.7%
Cancelled
0.6%
Scheduled distance
651 miles

Cancellations are counted against everything scheduled. Diverted flights are counted with them rather than as very late arrivals, which is why the on-time share and the cancellation rate do not add up to everything that happened.

Airline by airline

Airlines with at least 100 flights on SFO–PHX, busiest first. Same route, same weather, same air traffic — which makes this the fairest comparison on the site.

Airline Arrived on time Typical delay Cancelled Flights
United Airlines 82.2% 55 min 0.5% 4,049
American Airlines 77% 110 min 0.5% 3,859
Southwest Airlines 69.7% 55 min 0.3% 3,242
SkyWest Airlines 89.1% 60 min 0.3% 1,602
Frontier Airlines 59.1% 84 min 1.7% 1,133
Alaska Airlines 74.9% 40 min 3.7% 190

Month by month

June was the month to avoid on SFO–PHX: 72.7% of flights arrived on time, against 82.4% in September. Each bar pools three years of that calendar month.

Share of flights that arrived on time, by calendar month. Best month in green, worst in amber. The hairline sits at the overall rate, 76.7%.
Arrival on-time share, SFO to PHX, by calendar month
Month Share flights that arrived on time Flights
January 81.4% 1,120
February 75.6% 1,113
March 75.3% 1,384
April 75.2% 1,354
May 73.8% 1,289
June 72.7% 1,104
July 75.3% 1,074
August 77.7% 1,075
September 82.4% 1,054
October 76.8% 1,183
November 77.8% 1,173
December 77.4% 1,202

Both ends of the route

A route’s record is built out of two airports’ habits. The hour-by-hour grid for each is on its own page.

SFO to PHX in one number

SFO → PHX

When a flight on this route was late, it was late by about 74 min.

July 2023–June 2026 · 14,125 flights

76.7% of flights arrived on time

Questions about SFO to PHX

Which airline is most reliable from SFO to PHX?
SkyWest Airlines — its flights on this pairing arrived on time 89.1% of the time, with 1,602 scheduled. Frontier Airlines came in at 59.1% over 1,133 scheduled. Airlines with fewer than 100 flights on the route are not rated.
What is the worst month to fly SFO to PHX?
June, at 72.7% of arrivals on time, with 1,104 flights scheduled. September was the best of the year at 82.4%.
How late are SFO–PHX flights when they are late?
74 min on average, counting only the flights that arrived 15 minutes or more behind schedule. The on-time flights are left out of that average on purpose — mixing them in would flatter it.
How often is the SFO to PHX flight cancelled?
0.6% of scheduled flights on this route were cancelled, July 2023 through June 2026. Diverted flights are counted with the cancellations rather than as late arrivals.
Are these departure or arrival numbers?
Arrival. A flight counts as on time here if it reached the gate at PHX less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Airport pages score departures instead, because that is the number you can act on when you pick a booking time.