Cheap flights from San Francisco to Istanbul from $585

In general, November is the cheapest month to fly from San Francisco to Istanbul. Due to it being the ‘off-season’ during this time, you can expect flight prices to be around $36. If you aren’t able to travel to Istanbul during the month of November, then flying in December is also cheap. Prices for this month can be found on momondo for an average of $572.

The cheapest day to depart from San Francisco to Istanbul is on a Monday when prices can be found for as low as $981. Be sure to avoid booking your departure on a Friday as prices are generally higher than usual. According to our data, the average ticket price to Istanbul on Friday is $1,098.

Our most recent data shows that the best time of day to fly to Istanbul is in the evening. Flights from San Francisco to Istanbul during this time can be as low as $901. If you have a flexible travel schedule, then try to avoid flying in the morning when prices are $1,096 on average. Flights to Istanbul from San Francisco in the morning are generally more expensive because this time of day is more convenient for travelers’ schedules.

Fly from San Francisco to Istanbul for the best San Francisco - Istanbul flight prices

You are more likely to see cheaper flights to Istanbul from San Francisco when booking weeks ahead of your departure date. In general, you can expect to find flights to Istanbul for around $1,066 when searching weeks out. However, flight prices might be lower outside of this timeframe. For example, people recently found flights to Istanbul from San Francisco for as low as $957 on momondo.

Delta, SAUDIA, and KLM are the most popular carriers operating from San Francisco to Istanbul

Turkish Airlines, KLM and Lufthansa are the top three most popular airlines that fly to Istanbul from San Francisco according to our data. Turkish Airlines is the first choice among our users, with 83% of people opting to fly with this airline when traveling to Istanbul. Keep in mind that there are 13 different airlines that fly to Istanbul on a routine basis, so you have a few additional options to choose from.

Historically, on average around 8% of flights between San Francisco and Istanbul have experienced a delay on any given week. The average delay length over the past 12 months has been 184 minutes.

Generally, flights departing in the morning tend to experience fewer delays. Flights in the early afternoon 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. Friday has historically seen more delays on average compared to the rest of the week.

According to our data, Turkish Airlines have had the least number of delays on this route over the last 12 months; with about 8% of their flights experiencing any sort of delay.

As of May 2026, 4 flights take off from San Francisco and land in Istanbul each day. The most common flight departure time for this route is 6:00PM, with 63% of daily flights taking off in the evening.

33 flights are operational weekly from San Francisco to Istanbul as of May 2026. The most popular departure day for this route is Mon, with 18% of flights per week taking off on this day.