Cheap flights from Chicago to San Francisco from $118

If you aren’t able to travel to San Francisco during the month of July, then flying in May is also cheap. Prices for this month can be found on momondo for an average of $288.

The cheapest day to depart from Chicago to San Francisco is on a Thursday when prices can be found for as low as $356. The most expensive day to fly to San Francisco is Sunday, with ticket prices averaging around $542.

Our data shows that the cheapest Chicago to San Francisco flights are usually those with departure times in the evening. Our users have found flights to San Francisco in the evening for as low as $382. Flights in the afternoon are often more expensive with an average ticket price of $505.

Fly from Chicago Midway to San Francisco for the best Chicago - San Francisco flight prices

You are more likely to see cheaper flights to San Francisco from Chicago when booking weeks ahead of your departure date. In general, you can expect to find flights to San Francisco for around $336 when searching weeks out. However, flight prices might be lower outside of this timeframe. For example, people recently found flights to San Francisco from Chicago for as low as $266 on momondo.

There are 4 cabin classes available to choose from on Chicago to San Francisco flights. Cabin price and availability will vary by airline so perform a search above to find the right deals for you.

Southwest, Delta, and United Airlines are the most popular carriers operating from Chicago to San Francisco

United Airlines, American Airlines and Southwest are the top three most popular airlines that fly to San Francisco from Chicago according to our data. United Airlines is the first choice among our users, with 50% of people opting to fly with this airline when traveling to San Francisco. Keep in mind that there are 10 different airlines that fly to San Francisco on a routine basis, so you have a few additional options to choose from.

Historically, on average around 21% of flights between Chicago and San Francisco have experienced a delay on any given week. The average delay length over the past 12 months has been 172 minutes.

Generally, flights departing in the morning tend to experience fewer delays. Flights in the evening have, in the past, seen delays more frequently in comparison.

Tuesday is statistically the day of the week which experiences the fewest number of delays on this flight route. Sunday has historically seen more delays on average compared to the rest of the week.

According to our data, United Airlines have had the least number of delays on this route over the last 12 months; with about 19% of their flights experiencing any sort of delay.

San Diego (SAN) was the most common stop: 89% of momondo users choosing 1-stop flights on this route connected there.

Flights via San Diego (SAN) offer the lowest average round-trip price of $275.

Flights connecting via San Diego (SAN) have the shortest average one-way travel time: 8h 13m.

Atlanta (ATL) has the shortest average layover time for this route: 2h 33m.

The number of flights available between Chicago and San Francisco is 18 per day as of February 2026. The most frequent departure time is 7:00PM, with 35% of daily flights leaving at noon.

128 flights are operational weekly from Chicago to San Francisco as of February 2026. The most popular departure day for this route is Wed, with 38% of flights per week taking off on this day.