San Francisco to Chicago/Rockford (SFO–RFD) — Airlines, Schedules & Connections

SFO Airport Page →
1,780 mi airlines charter/private
On-time Some delays Frequent delays
Connecting Flight Schedule 13 1-stop flights Verified 3mos ago
Nonstop Charter / private 1-Stop 2-Stop Hide separate tickets Hide overnight Hide codeshares
  Flight Airline AC Dep Arr Dur OTP Sched  
✈ Nonstop

No flights match your filters.

No scheduled airline flights on this route — it's flown by charter / private operators (). No nonstop flights on this route. connecting options below.

Last scheduled nonstop: Mar 2026.

✦ 1-Stop connections via 10 hubs
ORD Chicago 7h 4m AAACAY AA Chicago (ORD) to Chicago/Rockford flights
LAS Las Vegas 9h 22m ACASAZ G4 Las Vegas (LAS) to Chicago/Rockford flights
FLL Fort Lauderdale 11h 24m ADB6JL G4 Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Chicago/Rockford flights
BNA Nashville 18h 23m UAVAWN G4 Nashville (BNA) to Chicago/Rockford flights
DTW Detroit ~7h 23m AFDLKE SY Detroit (DTW) to Chicago/Rockford flights
IAH Houston ~7h 52m EKNHNZ UA Houston (IAH) to Chicago/Rockford flights
SMF Sacramento ~8h 10m ACAVEK Sacramento (SMF) to Chicago/Rockford flights
TPA Tampa ~9h 42m NZUAVA Tampa (TPA) to Chicago/Rockford flights
PDX Portland ~9h 54m ACASAV Portland (PDX) to Chicago/Rockford flights
CUN Cancún ~10h 12m UA Cancún (CUN) to Chicago/Rockford flights
1-STOP More options, longer trips
2-STOP Loading... Reach the hardest destinations
San Francisco to Chicago/Rockford
Connecting service available through multiple hubs.
1 Airlines 1,780 mi 3h 24m nonstop +2h ahead

SFO–RFD had nonstop service from United Airlines, last on the schedule in March 2026. There's no nonstop on it right now, so today you'd fly it with one stop. The connecting options below are sorted by layover. Nonstop, it's about 1,780 miles in 3h 24m.

Airline Landscape

Carriers that operated nonstop SFO–RFD service, compared side by side.
Airline Freq/wk Aircraft Duration Dep OTP Alliance Codeshares
UA United Airlines 0 53% Star Alliance
Alliance coverage
Star Alliance: UA (0 flights/wk, 0%)
OTP based on airport-level delay snapshots. Duration ranges reflect seasonal/directional variation.

Connection Landscape

1-stop and 2-stop options for SFO to RFD.
1-STOP
One-Stop Connections
13
Hubs
~7h
Fastest
~24h
Longest
Verified with published schedule alignment and minimum connection time.
2-STOP
Two-Stop Connections
363
Candidates
Two-stop connections loaded in the connections tab above.
Connections computed from published schedules with minimum connection time verification. Use the interactive explorer above the fold to filter by airline, tier, and layover time.

On-Time Performance

What to expect at each end of your journey.
Outbound
SFO → RFD
53%
Frequent delays expected. Consider flexible booking.
Departing
53%
Return
RFD → SFO
59%
Frequent delays expected. Consider flexible booking.
Arriving
59%
OTP = percentage of flights arriving within 15 min of schedule. Based on airport-level delay snapshots. SFO delays →

Other ways to reach Chicago/Rockford from San Francisco

Nearby airports with service to Chicago Rockford International Airport.
Metric SFO→RFD SMF→RFD
Distance from SFO 86 mi
Nonstop airlines 1
Weekly flights
Flight time 3h 24m 5h 35m
Departure OTP 53%
Airports within 200 miles of SFO with service to Chicago Rockford International Airport.

Travel Essentials

Practical planning for this route.
Time Difference
+2h
Chicago/Rockford is 2 hours ahead of San Francisco.
SFO: PDT · RFD: CDT

When it's 6:00 PM in San Francisco, it's 8:00 PM in Chicago/Rockford.
Distance & Flight Time
1,780 mi / 2,865 km
Nonstop flight time is approximately 3h 24m gate to gate.
Getting to SFO

BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) runs from downtown San Francisco (Embarcadero, Powell St.) to the SFO station and then a free AirTrain shuttle to all terminals (30–40 min from Embarcadero, $10.45). BART also connects Oakland and Berkeley; useful for East Bay travelers. Trains run from ~4am to midnight.Taxis from downtown San Francisco cost $40–60. Ride-hails (Uber, Lyft) pick up in the designated area in the garage and are often $30–50 depending on surge pricing. SamTrans buses serve Peninsula cities. Highway 101 and I-280 are heavily congested during commute hours; BART is faster than driving at those times.

SFO–RFD Quick Facts

Key statistics for the San Francisco to Chicago/Rockford route.
Route details
Distance1,780 mi / 2,865 km
Flight time3h 24m
Time difference+2 hours
Airlines (nonstop)1
1-stop connectionsAvailable
Origin: SFO
IATA / ICAOSFO / KSFO
TimezoneAmerica/Los_Angeles
Passengers/yr50.2M
Elevation13 ft / 4 m
Destination: RFD
IATA / ICAORFD / KRFD
TimezoneAmerica/Chicago
Passengers/yr0.3M
Elevation742 ft / 226 m

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SFO to RFD flights.
Nonstop flights from San Francisco International Airport to Chicago Rockford International Airport take about 3h 24m gate to gate. The route covers 1,780 miles.
1 airline operated the nonstop from SFO to RFD: United Airlines. The last scheduled nonstop was in March 2026. There's no nonstop right now, so today you'd fly it with one stop. See the connection options above, ranked by layover.
Not right now. The last scheduled nonstop was in March 2026. You can still fly it with one stop, and the connecting options above are sorted by layover. Nonstop, the hop took about 3h 24m.
Yes, 1-stop connections are available, ranked by layover time. Common connecting points include Chicago O'Hare, Harry Reid and Fort Lauderdale Hollywood.
Chicago/Rockford is 2 hours ahead of San Francisco.
Yes, return flights from RFD to SFO are available. Use the direction toggle at the top to view the return schedule.
Nearby alternatives include SMF. See the Alternatives section for a full comparison.
Click the 'Search Flights' button to check availability and prices on Google Flights. You can also compare airlines and schedules on this page to find the best option.
See the On-Time Performance section for the latest delay data at both airports. This shows departure and arrival reliability to help you plan.
Route data is updated regularly from official airline schedules. On-time performance data comes from recent airport delay snapshots.

Flights from SFO to RFD

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD) had nonstop service from United Airlines, last on the schedule in March 2026. The nonstop is dormant right now, so the way to fly it today is one connection, and the options above are sorted by layover.

SFO to RFD Flight Duration and Schedule

Nonstop flight time from SFO to RFD is about 3 hours 24 minutes gate to gate. The route covers a distance of 1,780 miles (2,865 km).

Connecting Options and Alternatives

1-stop connecting options are also available, commonly via Chicago O'Hare, Harry Reid and Fort Lauderdale Hollywood. Two-stop connections are also available via intermediate hubs. Nearby alternative airports include Sacramento (SMF).