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DSM - SFO

$106 Find cheap flights from Des Moines to San Francisco

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from Des Moines to San Francisco departing on 7/10. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
1 adult
0 bags
Mon 7/1
Mon 7/8

Search hundreds of travel sites at once for deals on flights to San Francisco

 
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Des Moines to San Francisco, as well as popular online travel agencies
These are the airlines KAYAK users have selected most often from within our search results in flight searches from Des Moines to San Francisco, as well as popular online travel agencies
In the last 7 days travelers have searched 42,335,261 times on KAYAK, and here is why:

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Cheap flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco (DSM-SFO)

 
These are the cheapest deals for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco currently on KAYAK along with options from the most popular airlines KAYAK users selected for this route. While these flights were available on KAYAK in the last 72 hours, prices and availability are subject to change and deals may expire.

Recent round-trip flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco

Recommended round-trip deals departing in the coming months from the most popular airlines that fly from Des Moines to San Francisco.

Recent one-way flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco

Only flying one-way? Below are some of the best one-way flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco found on KAYAK recently.

Recent last minute flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco

Leaving soon but still want a bargain? Check out these latest deals for last minute flights from Des Moines to San Francisco.

Recent direct flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco

The latest deals for direct flights from Des Moines to San Francisco so you can sit back and relax without the need for a layover.

Cheap bus & train deals from Des Moines to San Francisco

Find recent round-trip train or bus tickets from Des Moines to San Francisco.

All round-trip flight deals to San Francisco

The cheapest plane tickets to San Francisco found on KAYAK recently.
Discover the best prices and deals for you by selecting your travel dates.
Choose your dates
9:15 pm - 7:42 amDSM-SFO
12h 27m1 stop
12:58 am - 8:15 pmSFO-DSM
17h 17m1 stop
$185Frontier
Find Deal
Sat, Aug 17 - Tue, Aug 27
2:15 pm - 6:53 amDSM-SFO
18h 38m1 stop
12:58 am - 8:15 pmSFO-DSM
17h 17m1 stop
$194Frontier
Find Deal
Sat, Aug 10 - Fri, Aug 16
6:00 am - 9:42 amDSM-SFO
5h 42m1 stop
2:25 pm - 11:44 pmSFO-DSM
7h 19m1 stop
$272United Airlines
Find Deal
Fri, Sep 13 - Tue, Sep 17
6:38 pm - 12:34 amDSM-SFO
7h 56m1 stop
10:54 pm - 9:41 amSFO-DSM
8h 47m1 stop
$276Delta
Find Deal
Fri, Sep 13 - Tue, Sep 17
5:45 am - 9:48 amDSM-SFO
6h 03m1 stop
11:51 pm - 11:37 amSFO-DSM
9h 46m1 stop
$316American Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, Jul 10 - Mon, Jul 15
3:58 pm - 10:47 pmDSM-SFO
8h 49m2 stops
5:49 am - 3:13 pmSFO-DSM
7h 24m1 stop
$321American Airlines
Find Deal
Wed, Aug 14 - Sat, Aug 17
6:29 pm - 12:31 amDSM-SFO
8h 02m1 stop
12:51 am - 11:12 amSFO-DSM
8h 21m1 stop
$341Delta
Find Deal
Fri, Aug 16 - Mon, Aug 19
8:00 am - 7:29 pmDSM-SFO
13h 29m2 stops
2:25 pm - 11:44 pmSFO-DSM
7h 19m1 stop
$367United Airlines
Find Deal
Tue, Sep 3 - Sat, Sep 7
9:00 am - 11:58 amDSM-SFO
28h 58m2 stops
7:05 pm - 10:52 pmSFO-DSM
25h 47m2 stops
Fri, Jul 12 - Wed, Jul 17
1:14 pm - 10:52 pmDSM-SFO
11h 38m2 stops
11:59 pm - 11:27 pmSFO-DSM
21h 28m2 stops
Thu, Jun 20 - Wed, Jun 26
2:30 pm - 11:59 pmDSM-SFO
11h 29m1 stop
$106Frontier
Find Deal
Wed, Jul 10
2:20 pm - 6:53 amDSM-SFO
18h 33m1 stop
$110Frontier
Find Deal
Sat, Jul 13
7:31 pm - 12:21 amDSM-SFO
6h 50m1 stop
$138American Airlines
Find Deal
Tue, Jul 16
3:22 pm - 10:41 pmDSM-SFO
9h 19m1 stop
$177American Airlines
Find Deal
Sun, Sep 22
6:00 am - 9:39 amDSM-SFO
5h 39m1 stop
$183United Airlines
Find Deal
Tue, Jul 16
5:08 pm - 12:56 amDSM-SFO
9h 48m2 stops
$188United Airlines
Find Deal
Tue, Jul 16
6:32 am - 2:23 pmDSM-SFO
9h 51m1 stop
$209Delta
Find Deal
Tue, Jun 18
7:00 am - 8:19 pmDSM-SFO
15h 19m2 stops
$238Delta
Find Deal
Thu, Jul 11
6:40 am - 10:52 pmDSM-SFO
18h 12m2 stops
Fri, Jun 21
6:00 am - 8:11 amDSM-SFO
28h 11m3 stops
Sun, Aug 11
9:42 pm - 6:59 amDSM-SFO
11h 17m1 stop
12:59 am - 8:19 amSFO-DSM
5h 20m1 stop
$258Frontier
Find Deal
Mon, Jun 3 - Tue, Jun 4
9:42 pm - 6:59 amDSM-SFO
11h 17m1 stop
12:59 am - 8:14 pmSFO-DSM
17h 15m1 stop
$268Frontier
Find Deal
Mon, Jun 3 - Sun, Jun 9
9:42 pm - 6:59 amDSM-SFO
11h 17m1 stop
12:59 am - 1:33 pmSFO-DSM
10h 34m1 stop
$297Frontier
Find Deal
Mon, Jun 3 - Sat, Jun 8
6:00 am - 9:27 amDSM-SFO
5h 27m1 stop
6:30 am - 11:37 pmSFO-DSM
15h 07m1 stop
$665United Airlines
Find Deal
Sun, Jun 2 - Sun, Jun 9
6:00 am - 11:50 amDSM-SFO
7h 50m2 stops
6:45 am - 5:49 pmSFO-DSM
9h 04m1 stop
$691United Airlines
Find Deal
Mon, Jun 3 - Wed, Jun 5
10:40 am - 6:28 pmDSM-SFO
9h 48m2 stops
12:40 am - 11:18 amSFO-DSM
8h 38m1 stop
$806Delta
Find Deal
Mon, Jun 3 - Tue, Jun 4
8:59 pm - 1:09 pmDSM-SFO
18h 10m2 stops
11:59 pm - 2:55 pmSFO-DSM
12h 56m2 stops
Mon, Jun 3 - Sun, Jun 9
5:40 pm - 12:02 pmDSM-SFO
20h 22m3 stops
11:59 pm - 2:55 pmSFO-DSM
12h 56m2 stops
Mon, Jun 3 - Sun, Jun 9
6:14 pm - 12:12 amDSM-SFO
7h 58m1 stop
12:07 am - 9:02 pmSFO-DSM
18h 55m1 stop
$1,264Delta
Find Deal
Tue, Jun 4 - Sat, Jun 8
5:40 pm - 12:02 pmDSM-SFO
20h 22m3 stops
7:30 am - 8:47 pmSFO-DSM
35h 17m3 stops
$1,315WestJet
Find Deal
Mon, Jun 3 - Sun, Jun 9

Flights from Des Moines to San Francisco - Travel Insights & Trends

Get data-powered insights and trends into flights from Des Moines to San Francisco to help you find the cheapest flights, the best time to fly and much more.

What’s the cheapest day of the week to fly from Des Moines to San Francisco?

The average price of all flights from Des Moines to San Francisco clicked on KAYAK for each day over the last 12 months.
For Des Moines to San Francisco, Wednesday is the cheapest day to fly on average and Monday is the most expensive. Flying from San Francisco back to Des Moines, the best deals are generally found on Wednesday, with Sunday being the most expensive.

What is the cheapest month to fly from Des Moines to San Francisco?

To calculate monthly average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each month over the last year for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the median of all values for each month.
The cheapest month for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco is September, where tickets cost $429 on average. On the other hand, the most expensive months are January and March, where the average cost of tickets is $569 and $554 respectively.

How far in advance should I book a flight from Des Moines to San Francisco?

To calculate daily average prices, KAYAK takes all prices for each day before departure over the last year for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco, removes the top 0.1% to account for outliers, and then takes the average of all the values for each month.
To get a below average price on the flight from Des Moines to San Francisco, you should book around 1 week before departure. For the absolute cheapest price, our data suggests you should book 78 days before departure.

Which airlines provide the cheapest flights from Des Moines to San Francisco?

The cheapest price for the route for each airline clicked by KAYAK users in the last 72 hours.
In the past 3 days, the cheapest one-way tickets to San Francisco from Des Moines were found on Frontier ($106) and American Airlines ($138), and the lowest round-trip tickets were found on Frontier ($185) and United Airlines ($272).

Good to know

Low season

February

High season

June

Cheapest flight

$106
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 8% drop in price.
Most popular time to fly with an average 12% increase in price.
Flight from Des Moines to San Francisco

When to book flights from Des Moines to San Francisco

Are your dates flexible? Find out the best times to travel from Des Moines to San Francisco based on our flight data from the last year. Discover the cheapest month and even day to fly.
Estimated round-trip price
KAYAK looks at all historical flight data for each date to provide a predicted price for one-way trips or round-trips with a duration up to 40 days. While we try to provide actual minimum prices for each date, some prices are predictions and actual prices may differ.

FAQs for booking flights from Des Moines to San Francisco

  • What is the cheapest flight from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    In the last 3 days, the lowest price for a flight from Des Moines to San Francisco was $106 for a one-way ticket and $185 for a round-trip.

  • Do I need a passport to fly between Des Moines and San Francisco?

    A passport is not required to fly from Des Moines to San Francisco.

  • Which airports will I be using when flying from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    Des Moines and San Francisco are both served by 1 main airport. You will leave Des Moines from Des Moines and will be arriving at San Francisco.

  • Which aircraft models fly most regularly from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    We unfortunately don’t have that data for this specific route.

  • Which airline alliances offer flights from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    oneworld, Star Alliance, and SkyTeam are the airline alliances operating flights between Des Moines and San Francisco, with SkyTeam being the most commonly used for this route.

  • What is the most popular layover when flying to San Francisco from Des Moines?

    Denver is the most popular layover city among KAYAK users traveling from Des Moines to San Francisco.

  • Which is the best airline for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco, Delta or United Airlines?

    The two airlines most popular with KAYAK users for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco are Delta and United Airlines. With an average price for the route of $497 and an overall rating of 8.0, Delta is the most popular choice. United Airlines is also a great choice for the route, with an average price of $520 and an overall rating of 7.4.

  • How does KAYAK find such low prices on flights from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    KAYAK is a travel search engine. That means we look across the web to find the best prices we can find for our users. With over 2 billion flight queries processed yearly, we are able to display a variety of prices and options on flights from Des Moines to San Francisco.

  • How does KAYAK's flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy my flight ticket from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a flight to San Francisco from Des Moines is likely to change within 7 days, so travelers know whether to wait or book now.

  • What is the Hacker Fare option on flights from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    Hacker Fares allow you to combine one-way tickets in order to save you money over a traditional round-trip ticket. You could then fly to San Francisco with an airline and back to Des Moines with another airline. Booking your flights between Des Moines and SFO can sometimes prove cheaper using this method.

  • What is KAYAK's "flexible dates" feature and why should I care when looking for a flight from Des Moines to San Francisco?

    Sometimes travel dates aren't set in stone. If your preferred travel dates have some wiggle room, flexible dates will show you all the options when flying to San Francisco from Des Moines up to 3 days before/after your preferred dates. You can then pick the flights that suit you best.

See more FAQs

Top 4 airlines serving from Des Moines to San Francisco

 
See real verified KAYAK customer reviews for airlines flying from Des Moines to San Francisco. Airline scores are aggregated from all reviews left by passengers on KAYAK after flying with an airline. KAYAK doesn’t show reviews that are older than 5 years. Learn how KAYAK collects reviews.
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from Des Moines to San Francisco? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
8.0
DeltaOverall score based on 10410 reviews
7.4Food
8.2Boarding
8.6Crew
7.9Comfort
8.0Entertainment
Airline reviews

Had to change aircraft due to a faulty door. Surprisingly it only caused about an hour and a half of delay. Delta handled this situation as well as can be expected.

8.0 ExcellentLiam, May 2024SLC - SJC
Read more about Delta reviews

Had to change aircraft due to a faulty door. Surprisingly it only caused about an hour and a half of delay. Delta handled this situation as well as can be expected.

Your crew could maybe answer the call bell at least one of the times I pressed it. I pressed it first time with 2.5 hours left in our flight bc my partner was hungry and wanted a sandwich. We finally got the sandwich with 40 mins left in the flight.

The Flight crew didn’t serve us until about 1.5 hours into the flight because of turbulence but after it ended it was fine to move around. They served us water only and snacks and then NEVER, NOT ONE TIME came through to collect trash until right before landing about 1.5 hours later. There was absolutely no need for that. They crew was just standing around talking and visiting with each other and really never tried to see if we might want something besides water or even try to come pick up trash. This is VERY unusual for a Delta flight but it was not what I would have expected for a 4 hour flight.

There was a loud squeaky sound the whole time we were flying.

Had a broken tray in business class. Crew just shrugged it off.

I didn’t like that I could not select my seat and was assigned a seat when I checked in at LAX

Great experience overall. Check in at Austin was congested as they only have about 6 check in kiosks, one was broken, and there was a lot of Spring Break travelers.

Bag drop off was slow and annoying. Only 2 agents at the entire delta desk, and no one directing traffic for what line to be in, many confused people slowed down the process. Boarding was fine. Seats in Delta comfort plus were fine. Snacks were great! Definitely a bonus. The entertainment system was awful — old, slow, not responsive, and completely unable to play games due to some kind of error. But on the other hand, thank you to Delta for the free WiFi. That made it better.

Everything was very good other than I had selected a specific seat when I booked the flight and they changed it once I checked-in the day before my flight. I was still in first class but lost my aisle seat for a window seat. Being tall, the aisle offers more comfort so I always select an aisle seat.

Flight diverted in SD. Later take off in Seattle by 1.3hrs

Dinner was okay but the breakfast was not eatable on the flight San Francisco to Zurich.

I’ve had a couple flights this week on United that were delayed by an hour or more

Should have video screens Plane audio was poor and without wired connection hard to understand crew. Should serve more than just cups of water and pretzels on six hour flight. Did not see crew rest of flight. Fix charging sockets to retain charging blocks.

Do not like the feeling of being in the basic economy. Everyone should feel good no matter what.

So so. Terrible aircraft choice for that leg of the flight.

delay several times and wait extra long to board. no entertainment service because there are problem for some rows. always encounter some delays for the last flight of the day.

This was a Lufthansa flight. Disappointing main meal. Very rough over Canada and arrival at FRA. IFE was almost unusable.

I was not able to buy food in the flight. They refer to include your Credit card in the APP, and if you are not from USA (i have a credit card form Canada) it is not possible

United airline kept delaying our flight back to Phoenix for 8 hours before they cancelled it! If they know that we are not flying out for whatever the reason is, why did they keep lying to us for hours. We could find another flight earlier or even find a hotel with a shuttle. But cancellation at about midnight was not fun. We stayed in the airport all night till the following morning when we bought an Alaska tickets to go back to Phoenix. Total of 14 hours in the airport.

Poor seating comfort, seat cushion too thin, very uncomfortable. My luggage didi not make the flight due to equipment change. At least. United had it delivered the next day. I was without my toilet items for one day.

My husband and I pre-ordered our food, but they did not have my husband’s order, and my cheese plate was very average. I asked for a blanket and was told they don’t carry blankets on domestic routs. The flight was on time and smooth!

There were delays on both ends. It made it less than excellent. This plane was great though

Everything was great except for the wifi was junk. Crew was super friendly and helpful

Attendants were rude. Scowling. Seats were miserable and we paid extra.

Somehow I got “offloaded” even though I had my boarding pass and was in transit Food is horrible Staff were nice and cheerful No headphones were provided on 11 hours flight

Fight crew was not very attentive and the bastions were gross!

Our flight was great we left Kona earlier and got into LAX almost an 1hour earlier as well. LAX AA is in repair so to get out and found our bus to get pick up was a bit confusing.

Plane was good but was delayed. probably not AA fault but caused a 1 hour delay. Seating was cramped.

The staff were very helpful with lots of refreshments on offer. The toilets were clean. The seats were comfortable and entertainment was good. No complaints, it was excellent.

5 hour flight - full flight - not enough room to use my computer - slightly delayed - Admirals club was excellent quality food, drink made up for flight seating. No food offerred on flight, you ahd to prebook.

Flight was delay 9hrs and nothing was provided at airport, had to go and get a room to sleep in, paid for Uber back and fort with no offers until we landed back home a 1hr later for a $75 voucher for a future flight.

Didn't like anything..entire crew was very rude to everyone on the flight. Plane old and the trays fall down on you the while time you're flying. Charged more for a carry on bag than for the plane ticket itself. Did make it from point a to point b, but worth the extra money to fly with another airline

9 hours of delay!! Was not able to check my luggage that I paid for!!!

It was delayed 9 hours for operational reasons, despite the plane arriving to the airport on time.

I am very disappointed with Frontier Airlines. They cancelled our flight because they couldn't find a crew member, and then didn't get us to our connecting flight. We had to cancel our whole vacation. We were promised flight and hotel vouchers, but they never sent them.

9hrs delay and didn’t provided anything until after flight landed $75 voucher for fiuture travel no meals or anything.

It was ridiculously hard to check in for the flight, and Frontier charged us a LOT of money to have a carry on suitcase, and then told everyone we could not carry on bags and had to check them through at the gate, and didn't refund the extra money we paid to have the suitcase as carry on.

I had a terrible experience with Frontier. I arrived before the 60 minute cut off and was told that Frontier has a two hour window for bags. I was then told the next available flight wasn’t until the end of the day (I had booked a 6am flight). I took a look around and saw other people being told that they could not board their flights or that they had to pay additional fees. I opted to rebook on American Airlines. There’s absolutely no straightforward way to contact Frontier, so this ticket was a complete waste of money. Oh - and the kicker is that the lady lied about the two hour cut off.

Frontier won’t help you at the airport without paying $25. Carry on was $75. Then you get on the plain and every beverage or snack is also a charge. Seats are hard and real packed in. I would never fly them again.

Worst experience I have seen. The flight was cancelled without any reason.

Book cheap flights from Des Moines to San Francisco

Recent one-way flight deals

 
Only flying one-way? Below are some of the best one-way flight deals from Des Moines to San Francisco found on KAYAK in the last 72 hours.
7/10Wed
1 stopFrontier
11h 29mDSM-SFO
$106
7/13Sat
1 stopFrontier
18h 33mDSM-SFO
$110
7/16Tue
1 stopAmerican Airlines
6h 50mDSM-SFO
$138
9/22Sun
1 stopAmerican Airlines
9h 19mDSM-SFO
$177
7/16Tue
1 stopUnited Airlines
5h 39mDSM-SFO
$183
7/16Tue
2 stopsUnited Airlines
9h 48mDSM-SFO
$188
6/18Tue
1 stopDelta
9h 51mDSM-SFO
$209
7/11Thu
2 stopsDelta
15h 19mDSM-SFO
$238
6/21Fri
2 stops
18h 12mDSM-SFO
$280
8/11Sun
3 stops
28h 11mDSM-SFO
$284

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Last minute flights from Des Moines to San Francisco

Last minute flight, train and bus deals

 
These last-minute flight deals are the cheapest flights found on KAYAK in the last 72 hours for flights from Des Moines to San Francisco that are departing in the next 10 days.
6/3Mon
multi-stopFrontier
11h 17mDSM-SFO
6/4Tue
multi-stopFrontier
5h 20mSFO-DSM
$258
6/3Mon
multi-stopFrontier
11h 17mDSM-SFO
6/9Sun
multi-stopFrontier
17h 15mSFO-DSM
$268
6/3Mon
multi-stopFrontier
11h 17mDSM-SFO
6/8Sat
multi-stopFrontier
10h 34mSFO-DSM
$297
6/2Sun
multi-stopUnited Airlines
5h 27mDSM-SFO
6/9Sun
multi-stopUnited Airlines
15h 07mSFO-DSM
$665
6/3Mon
multi-stopUnited Airlines
7h 50mDSM-SFO
6/5Wed
multi-stopUnited Airlines
9h 04mSFO-DSM
$691
6/3Mon
multi-stopDelta
9h 48mDSM-SFO
6/4Tue
multi-stopDelta
8h 38mSFO-DSM
$806
6/3Mon
multi-stop
18h 10mDSM-SFO
6/9Sun
multi-stop
12h 56mSFO-DSM
$892
6/3Mon
multi-stop
20h 22mDSM-SFO
6/9Sun
multi-stop
12h 56mSFO-DSM
$942
6/4Tue
multi-stopDelta
7h 58mDSM-SFO
6/8Sat
multi-stopDelta
18h 55mSFO-DSM
$1,264
6/3Mon
multi-stopWestJet
20h 22mDSM-SFO
6/9Sun
multi-stopWestJet
35h 17mSFO-DSM
$1,315

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Des Moines - San Francisco Flights

Departure:

Des Moines (DSM)United States

Destination:

San Francisco (SFO)United States

Return flight deals:

San Francisco - Des Moines

Cabin classes: